‘Page 16 Cassiar Courier September/October 1988 NEIGHBOUR by Karen Taplin September for many people is a month for begin- nings. Students return to classes, starting afresh with new teachers and some new classmates. Adults return to work, hopefully rested and ready for the challenges thet await them. So planning a column for this month would normally involve trying something new; at least new to some of us. Having spent the summer working again at the hospital has made this month one of endings as. well. -Gver the summer we said good-bye to Susan Brown ‘and Mary Elhorn, and we wished Darlene Mattson good luck on her winter project. September sees the departure of Nirmal Kaul, a lady who has surely “done her time” in: the North. She leaves for Vancouver, to join Atul, _ Dee and the baby, Mneesha, as well as Anil and husband Kapal. I asked her to choose some of her favorite Indian recipes which. represent. foods from many parts of her native country. Try them. DEEP-FRIED PUFFY BREAD (POORI) These deep-fried breads puff up in hot oil like balloons. They are crispy-soft and may be eaten with almost all Indian meats, vegetables and split peas. It is most economical - and safe - to make pooris in a wok. or an Indian karhai. You may use 2 cups chapati jlour to make the pooris. If you cannot fe ind it, use the combination suggested below. Ic. all-purpose flour 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil 1 c. sieved wholewheat flour ¥ tsp. salt 45 c. water or milk Put the two flours and salt in a bowl Dribble the oil over the top. Rub the oil in with youe fingers so the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Slowly add the water to form a stiff ball of dough. Empty the ball on to a clean work surface. Knead it for 10-12 minutes or until it is smooth. Form a ball. Rub about % tsp. oil on the ball and slip it into a plastic bag. Set it aside for 30 minutes. Knead the dough again, and divide it into 12 ~ equal balls. Keep 11 of them covered while you work with the twelfth. Flatten this ball and roll it out into a 5 in. circle. If you have the space, roll out all the pooris and keep them in a single layer, covered with cling film (plastic wrap). Over a medium flame, set about I in. of oil to heat in a wok or small deep frying pan. Let it get very, very hot. Meanwhile, line a platter with paper towel. Lift up one poori and lay it carefully over the surface of the hot oil. It might sink to the bottom but it should rise in seconds and begin to sizzle. Using the back of a slotted spoon, push the poori gently into the oil with tiny, swift strokes. Within seconds, the poori will puff up. Turn it over and cook the second side for about 10 seconds. Remove it with a slotted spoon and put it on the platter. Make all the pooris this way. The first layer on the platter may be covered with a layer of paper towel. More pooris can then be spread over the top. Serve the pooris hot. SERVES 4. LAMB COOKED IN THE KOLHAPURI STYLE Within. Maharashtra, as in much of India, dis- tricts, even towns, have their own distinct cuisines. Kolhapur is associated with the foods of the Mahrattas, who were once the bravest of Indian warriors, fighting both Moghul emperors and imperial British forces with great success. This dish, with its superb, dark sauce, is quite fiery if eaten in Kolhapur. The recipe calls for 10-12 whole red chillies. I find 4 chillies fiery enough. You can use more or less as you desire. You may serve this meat with rice and any In- dian bread. A relish, such as Cucumbers with Fresh Coconut, or Tomato and Onion with Yoghurt, could be served on the side. 2 lb. boned lamb from the shoulder, cut into 1% in. cubes } For the marinade: 4 Tbsp. plain yoghurt 2 tsp. finely grated fresh ginger 1 tsp. finely crushed garlic % tsp. turmeric PO OPPO PLN ONG APOE LL OL SI RIE LILLIES Ba Ot NR wy . Weill miss the treats she brings in for tea so- $ For the sauce: ¥% tsp. vegetable oil T% in. cinnamon stick 10 whole cardamom pods 3 medium onions, peeled 2 tsp. finely crushed garlic 3 small tomatoes, finely chopped 2-4 dried hot red chillies 10 whole cloves 2 Tbsp. coriander seeds 6 Tbsp vegetable oil 1 tsp. finely grated ginger 1% tsp. salt Put the meat in a bowl. Add all the marinating seasonings and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight if you prefer. Lightly grease a small cast-iron frying pan with the % tsp. oil and heat it over a medium-low. flame. When it is hot, put in the dried hot red chillies and the cinnamon stick. Stir these around until the red chillies darken. Remove the spices and put them in a plate. Put the whole cloves, cardamom pods and coriander seeds into the same frying pan. Stir and roast the seeds until they darken a few shades. You will be able to smell the roasted coriander seeds. Put these spices into the same plate as the chillies and cinnamon. Put all the roasted spices from the plate into the container of a clean coffee grinder or other spice grinder. Grind