Thursday, February 23, 2017

Sheba: From Hell to Happiness - Brian L. Porter, Author



SLOW COOKER BEEF STEW WITH DUMPLINGS
(The furry ‘people’ usually enjoy any leftovers too)

Ingredients
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 medium parsnips, cut into 2.5cm (1in) pieces
2 medium carrots, cut into 2.5cm (1in) pieces
1 large leek, cut into 1cm (½in) slices
3 tbsp tomato purée
1 kg (2lb 2oz) braising steak, cut into 4cm (1½in) chunks
Plain flour, to dust
200 ml (7fl oz) red wine
600 ml (1 pint) beef stock
3 fresh rosemary sprigs

FOR THE DUMPLINGS
Ingredients
125 g (4oz) self-raising flour
60 g (2½oz) suet
1 tbsp dried parsley

Method
Put the oil, vegetables and tomato purée into the bowl of your slow cooker. Dry the beef pieces with kitchen paper and dust with the plain flour (tapping off excess). Add to the slow cooker together with the wine, stock, rosemary and some seasoning. Stir to combine.
Cover and cook on high for 5hr or until the beef is tender.
After 5hrs of cooking, make the dumplings. Sift the flour into a large bowl and stir in the suet, parsley and lots of seasoning. Add 100ml (3½fl oz) cold water and stir to make a soft (and slightly sticky) dough.
Remove the lid and discard the rosemary sprigs. Pinch off walnut-sized pieces of dough, gently roll into a ball and place on top of the stew, spacing apart. Recover and cook for 1hr more. Check the seasoning and serve with mashed potatoes.


Ideal on a cold winter’s day, and usually some tasty leftovers for the dogs. This tasty dish can be thickened even more by adding a handful of pearl barley while cooking. 

Sheba:  From Hell to Happiness - Review by Martha A Cheves, Author of: Stir, Laugh, Repeat; Think With Your Taste Buds; and A Book and A Dish

"Can you tell what breed it is?" Juliet asked me, quietly.  "I'm not sure.  It's hard to tell, but at a guess, I'd say it's a little Staffy," I replied.  "It looks close to death's door," my wife said, choking back her own tears at this terrible sight, this symbol of man's in-humanity towards an innocent living creature.  "I want to ask Lisa about it."  

Lisa smiled as we walked back into the warmth of reception.  "Bet you've found something you like, haven't you?" she said with a knowing look in her eyes.  "Maybe," Juliet replied.  "What can you tell us about the little dog in the stables, the one under the heat lamp?"

The little dog that Author Brian Porter is talking about is Sheba.  She was underweight, her hair had been shaved off.  She had skin abrasions and deep ligature marks around her neck.  She had been thrown on a rubbish pile and was barely alive.  The cause of these injuries - she had been used as bait to train fighting dogs.

I'm an avid animal lover, especially dogs.  I've always had one and can't imagine my life without one of my best friends.  When I started reading this book I couldn't stop the tears and the anger that would build up inside me.  How can anyone be so inhumane?

I've read all of Author Brian Porter's books about the dogs he has rescued and I can't say enough about the kind heart he, his wife and daughters all have.  In my book, they are all some of the great ones for bringing these babies out of their living and sometimes dying hell into a beautiful, loving, comfortable life.

If you're a dog lover as I am, this is another one of those books that you simply must read.  It will really open your eyes to the cruel life these dogs live just for what some really sick people call a 'sport.'  I would love to put them through what they put these loving babies through.

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for your wonderful review of my book Martha. I just hope that people will read it and be made aware of the horror of dog abuse and the joy that comes from giving a loving home to the victims of such treatment. Sheba, Sasha and all our rescuedogs thank you too.
    Brian L Porter (author)

    ReplyDelete

 
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