Orange You Glad I Mix Patterns?

I want to thank everyone for their understanding with my previous post. I try my best to keep the outside world from intruding on my blog, but sometimes it does.

I spent several hours helping my eleven year old son sort through the crap in his room. I'm generally happy enough to ignore his room, but it was starting to smell like feet. To my relief, I located a number of dirty socks because I was momentarily concerned he might have a wedge of Stilton beneath the bed he'd forgotten. Have you ever gone through an eleven year old boy's room and tried to throw things out?
"I need that paper aeroplane. I made it in second grade."
It went on like that for several hours, but in the end we can now close the cupboard door, and come tomorrow he won't miss most if any of it. I have no doubt it will return to the same state eventually as kids are shit at throwing out paper, but for the next couple of months I can hopefully have an easier time hanging away his clean clothing without climbing over piles of Leggo, Matchbox cars, and comic books.

This top and skirt were not a set, in fact the blouse is something I bought at K Mart years ago, and the skirt is a rayon, Indian-made skirt from heaven only knows when. The addition of the silk cardigan in the top photo is probably too much but since when has that stopped me? 

I've had these sandals so long I forgot where I bought them. A corner of the strap was thoughtfully chewed away by our late poodle, but that hasn't stopped me wearing them. I have a bit of a dilemma. I like to keep my toenails polished in summer, but my toes are almost always purple/blue from poor circulation. Red polish makes it look worse, and the purple I tried earlier in the week gave the impression I;d been embalmed. So far, orange has been the best colour I've tried, and as you can see, it still isn't great. Thoughts, anyone? 

Outfit Particulars:

Cotton top-K Mart

Rayon skirt-Goodwill

Silk cardigan-Goodwill

Sandals-Can't remember

Earrings-K Mart

Vintage necklace-The Mexican Shop, Evanston, Illinois

Wooden bangles-Hand-Me-Ups

Bamboo bangles-Hand-Me-Ups

Vintage wooden beaded bag-Goodwill

Belt-Shop Ko

Fragrance-Ma Griffe

Xerox the budgie is doing well. I grated up some raw carrot for him tonight, but he seems reluctant to try it. Our dining room table is visible from where his cage sits in the room, and when we all sit down to eat he hops from his perch and begins eating as well. The first time it happened we joked that he was mimicking us, but after a few days we now know that he really is. We've had to keep him away from the window as he can see the birds at the feeder and starts to freak out. Understandable-grackles are big birds. We've discovered that Xerox does not like listening to NPR as he began to screech and continued to do so until I switched it off. I can relate, some days you're better off not listening to the news. 

That's about it from here. Thanks to all of you again for being so understanding. I'm not easily pushed into reacting to boorish behaviour, but it happens. 

I hope your week is treating you well. 

Danny's Curried Tofu and Onions-Women's Day, 1966

 

This week Danny's recipe once again comes from his favourite set of cookery books, The Women's day Encyclopedia of Cookery. I don't know how Indian this recipe is, but it was well received. Danny substituted baked t5ofu for the chicken. The recipe for baked tofu will be included at the end. This would also work well with the vegetarian "chicken" products available at health food stores.

The rice has coconut, apricots, mint, and a lime leaf stirred in halfway through cooking. Nice if you have lime leaves, but no big deal if you don't. The curry was so flavourful it didn't really need anything beyond plain rice.



The recipe gave a choice of using butter or oil. I would interpret butter as ghee, and as we were pressed for time, I encouraged Danny to use oil. I know, five minutes of skimming and straining is hardly work, but oil is still easier. If I had ghee, I would have let him use it.

We put together an interesting chutney this week with dried apples, dates, pears, and pretty much whatever I had to use up. I'm forever finding bags of dried fruit with but a handful left because some people...(not naming anyone here) refuse to use up the old before opening the new. Thank god for chutney. Anyway, we made a large batch as there's no point in doing otherwise.

For the baked tofu:

Slice a 1 lb. block of extra firm tofu into fourths. Press between towels with a weight (a heavy pan will do) for 10 minutes. Change toweling, and repeat. Meanwhile, stir together 4 tablespoons oil, 2 tablespoons cider vinegar, 2 chicken or veggie flavoured soup cubes-crushed, 1 tablespoon honey, and some minced onion to taste. Pour into a casserole dish. Add the pressed tofu, cover and let marinate overnight. Next day, heat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Carefully turn slices, and bake another 30-40 minutes or until firm, and nicely charred at the edges. You can make this up to 3 days ahead.

