Orange Curry and Orange Ginger Apple Loaf Cake

We woke up early to go to the supermarket to top up on fruit and vegetables, along with other basic essentials. When we got there just before 7am, noticed that had changed the time of opening to 8am. We drove back home empty handed. I must admit, I was a bit anxious. It was my first time leaving the house.  Surprisingly the roads were busy as if we were going into work, which was unusual.  D commented on how busy it was, I stared out of the car window at the windows of the houses we drove past, displaying colourful rainbows. I wasn't sure what this was about, but when I got back home I did a search and learned that pictures of rainbows have started springing up in windows after schools had closed in response to the coronavirus outbreak, and primary schools are encouraging pupils at home to put up paintings to "spread hope". It was genuinely heart warming to see.

No rainbows in my window though...instead in my home was this Orange Cake and Double: Sweet Potato Curry. I say was, as I made it early this week and its all gone. 

Mid March, well before the quarantine  - D picked up a load of oranges to make juice with his manual juice maker, but typically I end up having to find ways of making the most of ingredients he picks up. 

So this egg free Orange Ginger Apple Loaf Cake was one way that I found myself using some of those oranges, but as I went to make the cake I realised that I did not need to use the whole orange - only the zest!  The cake also contains mixed dried fruit, black treacle aka molasses. 

The Double Potato and Pepper Curry with Chickpeas was made to use up what we had in the house. I found the Double Potato Curry a little sweet, so squeezed the juice of half of zested orange into it for liven it up a little.  It definately perked it up a little for my tastebuds. 

The  Orange Ginger Apple Loaf Cake was reminisce of steamed pudding or even closer to malt bread which is dark and squidgy, full of dried fruit. The recipe was adapted fromThe Vegetarian Gourmet: Easy Low Fat Favourites cookbook.  This was nice to eat warm (reheated in the microwave), but by day four it began to feel a bit dense and stodgy so we fed it to the birds, by the following day it was all gone. Nothing at home is going to waste, it rarely did before so I can continue to feel smug in that knowledge. 

Tomato Pilau with Coconut and Cashew Nuts

I have had Tarla Dalal Tomato Rice bookmarked for a little while, to make use of my homegrown tomatoes, but once again I was tempted by a tomato recipe that I came across in the Guardian's food section.  Tarla Dalal was a famous Indian chef, cookbook author, food writer and host of cookery shows.  her first cookbook 'The Pleasures of Vegetarian Cooking' was published in 1974.  Since then Tarla Dalal wrote over 100 cookbooks, of which I own some, but like I said I was tempted by another modern recipe. The recipe in question this time is for Summer Pilau with Tomato, Coconut and Cashew Nuts and once again comes from Meera Sodha, the food is well presented and captured wonderfully by the photographs .  The recipes are also accessible, which is good for any home cook.  Some of you will remember that recently I made her Lebanese Green Beans and Vermicelli Rice , so I knew this was going to be a good one to make and eat too.

I stuck to Meera Sodha's recipe for the Tomato Pilau, the only two things that were different.  I used dried curry leaves as I am not easily able to find fresh where I live; and secondly, this was due to my impatience - I did not brown the onions well, hence why my Pilau is not as golden, but let me tell you it was still delicious, moreso because of my homegrown tomatoes!  

D loved it and said I should make this for our American guests when they come in September.  Hopefully we will still have tomatoes coming from the greenhouse, in which case I shall be making it again.  

Meera suggests serving it with a fresh green salad.  I told my husband this and he rolled his eyes and suggested that I should have thrown in some of our homegrown green beans to the Pilau.  Instead he had his with a dollop of mango chutney, I think it was a good decision. If I have tempted you once again, then please check out the full recipe. 

