Salad...old faithful friend!

Salad is a congregation of various foods, that may or may not contain leafy vegetables, usually served chilled or at a moderate temperature. Many people use the word "salad" to describe light, savory leafy vegetable dishes, most often served with a sauce or dressing, but the term may also refer to dishes made of ingredients such as fruits, grains, meats, seafood and sweets. Though many salads use raw ingredients, some use cooked ingredients; most salads use vegetables, though fruit salads also exist.

The word "salad" comes from the French salade of the same meaning, from the Latin salata (salty), from sal (salt). In English, the word first appears as "salad" or "sallet" in the 14th century.

The Romans and ancient Greeks ate mixed greens with dressing. In his 1699 book, Acetaria: A Discourse on Sallets, John Evelyn attempted with little success to encourage his fellow Britons to eat fresh salad greens. Mary, Queen of Sctos, ate boiled celery root over greens covered with creamy mustard dressing, truffles, chevril, and slices of hard-boiled eggs.

The United States popularized mixed greens salads in the late 19th century; other regions of the world adopted them throughout the second half of the 20th century. From Europe and the Americas to China, Japan, and Australia, salads are sold in supermarkets, at restaurants and at fast food chains. In the US market, restaurants will often have a "Salad Bar" laid out with salad-making ingredients, which the customers will use to put together their salad.

Salads may be served at any point during a meal, such as:

• Appetizer salads, light salads to stimulate the appetite as the first course of the meal.
• Side salads, to accompany the main course as a side dish.
• Main Course salads, usually containing a portion of heartier fare, such as chicken breast or slices of beef.
• Palate-cleansing salads, to settle the stomach after the main course.
• Dessert salads, sweet versions often containing fruit, gelatin and/or whipped cream.

Salads on offer at Red Tie Cafe:

http://redtiecateringjhb.wozaonline.co.za/Menu

http://www.zomato.com/johannesburg/restaurants?q=red+tie+cafe

Benedict...Eggs Benedict!

Eggs Benedict is an American breakfast dish that consists of two halves of an English muffin, topped with ham or bacon, poached eggs, and Hollandaise sauce.

There are conflicting accounts as to the origin of Eggs Benedict, including: In an interview recorded in the "Talk of the Town" column of The New Yorker in 1942, the year before his death, Lemuel Benedict, a retired Wall Street stock broker, claimed that he had wandered into the Waldorf Hotel in 1894 and, hoping to find a cure for his morning hangover, ordered "buttered toast, poached eggs, crisp bacon, and a hooker of Hollandaise." Oscar Tschirky, the famed maître d'hôtel, was so impressed with the dish that he put it on the breakfast and luncheon menus but substituted ham for the bacon and a toasted English muffin for the toast.

A third claim to the Eggs Benedict fame was circuitously made by Edward P. Montgomery on behalf of Commodore E.C. Benedict. In 1967 Montgomery wrote a letter to then NY Times columnist Craig Claiborne and included a recipe he claimed to have received through his Uncle, a friend of the Commodore. Commodore Benedict's recipe - by way of Montgomery - varies greatly from Chef Ranhofer's version, particularly in the hollandaise sauce preparation - calling for the addition of "hot, hard-cooked egg and ham mixture."

Red Tie Cafe launched their new menu in December 2013, and added their take on the Eggs Benedict, now called a Breakfast burger! Using the English muffin as you would a burger bun, it is filled with a poached eggs, grilled tomato, hollandaise sauce, beef patty and then your choice of either ham, savoury beef mince or creamed spinach...

http://redtiecateringjhb.wozaonline.co.za/Menu
http://www.zomato.com/johannesburg/red-tie-cafe-bryanston/info#tabtop