For the Curry (They called it Murgha Kari, but I have my doubts as this was an American cookbook from 1966 when curry powder was only for devilled eggs)

4 medium onions, chopped
2 tablespoons curry powder (he used half that as ours is strong)
1/2 cup butter or oil
1 8 ounce tin of tomato sauce
2 teaspoons salt (Danny halved that)
1 frying chicken (2-3 lbs) or the tofu as prepared above, disjointed and skinned
3/4 cup hot water

In a large pot with a lid (or a skillet with a lid) heat the oil, onions, and curry powder over medium heat for 10-15 minutes or until the onions are soft. Add tomato sauce and salt. Add chicken or tofu and cook uncovered over medium heat until tomato sauce is mostly dry, and the chicken tests done (the tofu will be fine, you need not worry about overcooking it). Add the hot water, cover, and reduce heat to low. Heat through 5 minutes. Serve with rice.

Lime Pickle

This is an ungodly spicy pickle. I say that as a warning, and to point out that you can of course, adjust the peppers to your taste. Mr. ETB really loves this sort of thing with a curry, so I put that dozen limes I picked up for .19 cents to use. Really, .19 cents at the Asian market that just opened off of Cass in Omaha. Go around the corner to Hy-Vee and they are .89 cents each. Guess where I buy my limes? Mint and basil are a bargain there as well.

It will take a month for these to be at their best. They get stored in the fridge, so the whole canning bit can be skipped, but I did sterilise my jars for ten minutes in boiling water because I'm a nerd that way.

This pickle is best with thin skinned limes, but the others will do if that's all you can lay your hands on. Feel free to adjust the spices, omit at will, and play around with the recipe as you like. The basic proportions of oil to limes is what really matters-all else is a matter of taste.

Makes 2 quarts of lime pickle.

You Will Need:

12 limes cut into 8 wedges
1/2 cup coarse salt
2 teaspoons turmeric
2 teaspoons cumin seed
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
2 teaspoons fenugreek seeds
3 teaspoons mustard seeds (I used yellow, but brown is OK)
5 chopped green chillies (or, if you don't want to screw around with this, use chili flakes to taste)
4 cloves garlic, sliced
a 2 inch piece of peeled ginger, grated
1 tablespoon oil
2 cups oil (I used soybean, but anything you like will do)
1/4 cup granulated sugar

Cut the limes and toss with salt in a large non-reactive bowl. Set aside.

Combine turmeric, cumin, fennel, fenugreek, and mustard seeds. Fry a few minutes in a dry pan, then grind. I use a dedicated coffee grinder for spices, keeping chillies to their own grinder. I find this works best, and I have an assortment of them for various tasks. You can almost always find nearly-new onces in thrift stores for a couple bucks. this is money really well spent.

In the tablespoon of oil, fry the chillies, ginger, and garlic for a few minutes until they begin to brow. Reduce heat, add the limes and salt, oil, sugar, and ground spices. Mix well and simmer gently over low heat for ten minutes.

Carefully pack into sterilised jars and seal. Store in fridge. The pickle takes about a month to mature. It should last about 8 months.

Lemon Rice(Neebu Chawal) (sort of)

I made a few changes to the original recipe in, The Spice Box Vegetarian Indian Cookbook, but it still turned out wonderful. I wasn't sure how Danny would feel about something so tart, but he didn't complain (and cleared his plate) so I guess we can add this to the regular curry/rice rotation. That's good, I like variety in the weekly menu.

You Will Need:

3 cups rice
6 cups water

(I use slightly less water to cook my rice, but that's more a personal taste thing)

3 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 cup cooked green peas
2 tablespoons chopped stem ginger
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
4 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped, preserved lemon (yeah, that was my addition)
5 fresh curry leaves
Salt to taste

Cook the rice well ahead (a few hours and least) and let cool in fridge. When completely cold, break it up.

In a very large pan or pot, heat the oil and over medium heat, fry the mustard seeds until they pop. Lower heat, add peas, ginger, and cook a few minutes until ginger is soft. Add lemon juice and curry leaves and cook a few minutes longer. Remove from heat, and stir in the rice a bit at a time (I needed a metal spatula to break it up well). Cover, and keep warm until ready to serve.