Other Pilau Recipes you may like
Broad Beans Pilau with Mint
 Butter Bean and Kale Curried Turmeric  Rice
Cauliflower Pilau
Fenugreek and Radish Rice
Rainbow Carrot Rice Pilau
Savoury Jerusalem Artichoke Rice
Savoy Cabbage and Lentil Rice
Wild Garlic and peas Rice

Chai Malai Cake and Brick Lane Cookbook

I made this delicious Chai Malai Cake on one of those when I wished I could go back to bed and start all over.  

Its started off whilst making this cake.  Whilst bashing my cardamom I broke the mortar! How does that even happen (it was a cheap one), then I could not find my proper granite pestle and mortar gifted to me by my mother years ago.  No doubt stuck at the back of a kitchen cupboard!

Then I crack eggs for the whites, except a yolk falls in. I manage to scoop it out before it spreads. 

Sugar goes all over the floor.  I brush it up, don't want an army of ants in the kitchen (not that its ever happened to me in my new home).

The hand whisk throws up the self-raising flour into my face like dust...

Like I said, it was one of those days that I wished I could to go back to bed and start over again, but I persevered and this was the delicious and pretty result.

I don't eat much in the way of South Asian sweets and desserts, but the one that I do really like and indulge in when the opportunity arises is Ras Malai.   So I was completely sold when I saw Dina Begum's Chai Malai Cake.  It's a light masala spiced cake with a rasmalai inspired frosting with cardamom and rose.  I have something to admit though. I am not that partial to cardamom and regular readers will note its lack of absence in recipes on my blog.  The reason I have avoided this green pod with highly flavoured and scented seeds is rooted in my childhood.  My mother always made spiced chai at home, and when we had guests she would go mad and include extra cardamom.  Cardamom was also thrown in most recipes, sweet rice and even savoury rice.  I found cardamom overpowering for my palette and have avoided it with a vengeance in my adulthood.  I had momentarily considered omitting it from the Chai Malai Cake recipe, but upon gathering the ingredients, I decided to put my childhood prejudices aside and stick to the recipe.  I am glad I did.  The cardamom was delicate and nothing like the chai tea my mother used to make.    

The Chai Malai Cake was a triumph enhanced with rose petals. It was everything Dina promised it would be...Yum! 

The recipe, if you haven't guessed it comes from Dina Begum's Brick Lane Cookbook: Food From Everywhere. The cookbook also includes contributions from street food traders and restaurants including The Boiler House, Beigel Shop and Kahala a not for profit community café. The cookbook is a snapshot of the ethnically diverse cuisine found in  the East End of London. If you want to make the Chai Malai Cake you can also find the here. 

By the way, I have been to Brick Lane - see here - but it was mostly about the graffiti art. However, I look forward to going back again and checking out some of the culinary contributors to the cookbook.

Baked Tandoori Cauliflower Wings

Yesterday and much of today we have spent in our allotment garden plot.

I am not going to complain about the weather.  It's been hot, very hot but I was thankful for it as we have got loads of done between the two of us.  The ground is ready for planting.  We have some seedlings in the greenhouse, but not many - as I mentioned before, our greenhouse was badly damaged and although fixed now, we have not been able to grow much from seed and D wants to get tomatoes in before we go away on holiday.  So next weekend, the plan is to go to a garden centre or nursery and pick up some vegetable plants and put them straight into the ground.

Food today is easy fare. Jacket potato, paprika nut cheese, salad and home-made coleslaw, but I share with you something I made a few days back - Baked Tandoori Cauliflower Wings.  

These Baked Tandoori Cauliflower Wings were served them with a mint yogurt sauce.  

There are lots of good Tandoori Spice Blend Paste brands about, but you can also make it at home and I recommend using Tiffin Box recipe fro homemade Tandoori Masala  Spice Blend.  The Baked Tandoori Cauliflower Wings recipe is loosely based on these Hot and Spicy Cauliflower Florets, but the recipe needs further more tweaking, hence the reason I have not shared it yet. 

