On a mission to promote early detection, one breast at a time
An innovative non-governmental organisation, PinkDrive, is dedicated to creating and promoting cancer awareness and providing screening services to men and women across South Africa, particularly those living in more rural areas where health services are not easily accessible.
Founded on the premise that “early detection will help to prolong life”, the campaign is a perfect fit for SPAR, which is on a mission to raise awareness around the benefits of early detection this Breast Cancer Awareness month, says Jacques Roets, SPAR Group Butchery & Perishables Manager.
From 1st-31st October, therefore, R2 per kilogram of every SPAR Select Chicken Breast fillet pack sold will be donated to PinkDrive in support of the important work they do to prevent as many people as they can from succumbing to not only breast cancer but other gender-related cancers including cervical, prostate and testicular cancer.
“As a business, we have always been deeply invested in the health and wellness of our people and our communities, and strive to support them and their initiatives in any way we can, which is why we are proud to join PinkDrive in their efforts to save lives,” he explains.
According to PinkDrive, when detected early enough, many cancers are treatable and could result in improved length of life for those afflicted by the disease. Recognising the challenge to reach those citizens where healthcare facilities are not in close proximity, Pinkdrive is dedicated to delivering mobile screening services in an attempt to provide more people with a timeous diagnosis and reasonable care. Conducted by skilled, certificated medical and nursing practitioners, these services include clinical breast exams and cancer education, mammograms, pap smears for women, and prostate-specific antigen testing for men.
“This is the launch of our second initiative this Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and will run in conjunction with our first one where we committed a portion of the sale of every SPAR 500ml Still Water with a pink label and cap to be donated to Cancervive, another equally deserving cancer awareness and education project in South Africa,” adds Jacques.
“Both Cancervive and PinkDrive are two worthy organisations that SPAR is proud to be affiliated with. We support their efforts to raise awareness about cancer and the importance of early detection, and we encourage our customers to contribute to this excellent cause by simply purchasing a SPAR Select Chicken Breast fillet pack in October,” he concludes.
And, if you’re looking for some meal inspiration, why not grab a pack of SPAR Select Chicken Breast fillets, and try your hand at one of these simple, yet tasty meals?
RECIPES:
STUFFED CHICKEN BREASTS
Here’s a great way to use up the leftover rusks in your biscuit tin. Tender chicken breasts filled with a spicy chilli, sun-dried tomato and rusk stuffing.
PREP TIME
20 minutes
COOKING TIME
25 minutes
SERVES
5
Ingredients
125 ml SPAR milk
5 ml dried chilli flakes
5 SPAR Freshline rusks (any variant, except chocolate chip)
5 SPAR Select Chicken Breast fillets
Salt and pepper to season
5 Sun-dried tomato quarters, in olive oil vinaigrette, drained well
5 Rashers SPAR streaky bacon
Method
1. Combine the warm milk and chilli, and pour onto the rusks. Set aside for 10 minutes then mash well using a fork.
2. Preheat the oven to 190°C.
3. Cut a horizontal pocket into the thickest part of each chicken breast. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. First, place a sundried tomato quarter into each pocket, and then fill generously with the chilli-rusk stuffing.
5. Wrap a bacon rasher around each breast, to semi-seal the pocket opening, and secure with a toothpick.
6. Place into a shallow oven dish and roast in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove the toothpicks before serving.
Hints & Tips
- Use this same rusk mixture as a delicious filling for canned peach cavities, and oven bake covered for 15 minutes, to serve as an accompaniment with pork or chicken.
- Stretch the bacon rashers before using them to wrap around the chicken, by lying them flat on a worktop and scraping a knife blade from one end to the other, to ”pull” it, which extends its length considerably.
ORANGE AND HERB CHICKEN FILLETS
Oranges and herbs provide a delicious tang to this chicken dish that’s lower in fat and salt but big on flavour.
PREP TIME
30 minutes
COOKING TIME
20 minutes
SERVES
6
Recipe Ingredients
4 SPAR Select Chicken Breast fillets (+-600 g)
125 ml cake flour with bran
250 ml SPAR low-fat Passion Orange yoghurt
6 SPAR Freshline oranges (rind of 6 finely grated, then 2 of these halved for squeezing juice, and 2 peeled and segmented)
250 ml dry breadcrumbs
3 ml dried thyme
3 ml dried sage
3 ml dried parsley
1 ml ground black pepper
15 ml corn flour
15 ml sherry
Recipe Method
1. Cut each chicken breast in half on the diagonal. Place these pieces one at a time, between their original cling film wrapping, and pound flat, using a rolling pin or similar utensil.
2. Preheat oven to 200 °C. Set up a row of saucers in this order, on your worktop to facilitate the stages of coating the chicken:
- flour
- yoghurt
- mixture of breadcrumbs, grated orange rind, herbs and black pepper.
- a greased baking tin
3. Turn each chicken piece over one at a time, in the flour. Dust off lightly and transfer into the yoghurt, turning over to completely cover in a layer of yoghurt. Transfer into the seasoned breadcrumbs to evenly coat and cover the yoghurt. Gently place onto the prepared baking tin. Repeat this coating process with other remaining 7 pieces.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Turn over each piece and bake for a further 5 minutes.
5. In a saucepan (or jug for the microwave) warm the orange juice. Add in the thin paste of combined corn flour and sherry, and while stirring, bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and add the orange segments.
Hints & Tips
- When grating the outer orange peel, avoid grating down as far as the bitter white pith layer.
- At the start of the Citrus season the oranges may not be sweet enough for this sauce; add in 10ml sugar to correct this.
- If you like a bit of heat, a touch of chilli may be added to the breadcrumb coating.