Aloo Bonda (sort of)

While it is true that these are indeed deep fried potato fritters, the filling really belongs in samosas. I improvised.

A few pointers are in order, for the novice deep-fry cook.

1). Really hot oil. If the oil isn't hot enough, they will become soggy.

2). Drain on a metal rack over a baking sheet-not on paper toweling-unless you like soggy fried food.

3). Don't crowd the pan-fry no more than four at a time in a large kettle.

4). Watch the temperature (use a thermometer) to be certain it returns to high heat between batches. Adding food cools it down.

5). For the love of god-don't leave the room.

6). Keep a cover for the frying kettle handy-just in case.


For the Filling:

4 large potatoes, boiled, mashed smooth and cooled (I put mine through a food mill, but you can use a hand masher).
1 cup cooked frozen peas
Madras curry powder to taste
Salt to taste
1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon cooking oil
A dash of hot pepper
1 teaspoon minced, dried onion.

Well before you plan to fry them, combine the potatoes, peas and spices in a large bowl and mix well. Chill until ready to use.

For the batter:

1 1/2 cups AP flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 large egg
(about) 1 cup whole milk

Sift dry ingredients and then add the egg. beat well and slowly add the milk until you have a thick, but still pourable batter-thicker than crepe batter, but enough that it will coat and stick to balls of mashed potatoes.

Form potatoes into golf-ball sized balls and set aside.

Heat the oil (use one with a high smoking point) in a deep, heavy kettle or whatever you use to fry. When oil is hot, dip a few balls at a time into batter, and using a slotted spoon let excess drip off before frying them. Turn a few times while cooking and fry until deeply browned. Drain. Serve hot.

Saffron Tofu Curry

This curry was met with requests for second servings-always a good sign. I served it over rice cooked with a cinnamon stick, 2 cloves, and a handful of raisins.

You Will Need:

1 block extra firm tofu, pressed dry of liquid, and cut into cubes
1-2 tablespoons oil for frying
1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
2 tablespoons hot water
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 tablespoon ghee
2 large onions, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
Chopped fresh ginger to taste (about 1 tablespoon was what I used)
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 cups vegetable stock


Soak the saffron threads in hot water for ten minutes.

Fry tofu in a pan with a small bit of oil until golden on all sides. Set aside.

Heat oil and ghee in a large pot (I used a Dutch Oven). On medium heat, add the onions, garlic and ginger. Cook until softened-about ten minutes. Add tofu, spices, and coat well. Add saffron and stock. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover, and cook 20 minutes longer. Adjust salt and pepper.

If you still have too much liquid, remove the tofu, turn up the heat and reduce the stock until you have about 1/2 cup. Pour back over tofu.

Serve hot over rice.

Winter Squash and Pea Shoot Curry-Chapati Recipe Follows

I'm lousy with squash at the moment, and running out of counter space to keep them. For this curry I used a Carnival squash, and a Buttercup, but you could easily substitute Acorn, or Butternut, or Pumpkin even. Curry is pretty adaptable. I probably shouldn't treat it as a dumping ground for gluts of vegetables, but honestly, I do. I suppose if anyone around here would eat risotto we'd have another place to bury the unwanteds, but we all pretty well hate the stuff.

I looked around the web for inspiration, and didn't really find any. The closest recipe I could find to what I had in mind insisted on thickening the whole affair with arrowroot. I should think with an entire tin of coconut milk that would be overkill, but we tend to like our curry on the thinner side to pour over rice. Keeping this in mind, I'll offer a recipe of sorts, but you go ahead and fiddle with it until it suits your tastes-hey, don't argue with me, I don't know how spicy you like curry, or if you prefer oil to ghee. Go fiddle already.

I served this with some curried apple chutney I made last year (our final jar-time to can more) and chapatis (recipe follows at end of post). The boys both had seconds, so I'll take that as a positive review.


For the Curry:

4 cups of peeled, seeded. cubed winter squash
3 tablespoons cooking oil

Roast in a pan at 400 degrees F. for about an hour, until soft. Can be made ahead.