Other Tandoori Spice Blend recipes on the blog
Tandoori Butterflied Aubergines
Saabut Gobhi aka Whole Roasted Tandoori Cauliflower 

One Pot Curried Red Chard, Butternut Squash, Chestnut Mushroom with White Beans

April weather has been teasing us - a peek of sunshine, followed rather quickly by a burst of rain - I know its not called 'April Showers' for nothing.  The point is, its still not very warm and we are still tucking into autumnal coloured food.  In fact, let me forewarn you in advance, this week my blog will feature food that is mostly orange in colour.   

Here is my One Pot Curried Butternut Squash, Red Chard, Chestnut Mushrooms and White Beans.  Food that glows and food that warms the belly.

I really dislike using the word 'curried', as its used so lazily these days, but this One Pot Butternut Squash, Red Chard, Chestnut Mushrooms and White Beans recipe is actually curried.  The recipe is also inspired and adapted from Anjum Anand.  It was surprisingly quite good.  

Welsh Laverbread, Leek and Potato Samosa

Happy St David's Day.

For St David's Day, I decided to give the Welsh cakes, Bara Brith and Cawl - all vegetarian and vegan versions of course -  a miss.

This year, I wanted to make something that both acknowledged and celebrates my South Asian heritage and my Welsh root and shoots - Yes, a little bit of fusion  with this home-made Welsh Laverbread, Leek and Potato Samosa.  Yes that favourite South Asian moreish snack filled with spicy goodness and then encased in a crispy and flaky pastry.

There is not much growing in my garden at the moment, but as a Welsh woman I am proud to say there are some leeks (and some red Chard). 

Vegan Plum, Chickpea and 'Lamb' Curry

I made a Plum and Chickpea Curry last year but did not get round to sharing it at the time, so with it being the Plum season in the UK I thought I would make it again and share my vegetarian vegan version of 'Lamb' and Plum Curry.  

This 'Lamb' and Plum Curry is a real recipe adapted from Camellia Panjabi 50 Great Curries of India.   I used vegan soy pieces* that I picked up from a Polish shop, they were not that great, but for the vegetarians the Quorn fillets will also work.  If you don't want to use the mock meat substitute, then just double up on the chickpeas.  

Vegan Sweet Potato and Kidney Beans Seekh Kebabs

Promise this vegan Sweet Potato and Kidney Beans Seekh Kebabs are is my last sweet potato recipe for the month.

Seekh should not be confused with 'Sikhs'.  Sikhs are the disciples of God who following the teachings and writings of the Ten Sikh Gurus.  Seekhs are skewers, albeit wooden skewers around which the minced meat or mashed vegetables and or beans are moulded around to resemble a sausage like shape and then grilled or given the full smoky charred Barbecue treatment.

These red brick coloured Seekh kebabs were a little on the mushy side like old fashioned veggie sausages, but they were perfectly spiced which made them more enjoyable. 

I am sharing these Sweet Potato and Kidney Bean Seekh Kebabs with  Healthy Vegan Fridays hosted by Rock My Vegan Socks and V Nutrition and Confessions of a Mother Runner and Whisk and Two Wands for Meatless Monday.

Enjoy this song by Praiz featuring Chidinma Ekile called 'Sweet Potato'.  Its sweet.

Sweet Potato and Kidney Beans Seekh Kebabs
Makes 8 skewers
Ingredients
4 sweet potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon oil

Aloo Tikki Bagel

It been an extremely busy week at work, so my blog post this evening will be short.  My evening dinner today is Pizza, don't diss me - its homemade pizza!  Check out my Instagram for the photograph, I promise you it will be very different from other pizzas you've seen.

Right now though, I am sharing a fusion snack of Aloo Tikki Bagel.  I am constantly amazed at how much i eat is accidentally vegan.  Aloo Tikki is a South Asian snack made from spicy oniony mashed potatoes (aloo) that is shaped into cutlets or burger shapes, then coated in a spicy blend of chickpea batter and deep fried.  It important to eat it whilst it is still hot as that is when it is at its most deliciousness.  