as finely as possible. Cut all the onions in half, lengthwise. Now slice half of these sections crosswise into very fine half rings. Chop up the other half as finely as you can. When the meat has finished marinating, heat the 6 Tbsp: oil in a wide, heavy pan over a medium-high flame. When hot, put in just the sliced onions. Stir and fry them until they are reddish-brown in colour. Now put in the very finely chopped onions and stir them for 1 minute. Turn the heat down to medium-low. Put in the garlic and ginger. Stir for a few seconds. Put in the ground spices from the coffee grinder and stir once. Now add ¥% c. water. Continue to stir and cook ona medium-low flame, stirring as you do so, for 3-4 min- utes. You will begin to see the oil as it separates from the spice mixture. Now put in the marinated meat. Turn up the heat to medium-high. Stir and fry the meat with the spice paste for 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and salt. Continue to stir and cook for another 5 minutes. Now add about I c. water and bring to a simmer. Cover, turn heat to low and simmer for about 1 hour or until the meat is tender. Just before serving, you can spoon the fat off the top if you so desire. SERVES 4-6. BHOPALI PILAF WITH PEAS AND CARROTS There are many versions of this delicious pilaf in Bho- pal. You can make a simpler pilaf for everyday cooking by leaving out the peas and carrots; this is called Bhagare Chaval (Flavoured Rice). It, too, is superb. You may serve either version with a meat, such as Lamb cooked with Pickling Spices, and a yoghurt relish. 2 c. Basmati or other long-grain rice 14% in. cube of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped 6-8 large cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped 4 Tbsp. vegetable oil or ghee 4 whole cloves 1 large whole black cardamom pod or 3 green or white cardamom pods 1 in. cinnamon stick 2 bay leaves 4% tsp. whole black cumin seeds ¥% in. piece of whole mace 1 medium-sized onion, cut in half lengthwise and then cut crosswise into very fine half-rings 2 small carrots, peeled and cut roughly into the same size as the peas’ 1 c. shelled peas, fresh or frozen J tsp. salt Pick over the rice and wash it in several changes. of water. Drain. Put the rice in a bowl and cover with 5 cups of water. Leave to soak for 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly. Put the ginger, garlic and 1 Tbsp. water into the container of a food processor or blender, Blend until you have a paste. ~ Heat the oil in a heavy pan over a medium-high flame. When very hot, put in the cloves, black carda- mous, cinnamon, bay leaves, black cumin seeds and ’S KITCHEN mace. Stir once and put in the onion slices. Stir and fry until the onion slices turn reddish-brown. Now put in the ginger-garlic paste. Fry for 2 minutes. Put in the carrots and peas. Stir and fry for 1 minute. Now put in the drained rice and the salt. Lower the flame a bit. Stir and fry the rice for 2-3 minutes. Now put in 2% cups water and bring to a boil. Cover very tightly, turn the heat to very low and cook gently for 25 min- utes. SERVES 6. MOONG DAL COOKED WITH RED SPLIT LENTILS ¥% c. skinned moong dal ¥% c. red split lentils [ tsp. ground turmeric % tsp. salt 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil ¥% tsp. whole cumin seeds 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 small tomato, chopped 1 small onion, peeled and cut pinch of ground asafetida into fine half rings foptional) ¥4 tsp. ground coriander ¥% tsp. ground cumin % tsp. red chili powder (cayenne pepper) Pick over the moong dal and the red split lentils. Put them in a bowl and wash them in several changes of water. Drain and put in a small, heavy pan with 4 cups of water and the turmeric. Bring to a boil. Cover partially, turn the heat to low and simmer gently for 1 hour or longer until soft. Add the salt and stir it in, Heat the oil in a small frying pan over a medium . flame. When hot, put in the asafetida. A few seconds later, put in the whole cumin seeds. A few seconds after that, put in the garlic and onion. Stir and fry until the onion is browned. Now put in the tomato. Stir and cook until the tomato is soft. Put in the ground coriander, ground cumin and red chili powder. Stir once and add the contents of the frying pan to the cooked dal. Stir to mix. This dal can be reheated easily over a low flame. 2 SERVES 4. CARROT HALVA 6 medium carrots 3c. milk 8 whole cardamom pods ¥, c. vegetable oil or ghee 6 Tbsp. sugar 1 Tbsp. unsalted pistachios, crushed 2 Tbsp. sultanas (golden raisins) 1% c. heavy cream, lightly whipped (optional) Peel the carrots and grate them either by hand or in a food processor. Put the grated carrots, milk, and cardamom pods in a heavy-bottomed pot and bring to a boil. Turn heat to medium and cook, stirring now and then, until there is no liquid left. Adjust the heat, if you need to. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium-low flame. When hot, put in the carrot mix- ture. Stir and fry until the carrots no longer have a wet, milky look. They should turn a rich, reddish colour. This can take 10-15 minutes. Add the sugar, sultanas and pistachios. and fry for another 2 minutes. This halva may be served warm or at room tem- perature. Serve the cream on the side, for those who want it. Stir SERVES 4. ESSO dealers SCHEDULE Monday - Thursday open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday - open 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday - open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. CLOSED SUNDAY Cassiar , B.C. 118-7383 —————— W.S.T.V. 10TH ANNIVERSARY by Don Campbell October 1 , 1988 is the ten-year anniversary for . the local cablevision company known as WSTV. Providing coverage on 10 channels, the service is almost a necessity in this remote community. Owned and operated by the Schneeberger’s, it is part of their business complex which includes W.S. Electronics and Radio Shack. The Schneeberger’s moved from Whitehorse to Cassiar in 1970 and, seeing an opportunity and a need, started a cablevision system in 1974. Those early years with ore of the first “earth-stations”, as they were called, were a bureaucratic nightmare, although Cassiar Mining have always been co-operative and helpful, Mr. Schnee- beerger stated. WSTV is in the process of renovation at this time, which includes a new type of monitor on each station being received. In addition, the live studio area that has teen in use for fundraising events for the community is being replaced; this will now be used for equipment. In place of the studio, a new two-way system is being in- stalled. When complete, live broadcasts from anywhere in town can be picked up and seen on television almost instantaneously. Sitting behind his desk, Mr. Schneeberger ex- plained that there were four things needed in this area to. enccurage local business. “We need a large town to serve this area of B.C. --Cassiar could be that town--we need power, we need a railway and we need decent roads.” Werner Schneeberger hasn’t sat and waited for those things. He has built his business in site of the lack of those things. Perhaps there is a message there for all of us. Cassiar Courier September/October 1988 Page 17 _——[——_—_—_ ssi Courrier_ September/October 1988 Page 17 NEW DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCED AT NORTHERN LIGHTS COLLEGE A new department at Northern Lights College - is currently completing its first quiet year of operation. Distance Education has made some courses avail- able throughout the College region, the largest region in the province. An attempt has been made to offer university transfer, vocational, and technical courses. It is hoped that as the service develops, students, regard- less of their location, will be able to access most programs offered on campus. The method of delivery will relate directly to student need and the ability of instructors to deliver quality instruction. Distance Education is generally defined as that learning situation where an instructor is not necessarily present. Alternate instruction is provided by correspon- dence packages, telephone tutored courses, or teleconfer- ence delivery. Over the past year each method has been used successfully. Student reasons for taking Distance Education courses are as varied as the students taking them. For some its the only way to obtain the course because of physical isolation, For others it is simply unavailabil- ity of the course from any other source. This coming September, Early Childhood Educa- tion courses will be available. This program is the first to be fully committed to a distance delivery system. Students will now be able to earn their certificate through a ten month full-time program on the Fort St. John campus or part-time through the Distance Education department. For students, the choice is to work at home or the office, full- or part-time, and earn their certificate or commit to the full-time program. The various methods of delivery have been incorporated in the fall line-up of courses, correspondence, telephone tutored, and teleconference. Teleconferencing is the newest method added to the schedule. With the teleconference method students on all campuses, including learning centres at Hudson Hope, Tumbler Ridge, Cassiar, and Atlin, are telephone linked to each other and to the instructor at his/her home campus. Students who just completed a psychology course this May and June (intersession) report telecon- ferencing as very effective. Through videos, photographs, informal chats, and debates, students interact and de- velop a personal relationship that is not possible for Distance Education students without the teleconference technique. A philosophy course is planned via telecon- ferencing for this winter. Some personnel at the College have completed an in-service training course with the instructor located in Vancouver with other students