2 large onions, chopped
4 tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1/8 cup cooking oil (I used soybean)
4 cups fresh pea shoots
1 tablespoon Madras curry powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tin (400 mil) coconut milk (you can use less, or half water if you prefer a lighter version)

In a large pot, cook the onions, ginger, and garlic over medium heat with the oil until onion starts to brown-try not to burn the garlic. Add the curry powder and salt and mix well. Add the cooked squash, and pea shoots. Cook for about 2 minutes over low heat. Add the coconut milk and cook a bit longer until it is heated through. Serve hot, over rice (see below)

For Spiced Rice:

1 3/4 cup water
1 cup rinsed and drained jasmine rice
1/4 cup flaked coconut
1/4 cup raisins
1 cinnamon stick
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
Salt to taste

Bring water to a boil, add everything except rice and return to a boil. Stir in rice, cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes longer. Fluff with fork before serving (remove the cinnamon stick, of course).

For Chapatis:

Open all your windows (seriously, these will smoke up the kitchen as they bake)

In a bowl, mix 1 cup whole wheat flour with 1 cup AP flour. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt. Begin with 1/2 cup (you may need double that) of water, adding slowly until the dough comes together in a ball. If it is crumbly, add a tablespoon at a time until you can work it. Gather into a ball and let rest while the pan heats.

I make these on a cast iron pan that is ungreased. Most cast iron pans have enough residual grease and oil from other cooking that nothing will stick. It will smoke a bit, but a fan and open window will do the trick. Divide the dough into 12 balls. Dust them generously with flour and roll out into 5 inch circles. Toss them, one at a time onto a hot pan. Bake until they begin to brown, then flip and cook on the other side (about a minute each. On the second turn, use a spatula to lightly touch the chapatis in the centre-they should puff up a bit. Remove to a piece of foil that you can fold over into a pouch to keep warm. Makes 12.

Naan

I ran out of olive oil this week and since I have five foot drifts of snow blowing across the access road, I won't be buying any soon. That's OK. Here's an easy flatbread that works nicely in place of pita. I'm making a tofu-coconut curry for dinner, so actually this might have been an even better choice of bread after all.

Have I mentioned the blizzard outside? The snow has stopped falling, but you still can't see because of the winds blowing it around. I'm going to gather the family around after dinner and read The Blue Hotel to them aloud. If this weather keeps up, I'll have to read them the Gulag Archipelago.

This bread is simple enough to make if you have clarified butter on hand. You can substitute sour cream for the yoghurt as well. The onion seeds are a nice touch, but obviously you can leave them off, or top the naan any way you like. Sure, they would be better made on a grill but as I've already pointed out...oh god, will it never, ever end? I don't typically feel this sick of winter until around February. Well, actually there was that one winter when I lived in Newton, Mass. and the snow just kept falling, and falling and then it would stop and we'd get another storm. It was seemingly endless and the only thing on television was the re-played (over and over) tape of Nancy Kerrigan getting whacked in the knee with a truncheon. The local press were all camped out in her parents driveway in Stoneham and like, for weeks we'd get reports of who was coming and going from their house. Hell, after a few days of listening to her screaming, "why?!" I was thinking...well no, I wouldn't have really wanted to whack her other knee, but still I was getting kind of tired of being trapped in the house with nothing on the telly save that. So what was I talking about? Oh yeah, winter. Damn, I sure have had enough of winter-how about you?

You Will Need:

1 1/2 teaspoons granulated yeast
1 cup warm water
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
3 cups AP flour
1 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons melted and cooled ghee (clarified butter) divided
3 tablespoons yoghurt
3 teaspoons onion seeds (optional)

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water and let stand until foamy (about ten minutes). Add the flour, salt, 3 tablespoons of the ghee, and the sour cream. Knead until smooth. Place in an oiled bowl and let rise until doubled-about 90 minutes. Punch down and knead a few minutes more.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a pan with foil and oil it lightly.

Divide the dough into 8 pieces and knead each into a ball. Roll each piece out into a teardrop shape. Roll them about 1/4 inch thick as they will snap-back into shape on the pan and become thicker.

Fit as many as you can on the pan without sticking together. Brush lightly with half the remaining ghee and sprinkle with half the seeds. Bake about ten minutes or until they puff and become slightly golden. Remove pan from oven, turn breads and repeat ghee and seeds on other side. Continue baking until golden (about another ten minutes). Serve warm.

Naan is best eaten the day it is made, but can be re-heated wrapped in foil in the oven next day. I wouldn't microwave them.