You can eat the Aloo Tikki as you wish, we and I mean my siblings would often stuff it in roti aka chappati slathered in tomato sauce, it had to be a red sauce to temper the spices, then rolled up like burrito and munched on.  These days I tend to either stuff it in a burger bread bun or a bagel; and my siblings children in a tortilla wrap.

Like my Samosa Soup recipe: a combination of Dal and Samosa, Aloo Tikki is another firm favourite comfort food and not one I indulge in that often as it requires deep frying, but when I do, I ravish it within minutes.

This blog post is part of Vegan Month of Food.  The theme is memories and traditions. I am also sharing this with Soups, Salads and Sammies and this is kind of a sandwich hosted by Kahakai Kitchen;  

Roasted Aloo Gobi Salad

This  Warn Aloo Gobi Salad aka Roasted Potato Cauliflower Salad was really yummy.

What elevated this salad was the seeds, especially the Kolonji, onion seeds known these days as nigella seeds.  

We ate this Roasted Warm Aloo Gobi Salad with a little drizzle of tangy tamarind sauce or even mango sauce if you prefer sweetness.  The seeds added both spice and crunch.  There was also crunch from the curly kale that crisped up in the oven, but if you still want additional texture maybe some poppadom crisps or pitta chips.  I was thinking about tinkering with this further by throwing in some chickpeas, but decided against it as I was concerned they would have dried out too much, but popping beans are quite trendy at the moment - so I was kicking myself after, so maybe next time.  

Vegan Mofo prompt today is Fusion Food.    This Warm Aloo Gobi Salad is essentially a Aloo Gobi Curry or even Bombay Potato - what makes this fusion is that it is baked in the oven, turned into a warm salad.  

Roasted Aloo Gobi Salad
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 red onion, thickly sliced
200g new potatoes, parboiled
1 large cauliflower, broken into florets
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
Optional: 1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes or ground chilli
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon  nigella seeds
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Handful of curly kale, stalks removed
Method
In a wide bowl, toss in the vegetables (except for the kale), oil and spices and stir well to coat.
Transfer to a baking tin.
Roast in oven gas mark 4/180oc for 30 minutes or  until tender.
Then stir in the curly kale.  
Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, then return to oven and cook for a further 10 - 15 minutes until crisps.
Serve immediately with optional mango chutney, tamarind sauce.

Courgette and Runner Bean Curry and a Cat in the Garden

I made this Courgette, Runner Bean and Cherry Tomato Curry  last month with the last harvest from my garden of courgettes, runner beans and cherry tomatoes. 

My blog already boasts lots of original vegetarian and vegan Welsh recipes and fusion dishes too, so I am interpreting 'close to home' which is Vegan Mofo prompt today as things that I have grown from seed.   Now how close to home is that?! From garden plot to plate.  

Runner beans, courgettes from the garden plot and cherry tomatoes from the greenhouse.

I have to admit some of the runner beans were a bit on the stringy side, but mostly succulent and tender with bite.  The real star of the dish were the cherry tomatoes, that I stirred into the curry in the last 10 minutes for them just to soften and burst. It was a relatively dry curry and could work well stuffed either in a roti, chappati or even a tortilla wrap.  

Now all I have in the garden are herbs, some cherry tomatoes hanging on for dear life in the greenhouse with some salad leaves.  And Rainbow Swiss Chard.

I dug the garden a week or so back clear and ready for the following year, but a scraggy yet gorgeous log fire burnt coloured cat has recently made our garden plot their lavatory.  Any suggestions as to how to deter this furry beastie, other than resorting to London Zoo solution of Lion Pee pellets; and please don't suggest getting a male to urinate in the garden, it just is not goon to happen. Its funny and makes me giggle, but it also as you can understand be frustrating as well.  I can't sit out in the garden with a water pistol or a watering hose in my hand either, ain't going to happen.   So please I welcome any of your tried and trialed methods.

