Quick Courgette Patties

This recipe is a light snack that you can have with either some tomato ketchup, or natural yoghurt. Courgettes have a very high water content so you need to make sure that you squeeze all the water out of the grated courgettes before adding the remaining ingredients. You do this by adding a teaspoon of salt to the grated courgettes, and then leave for about 3 minutes. You will then see all the water oozing out of the grated courgettes. Then just get a handful of courgettes at a time and squeeze out all the water.

Ingredients

Serves 2 Prep time: 20 mins Cook time: 20 mins

2 large courgettes; grated 

1 cube of ginger; peeled and finely grated

1/2 a green chilli; finely chopped

3 tbsp of gram flour (besan/chick pea flour)

Some oil for frying

Method

1. Grate the courgette add a teaspoon of salt and leave for 3-5 minutes. Squeeze all of the water from the courgette and transfer to a bowl. Add the ginger, chilli and gram flour and mix really well. 

2. Shape the courgette into patties and then heat some oil in a large frying pan, and lightly fry the patties for around 15-20 minutes or until cooked, turning every 5 minutes. 

3. Serve with a some tomato ketchup, or some natural yoghurt.

Spicy Polenta

What to do with polenta? I like polenta but I've never really known what to do with it. I know the Italians use it a lot, but most of the recipes I've seen require a lot of stirring and also require you to stir it for around 30 mins. So when my Mum showed me how to make spicy polenta in under 10 minutes I was all ears and eyes.

I've tried this at home, and have to say its a lovely little dish to have as a lunch or tasty snack. Add some salad or some grilled veg on the side, and you have a wonderful dinner.

This recipe is tasty, quick and simple.

Spicy Polenta

Ingredients

1 tbspn. of vegetable/sunflower oil
1/4 tsp. of mustard seeds
5 curry leaves
Large pinch of asafoetida (hing)
13 fl oz of water (you need double the amount of polenta, so two cups of water to 1 cup of polenta)
1/4 tsp of turmeric powder
1/2 tsp. of chilli powder
3/4 tsp. of salt
1 cup/130gr. of Polenta (coarse cornmeal)
2 tbsp of yoghurt

Method

Heat the oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds. Once they begin to pop add the curry leaves and the hing. Then add the water and all the spices. Allow the water to come to boil. Once it starts to boil add the polenta and yoghurt and stir so it all comes together and there are no lumps of polenta left. Stir for about 3-4 minutes.

Serve with a salad, some grilled vegetables, or just have on its own...like I do.

Baked Beans Curry

Now I know the title may not sound too appetising, but I assure you this is great comfort food territory.

Turning a can of baked beans into a curry was my very first attempt at making a curry. This was of course years and years ago, when I was a student and realising that I should have never taken my Mums food for granted. In fact, it was even the American Vegetarian's first attempt at making a curry. I feel it is like the first initiation. If you can turn a can of baked beans into a curry then you’re on the right road.

Last week I just had a craving for it, so thought I would share the wonderful simple and yet very comforting dish of baked beans curry with you. 

Ingredients

1 can of baked beans

Half an onion

5 curry leaves

1/4 tsp. of mustard seeds

1/2 tsp. of cumin seeds

1/4 tsp. of turmeric

1/2 tsp. of chilli powder (or a bit less if you don't like it too spicy)

1 3/4 tsp. of ground coriander

Some salt

1 tbsp. of oil

Method

Heat the oil in a pan and add the mustard and cumin seeds. Once the mustard seeds start to pop, add the curry leaves, and then add the onion. Stir and cook until the onions soften. Then add the can of baked beans and the rest of the spices. Now because there is already salt in the can of beans check the seasoning before you add the salt in. You will need some salt, just not an entire teaspoon of it. Let it cook together for around 5 minutes, then serve on either toast, or a jacket potato or however you like your baked beans.

De-lish.

Spicy left over rice (Vagherla Bhat)

Growing up there was always left over rice in the kitchen, and this recipe is a great way to make plain boiled rice into an exciting dish with attitude (as Jaime would say).

Ingredients

1 cup of left over cooked rice.
1/2 tsp of chilli powder
1/2 tsp of turmeric
3/4 tsp of salt
3/4 tsp of mustard seeds
3/4 tsp of cumin seeds
Some vegetable oil.

Method

Put the rice on a plate and add the chilli powder, turmeric and salt. Heat some oil in a frying pan, add the mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Once they start to pop and smell aromatic add the rice and mix well. Keep mixing until all the rice is covered with the spices and everything is cooked through.

I love this dish, and I don't know anyone who doesn't. Its great with some yoghurt or just as is.

OMG Home Made Mango 'Ice Cream' in 5 mins!

Ok so technically its not actually ice cream, but it is a very close contender, and the fact that you can make it at home in about 5 mins with only two ingredients, surely makes this worth a shout out.

It first appeared in our lives when the American Vegetarian wanted to make a mango smoothie. She got out the blender, frozen mango chunks, and some soya milk. But she just didn't have enough soya milk to make it into a proper smoothie. She kept the blender on and it just kept blending. The finished result was a mango ice cream look alike.

Ingredients

Frozen mango chunks; a big handful
Some soya milk. approx 50ml.

Method

Place both ingredients into the blender and blend. Now you will have to stop and start the blender and give it a stir so the mango chunks reach the blades. I stop and start about 5 or 6 times and give it a bit of stir to help it along. But you will end up with a thick creamy consistency of cold mango. Top with anything you want, or just eat as is.

Very refreshing on a hot summers day...when we actually have them!.

Simple store cupboard curry's

Sometimes when I come home and I don't want to spend an hour in the kitchen making dinner, I look in my store cupboard and see what I can curry up!

There is always a can of red kidney beans floating around as well as chick peas and black beans being essentials in our home.

Red kidney bean and sweetcorn curry is one of mine (and the American Vegetarian's) favourite store cupboard curry. The pair go together so well and we love how comforting it feels too. Now as this is is a dinner where I don't want to spend most of the evening cooking, we serve it with whole ice burg lettuce leaves and yoghurt and have a kind of lettuce wrap curry.

So this is my 'done in 30 minutes' dinner. Not quite to Jamies' standard but good enough for me.

Ingredients

1 400g can of Red Kidney beans; drained & rinsed under water

1 200g can of sweetcorn; drained & rinsed under water

1 tblsp of oil (Olive, vegetable or sunflower)

1/2 tsp of mustard seeds

3/4 tsp of cumin seeds

pinch of asafoetida (optional)

1/4 tsp of turmeric

1/2 tsp of chilli powder

2 tsp of ground coriander

3/4 tsp of salt

3/4 tsp of sugar

1 fresh tomato; chopped

some water

handful of fresh coriander

Method

Heat the oil in a pan and once hot add the mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Once they start to pop, add the asafoetida (if using) then add the red kidney beans and sweetcorn. Add all the spices and the tomato, and stir well. Add enough water so it covers the kidney beans and sweetcorn then cover with a lid half on and cook on a medium heat for 20-25 mins. Half way through the cooking time you can give it a stir and taste it to see if you need to adjust the seasoning. Add water if you want the dish to be more saucy. Once done garnish with the fresh coriander.

Serve with whole lettuce leaves, yoghurt and poppadoms, for an Indian lettuce wrap dinner.

(The picture above is not the dinner we had, but an idea of what it looked like!)