Spice Mixes

When I cook, I often prepare my spices ahead of time and have them mixed in a bowl, waiting. I don't prepare jars of mixed spices as my cooking tends to be somewhat improvisational from day to day and sometimes I like to go wild, and use extra cumin or something. Still, for people that don't cook every day, and don't have two kitchen cabinets devoted to spices, a jar of mixed spices can be a thoughtful holiday gift.

I tend to buy my spices in small, ethnic markets where they are less expensive and move off the shelves regularly. That isn't to say I'm above grabbing a jar of mustard seeds at Hy Vee, in a pinch, but I do pay a premium for doing so. As I said, cooking all our meals at home, I tend to go through spices before they lose their strength. If a large bag of ground coriander is more than you'll use in a year, why not find someone to share with, or turn the excess spices into a thoughtful gift-provided you put some thought into it. A jar of curry spice isn't much of a gift if the recipient does not make curries.

The measurements I'll give here should make mixes that will fill a jar with between 2-4 ounces of mixture. Baby food jars are perfect, but so are empty jars from salad cherries, olives, and the like. Ball Jars are nice, but expensive and they tend to take up quite a bit of room in a cabinet, so unless you are making something in a quantity, stick to smaller, easier to handle jars. Fabric remnants and ribbon make an attractive decoration. If you're feeling inspired, print out a few recipes using the spices to go along with the gift.

Here are some ideas:

Madras-Style Curry Powder:

4 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon fenugreek
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon dill seed
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon mace
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Pinch cinnamon

Garam Masala:

1 tablespoon whole peppercorns
16 whole cloves
6 whole cardamom pods
1 piece cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon small black cumin seeds
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons whole cumin seeds

Grind everything together. I have a dedicated electric coffee grinder I use for Indian spices and another for chillies. You can pick up electric coffee milks, often unused for a couple dollars at the Goodwill and other thrift stores. Don't buy a new one for this sort of thing.


Refried Beans/Chili Mix:

You can make this hotter if you prefer by adding more red pepper flakes. When getting ready to grind whole chilies, heat a dry frying pan (cast iron works well) until quite hot. Toss the dried chilies onto it and cook until they puff a bit. Remove, cool slightly and then cut open and remove seeds. Grind well. Obviously, you don't need to remove the seeds, but it does tend to make for very hot seasoning if you don't, depending on the variety you use.

4 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons ground coriander
4 tablespoons mild chili powder (I like Ancho chillies)
2 teaspoons dried epazote
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1-2 tablespoons sweet (not smoked) paprika


Let me know how you like them.

Squash and Chickpea Coconut Curry

Another curry born of what I had lurking in the fridge. I doubt I've ever made the same curry twice, but the boys thought this one was good enough to post.

You Will Need:

6 cups cooked chickpeas, skins removed
1 large acorn squash, seeds removed, peeled and chopped into cubes
4-5 tablespoons ghee
4 large carrots, chopped
2 large onions, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon stem ginger, chopped
1 cup dried flaked coconut
1 tin coconut milk
Salt (If using chickpeas from a tin, omit)
A very generous grinding of black pepper

Spice Mix:

3 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon fennel seeds

Mix together the spices and set aside.

In a large pot, heat the ghee over medium heat and cook the onion, carrots, garlic and ginger until softened. Add the coconut flakes, squash, and chickpeas. Cook a few more minutes adding more ghee if needed. Stir in spice mix and fry for a couple minutes to well-coat everything. Stir in the coconut milk. At this point, you will probably want to add a cup or two of water. Start with one, and cook everything down over a good boil. If you think it would benefit from another reduction after tasting, go ahead and do it.

Serve hot over rice.

Curried Kale

A reasonably simple vegetable dish to serve with other curries.

You Will Need:

1 large bunch of kale
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
3-4 tablespoons cooking oil or ghee
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon Madras curry powder
Water

Strip the kale leaves from the stalks. Cut them finely. In a large pot, heat the oil, onion and garlic and cook until softened. Add the kale and cook a few minutes to coat the leaves. Stir in salt and curry powder.Add 1 cup of water and increase heat to a boil and cook until water evaporates. Do this 3-4 more times, using a wooden spoon to mash the kale as you go. Cook off most of the liquid before serving.

Green Pea Curry With Tofu

Obviously, not a traditional Matar Ki Sabzi , but an interpretation.