Thrifty Household had a similar problem many years back, her blog post does not offer a solution but it did make me laugh - Keeping Cats out of the Garden.

Curried Welsh Shepherds Pie with Turmeric Mash Topping

We took the car into the garage yesterday which scuppered the rest our plans for the day, but the car had to go in as it has a slow puncture and living in the Welsh valleys, we need a mode of transport to get us to and fro work and every where else in between and beyond.  

So when I got back home, I lazed around for a while, then it dawned on me - got to eat - so I went into the kitchen and decided to make an Indo Anglo Welsh version of Shepherds Pie.  What is Welsh about this?   There are leeks in this and a number of other Welsh ingredients from Blas Y Tir  including the potatoes mashed on top. And the cook herself, is very Welsh too.  

The yellow turmeric mash flecked with red chilli flakes and coriander  was really lovely, almost reminisce of a good vegetable samosa.  The filling is made with textured vegetable protein (TVP) that mimics minced 'lamb', it was mildly spiced.   Have a knife and fork ready to tuck in, but a spoon would work too. 

The colours of the Curried Welsh Shepherds Pie are spot on for the Autumnal seasonal colours around us which are really stunning at the moment.  I just wish I was motivated to step outside today, but I just wanted to snuggle indoors and doss around in the house. D did not protest too much about wanting to go out either, so we both just chilled - neither of us looking forward to going into work tomorrow. 

Vegan Mofo prompt today is Comfort Food.  I have to admit, I have already posted my idea of comfort food with the Samosa Soup recipe.  So I had to approach comfort food from a different angle.  Shepherds Pie and Cottage Pie are dishes that make my husband happy and that makes me happy and gives me comfort.  I have also been finding the  soft mash rather comforting and those of you who have been reading my bog for a long time will find that surprising as I don't do mash finding it close to baby food, but this weekend I have been finding it soothing for my throat which continues to be sore - another visit to the GP is on the cards.

As D was eating this Curried Welsh Pie he said it reminded him of another dish that I make. When prompted which one? He said the vegan Mexican Tamale Pies which is similar in filling but is finished of with a polenta topping, so I agree with him to some extent.   

Curried Welsh Shepherds Pie with Turmeric Mash Topping
Serves 6 generously or 2 people over 3 days
Ingredients
200g TVP reconstituted and then drained of excess liquid. Set aside

2 - 3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, minced
2 medium leeks from Blas Y Tir, washed well of grit and sliced
2 - 3 garlic cloves, crushed
250g carrots, peeled and diced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1-11/2 teaspoon red chilli flakes (or fresh, minced)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon of fresh coriander, minced
1 x 400g tinned tomatoes, chopped
1/4 pint vegetable stock
Optional: 1 x 400g canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper to taste

600g Blas Y Tir potatoes, mashed with vegan margarine
1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 - 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon fresh coriander, minced
Method
In a wide pan, heat the oil, then add in the leeks and cook on medium heat until it begins to soften, then stir in the garlic, cumin, coriander and chilli flakes and cook for a few minutes for the spices to mingle and the garlic to soften with the leeks.
Then stir in the chopped tomatoes, crushing them further with a spoon.
Leave to cook for a few minutes until the tomatoes are well integrated.
Stir in the carrots and reconstituted TVP and cook until tender and stock.
Bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer until  it has thickened. 
Stir in optional chickpeas if using.
Turn off and transfer contents into a large ovenproof dish.

To the mashed potatoes, stir in the turmeric, chilli and herbs.  
Then carefully cover the pie filling distributing evenly. 
Bake in preheated oven, gas mark 5/200oc for 45-50 minutes or until golden and bubbling on the side.  
Serve immediately.  
Adapted from this Fiery Chilli Welsh Red Dragon Pie

I am sharing this  with Casa Costello and Mummy Mishaps for Bake of the Week;  Cook Once Eat Twice hosted by Searching for Spice;  and Simple and In Season hosted by  Feeding Boys;  

Curried Anglo Italian Fenugreek Ratatouille

I hope you don't mind me sharing a recent observation when I was waiting to get the bus back home from work.