located in Terrace and Prince George and have been invited to enroll in a London, England based live course. Distance Education has until this time concerned itself with making College credit courses available to our region. With the newest method of delivery, the College can move into specialty courses for industry, accessing technical experts anywhere in the world. Courses planned for this fall using all methods include some first and second year university cours°s, some Office Administration courses, and Early Child- hood Education. More courses in small business manage- ment are anticipated. For more information contact the Distance Education Office at 782-5251. Contact Person: Frances Adams Co-ordinator Distance Education Northern Lights College Phone: 782-5788 SCHOOL TRUSTEES NEEDED School District 87 (Stikine) is again looking for trustees. Four are presently needed for a term of two years, one each to represent Lower Post, Good Hope Lake, Dease Lcke and Cassiar. School Board trustees are public-minded persons with an interest in the education system. They are responsible for school policies on educa- tion and discipline, they hire school board personnel and they make decisions on how and where the government-allotted funds are spent. Because of the size of this district some travel is neccssary. Individuats interested in standing for elec- tion in one of these positions should file nomination papers before 12:00 noon on Monday, October 31, 1988. Contact Lee Coran at 778-7456 for nomina- tion papers or further information. NEW LAWS BRING OPPORTUNITIES FOR B.C.’S MINING INDUSTRY Starting August 15, 1988 British Columbia’s miners are working under the provisions of the new Mineral Tenure Act passed last spring by the legislature. “Two years of consultation with industry, in- terested groups and government agencies has given us the most up-to-date mineral tenure legislation in Canada,” said Mines Minister Jack Davis. The Act opens new opportunities for the placer mining industry, reinforces safeguards for the environ- ment and property-owners and clarifies some long-stand- ing legal points which have held back mining develop- ' ment. “BC’s mining industry continues to grow and expand and it is government’s intent to keep pace - with improvements a our legislation, tenure system and mapping programs,” said Davis. The new Act creates a simplified Placer Claim, which streamlines the earlier process for gaining placer rights. At the same time, the land area in the province open for placer staking has been increased 300 per cent, said the Minister. “Last year, placer miners spent $25 million in British Columbia. We have now expanded their op- portunities and will soon see the economic spin-offs which come from placer mining,” said Davis. “These are particularly significant for the Northwest and Cariboo re- gions of the province. Towns such as Quesnel and Atlin will see more business and employment as a result.” » > Safepuards have’ been agreéd With ‘BC’s Ministty ~ of Environment and the federal Fisheries Department so that placer mining is allowed only in appropriate areas and mining methods do not adversely affect other resources. Increased monitoring and inspection will start with this summer’s placer-mining season under a program agreed between the mines and environment ministries. To recover the program costs, placer fees have been increased. Other features of the Mineral Tenure Act mean that conflicts between miners and owners of private surface rights will no longer need to be resolved in the courts. Instead, they will be handled by the technically- expert Mediation and Arbitration Board which already mediates coal, oil and natural gas surface/sub-surface disputes. ; “Both the industry and private property owners will benefit from the Board’s work,” said Minister Davis. “Tt is a quicker, cheaper and more accessible forum and will be able to mediate both the areas covered by claims and the areas required for access and right-of- way on private land.” Other changes introduced include clarifying the definition of ‘industrial minerals’ in the tenure system. ’ This ends the long-standing overlap of mineral claims and Land Act leases for products other than sand and gravel, earth, soil and building materials. Printed with permission from ’ Thé Fort Nelson News’ BMD eos Ulva Seah SCHOOL BOARD TREASURER RESIGNS Amy MacLeod, Secretary Treasurer for the Sti- kine District 87 School Board has announced her resig- nation from the position as of September 30. At the Board of Trustees meeting on September 10, 1988, Keith Lanphear, Superintendent announced that her position has been filled. Victor Piric from Hin- ton, Alberta will be the new secretary treasurer. Victor, his wife Elaine and their three children will be arriving in Cassiar shortly. CALL THE CASSIAR For Squash Bookings SUBSCRIPTIONS -CASSIAR COURIER Box 100 Cassiar, B.C. VOC 1E0 Name -Street City Province Postal Code $12.00 Per Year