I added the tofu because this was to be served as a single dish and I thought it needed protein. I used fresh peas, but if you don't feel like spending an hour and a half with a four year old shelling them all-feel free to use frozen. The tomatoes I used were cherry tomatoes because I had them going overripe quickly. You could of course use any sort.

I didn't have any (Yeah, yeah, I know-a food blogger that can't eat, hilarious) but Danny cleaned his plate and Mr. Eat The Blog had seconds. I served it over jasmine rice (which is my everyday rice)but you could of course use Basmatti.

Adapted from The Spice Box, Vegetarian Indian Cooking

You Will Need:

2 tablespoons ghee
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 medium onions, sliced
2 cups cherry tomatoes cut in half
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 tablespoon sugar
3 cups of fresh peas
Salt to taste
1/2 cup hot water
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 tablespoon lemon juice


Heat the ghee in a large pot and toast the cumin seeds for two minutes over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until browned. Add tomatoes, all the powdered spices (except garam masala) and sugar. Add peas and hot water and cook ten minutes. Add lemon juice and garam masala. Serve hot over rice.
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Curries, Fruited Rice, and Chutney

I've made both of these curries before HERE and HERE. The chutney recipe is HERE.

I thought I'd mention how nice it is to can your chutney in the fall and then enjoy not standing over the stove cooking it in summer. At the time I canned it, we thought it was too sweet, but it did mellow and develop some character over time and everyone really enjoyed it tonight.

Here's the thing I want to share about the rice-you need to add the fruit after cooking, or the rice will turn mushy. Go ahead and make the rice as you ordinarily do and then add the fruit after it has cooked. Cover it, and let it stand five minutes, then fluff with a fork and serve. For this rice I chopped up crystalised ginger, dried apricots and sultanas. Sure, there was plenty of dried fruit in the chutney, but my family has certain expectations for rice, and fruit is one of them when serving curry.

(Another) Chickpea Curry

I know, I know-how many ways can you make chickpea curry? Well, actually this one is somewhat unique as it calls for paprika, which I've never run across in Indian cookery. So there, unique.

It certainly came together fast, which was great because after spending the day at the circus, I really didn't feel like complicated cooking.

From Confident Cooking Curry and Chilli [sic] Cookbook, Bay Books, Australia

You Will Need:

1 tablespoon ghee
2 onions, sliced
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 lb. tin of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
14 oz. tin chopped tomatoes with juice
1 teaspoon garam masala

Heat ghee in a large pan. Add the onion and garlic cooking until onion is soft. Add the chili powder, salt, turmeric, paprika, cumin, and corriander. Cook, stirring for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the chickpeas and tomatoes. Simmer, covered on low heat for 20 minutes. Stir in the garam masala. Cover and simmer another ten minutes.

I served this over rice.

Saag Paneer With Mustard Greens

No photo because let's face it, that is not a photogenic meal.

I had two generous bunches of mustard greens to cook and no idea what to do with them. Mr. Eat The Blog bought them at the farmer's market because they looked nice. I hadn't eaten them since I was a child and our housekeeper discovered them growing wild in the un-landscaped land behind our house. I should explain that-we had just moved to the suburbs of Chicago and our home was built on what had previously been farmland. We had many strange things on that land-little grey things that looked like crayfish living in the storm basin, a quince bush, and wild turnips (also with greens). Ella Mae (that was really her name, and a dear, dear woman she was) couldn't believe we were going to just let the greens grow and die and insisted on picking and serving them.

I don't remember them being awful, but it wasn't something I'd willingly eat unless I was trying to be polite. I feel the same way about collard greens and kale, so obviously I'm not a good judge of quality greens. I like spinach, and can tolerate beet greens, but that's about it.

I suspect if you're willing to use some bacon fat, or salt pork most of these greens can be made more interesting. Since I'm not willing, I tried to come up with something imaginative to do with my quantity of something I dislike. I did what any good cook would do (not really) I disguised it in Indian food! Heck, under cumin seeds, ginger and cabbage, you'd never know there was a good pound or two of mustard greens in it...or would you?

Danny knew. After a proud "That's my boy" moment I permitted him to pick out the pieces of paneer and eat the curried potatoes and chutney instead. I can always get the kid to eat chutney and yoghurt.

Mr. Eat The Blog loved it though. Really loved it, which is good as I have a large casserole filled with the stuff.

The saag recipe HERE is what I used exchanging the spinach for about a pound of trimmed mustard greens.

The paneer recipe is HERE and makes an excellent activity to impress a three year old. It is quick and simple to do.

Chapatis

These are a bit less traditional as I used a combination of whole milk and yoghurt in the dough. This produces a much softer chapati than one made with water. Substitute water in the recipe for milk and yoghurt if you prefer that style.

Makes about 12

You Will Need:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup yoghurt
additional milk if needed
1 teaspoon salt

Mix the flours and salt together in a bowl. Add the yoghurt and the milk slowly until the dough comes together in a ball. Pinch off into 12 pieces. Roll out into a 5 inch diameter round (about) on a well-floured board.

Heat a griddle or cast iron skillet very hot (don't do this with a teflon coating or you'll end up brain damaged or something). Cook the chapatis about 1 minute each side, touching lightly with a wooden spoon to make them puff a bit.

That's it. Easy.

Matar Pullao (Rice With Peas) And Chickpea Curry

What better thing to cook when you're doubled over with intestinal pain? Well yeah, obviously I didn't eat any-but everyone else still had to eat, and they loved it. I made quite a large amount as it will be rather hot over the next few days and these dishes re-heat well in a microwave. I also made a fresh cherry chutney to go with it (recipe will follow at end).

The curry is a recipe of odds and ends. I had two sad little carrots and three small tomatoes from the garden so I used them. You could substitute whatever vegetables you have on hand-courgettes would work nicely here, provided you don't overcook them to a watery mess (please, don't do that). Red peppers would also be nice.

I cook my own chickpeas which does mean planning ahead for an overnight soak. I've always been successful cooking my beans rather plain-just a couple bay leaves and water. Some people cook beans and peas with salt in the pot, but my experience with that has not turned out well. besides, you'll spice up the beans just fine in curry.

The Matar Pullao is a fairly common Indian dish and is usually topped with a generous serving of fried onions. I didn't do that, but feel free if you wish to go a traditional route. I pinched off the bottoms of the cloves and just tossed in the buds because I was afraid Danny might not see them to pick out. Grown-up eaters could probably just toss in whole cloves. A spice bundle with cheesecloth won't really work well here. As the recipe makes quite a bit, be sure to get the leftovers into a shallow pan (or two) to cool rapidly in the fridge. Rice has some weird potential for food borne illness that I've never fully understood (or encountered). My suspicion is that it becomes a problem when people have take-away Chinese food that they do not get right home and into the fridge. Personally, I've never known anyone that was food poisoned by rice, but go ahead and get it cooled quickly just in case. To be on the safe side, re-heat it well before serving.

You Will Need:


For The Chickpea Curry:

8 cups cooked chickpeas (if using tinned, omit salt in recipe)
2 large onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 carrots, thinly sliced in ovals
1 cup cooked green peas
1-2 tablespoons fresh ginger peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons ghee
1 tablespoon oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon turmeric
3 teaspoons coriander powder
1 cup + hot water
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
2 teaspoons garam masala
3 small tomatoes

Heat the oil and ghee in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the carrots, ginger, garlic, and onions. Cook until soft. Add chickpeas, green peas and spices. Add coconut milk and tomatoes. begin thinning with water as it cooks. You may need up to three cups of water before it is finished according to your taste. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer cooking uncovered until quite soupy-about 25 minutes. Serve over rice.

For The Matar Pullao:
(Based on the recipe in The Spice Box by Manju Shivraj Singh)

4 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
4 whole cloves
1 stick cinnamon
2 tablespoons raisins
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup green peas
2 cups basmatti rice rinsed and soaked for 20 minutes, then drained
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 1/2 cups water

In a large heavy pot heat the oil and add the cumin, cloves, cinnamon and raisins. Fry 2 minutes. Add the onion and fry 2 more minutes. Add peas, drained rice, salt and pepper flakes. Cook until onions are soft. Add the water, bring to a boil then reduce to simmer. Cover and cook twenty minutes. Serve hot.

Fresh Cherry Chutney:

1 cup pitted and chopped Bing cherries
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup chopped dried apricots
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 red onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/8 cup chopped crystalised ginger

Bring everything to a boil in a small pot. Reduce to medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally about twenty minutes or until most of the liquid( but not all) has evaporated. Keeps one week in fridge.

Red Lentil Curry

I picked up an Australian cookbook at the thrift store last week. While the recipe isn't traditional Indian cooking as I know it, the Australian take on red lentil curry was delicious.

From Confident Cooking Curry And Chilli Cookbook

1 cup red lentils, rinsed ( and rinsed, and rinsed) and drained

2 cups vegetable stock

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 2/3 oz. ghee

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 large green chili, seeded and finely chopped

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons ground coriander

2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1/2 cup coconut milk

Place the lentils, stock and turmeric in a heavy pot. Bring to the boil, then cover and reduce heat to simmer. Cook ten minutes.

While the lentils cook, heat the ghee in a frying pan and cook the onions until brown and soft Add the garlic, chili, cumin, and coriander. Cook, stirring for a few minutes until mixed. Stir the onion and spices into the lentils and add the tomato. Simmer over very low heat for 5 minutes. Adjust seasonings (salt and pepper) and then add the coconut milk, Stir through to re-warm and serve hot.

Naan II and Mint Chutney

Unlike the last naan I made, this recipe does not use yeast. It also comes up much puffier and less "pita-like." The recipe comes from my favourite Indian cookbook, The Spice Box by, Manju Shivraj Singh, as does the recipe for mint chutney.

I used bread flour and skim milk in mine without any bad results. I made a few changes in the technique such as having the milk at room temperature and adding the leavening agents with the dry ingredients.

For the Naan:

2 cups bread flour (you may need more, so keep it handy)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup milk (at room temperature)

2 tablespoons melted ghee, cooled to room temperature

1/2 cup of yoghurt (I used lowfat)

1 egg

1 tablespoon ghee for brushing tops

1 tablespoon onion seeds for topping

In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients. add the wet ingredients and mix well until you have a soft dough, adding more flour if needed. Let rise in a buttered bowl for four hours, covered.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Divide dough into four parts. Pull the dough with your hands into the shape of a footprint. Brush the top with a little ghee and top with some onion seeds. Wet the bottom with your other hand by dipping it first in water (it sounds weird, I know). Place on baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes or until nicely browned. They may stick a bit, so give them a good budge with a thin spatula and don't freak out if you have to really chop them off the sheet. It cleans up easily enough.

For the chutney:

2 cups chopped mint

2 medium onion, chopped

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 fresh green chili, seeded and chopped

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 cup water

Put everything in a blender and grind.

Iced Curry Soup

It was unusually warm here today (near 80) and my husband was out driving in the city in a shirt, tie, and a car without air conditioning. I thought a cold dinner was in order. Thankfully, he liked it unlike our citrus-hating son who gagged on the first spoonful as though we'd fed him potted groundhog or something. I suppose it is a legitimate dislike-he had no idea it contained orange juice until he tasted it. I'm actually pretty surprised he could taste it beneath yoghurt and curry, but I guess if you really detest something, you'll spot it. I'm not going to force it on him-after all, I wouldn't want to eat a cucumber.

The soup worked well for Passover as it does not contain beans or flour.

The soup is spicy and if you're not used to curry, you can cut back on the powder quite a bit. I also used a generous grinding of black pepper which could be omitted. It wasn't flaming hot, but it did leave a bit of a burn.

From The Best Of Food And Wine Collection, 1988

You Will Need:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 large tart apple, peeled and chopped

1 large baking potato, peeled and diced

1/2 cup dry white wine (I actually used vermouth and it was fine)

2 cups chicken stock (I used vegetable stock) divided

1 thin slice of ginger

1 teaspoon salt (omit if using a salted stock)

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 cup fresh orange juice

1 cup plain yoghurt

In a pot, cook the onions and garlic over medium heat until softened but not browned-about five minutes. Add the curry powder and cook another three minutes. Stir in the apple, potato and wine. Cook until the wine evaporates-about three minutes. Stir in 1 cup of the chicken broth and the ginger. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook until potato is very soft-about 20 minutes.

Remove from heat and cool slightly. Puree the soup in a blender (carefully opening the pouring hole now and then to let steam escape) in batches until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the rest of the stock. Chill several hours. Before serving whisk in the yoghurt and orange juice. Serve in chilled bowls (I used small mugs so it could be sipped).