I start with a statement.  I think chivalry is dead or taking its very last dying breaths.  I had faith it was still alive in the older gentlemen but not now.  I waited to get my bus home and noted post European Union Referendum some attitudes have changed overtly in peoples behaviours, most recently in the older generation.   As not one, not two, not three but four older men of Pensionable age rudely cut across me to get on the bus.  I want to give them the benefit of the doubt, perhaps they feel their age and free bus pass entitles them to be rude... I hope so, but if its their  skin colour we certainly have problem Britain and this is only a small glimpse.  So what was my response?  I politely smiled at them and said, 'plenty of seats on the bus'. 

Anyway, its that time of the year when vegetable growers find themselves with bucket loads of courgettes aka Zucchini, in fact my last three blog posts have all featured courgettes.

So what am I going to do with all those courgettes? Make some Ratatouille of course.  

Regular readers will know that I am not keen on Ratatouille.  Last year I decided to give it a go again and still I was not sold.  Last weekend I thought why not spice it up a bit.  I saw fellow blogger Sareta's Kitchen make and was inspired to give it my own South Asian twist - Indian, Pakistan and Bangladesh all rolled into one.  Here it is my Curried Anglo Italian Ratatouille with fenugreek and chickpeas. 

Of course, I had to present it prettily, it takes a little time but its worth the effort when you want to make an impression. You could serve this with plain Basmati rice if you want, but some good crusty bread is what we had.  

Curried Butter Beans with Mushrooms and Kale

I know its spring and I should be sharing elegantly presented light green dishes with all manner of micro green garnish, instead I share an autumnal looking one.   

This Curried Butter Bean dish hit the spot that evening when I came in from work feeling like a little fed up with stuff going on around me at work, but I don't want to talk about 'office politics' and favouritism.  No I want to talk about this naturally 'buttery' bean bowl that melts in the mouth with a hint of tomatoey spice and the kale is almost seaweed like.  This recipe can be more soup like if you add more stock or water to it, but I enjoyed the thickness of it wrapped up in a tortilla bundle like a big warm hug.

Vegetarian Sarson Ka Saag, Potato, Paneer and Pea Pie

I made this Sarson Ka Saag, Potato, Paneer and Pea Pie filling during British Pie Week (7th - 13th March 2016)  and then lost Internet connection for five days so could not share the recipe with you then.  

I don't want to be pedantic, but many people make a mistake of thinking Spinach is Saag.  It is not and sadly many people of South Asian heritage continue to perpetuate this.  Why I am not sure, perhaps because they don't know their greens!  So let me tell you, Saag is mustard greens and Palak is Spinach.  See THIS blog link if you wish to learn more. 

Saag is a dish I used to resent eating when I was a child, all green and mushy.  Now there are days when I hanker for the siliky green thick sauce.  My way of cooking Sarsan Ka Saag is in no way authentic, as the authentic way is time consuming, so I rely on tinned Sarsan Ka Saag.  This recipe is my lazy version made with tinned Sarsan Ka Saag but the memories of eating it are rooted in my childhood days and evoke happy and carefree times.

Although you could eat this filling as a curry with rice or an Indian style bread.  The filling is actually extremely versatile as its not sloppy. 

So here are some suggestions: Make a Indo-Greek Spanakopita with filo pastry; Indian Samosas or individual small hand pies (see below).  Or wrap it in a Pakistani roti. Punjabi chappati or Mexican tortilla or slather it over an Indian naan bread and call it a pizza!   Or you could simply make one large pie and top it with puff pastry or make individual Pot Pies!  

I have to admit that I was partly inspired by the rather pretty Rejina Sabur-Cross aka The Gastro Geek  for this recipe.   A couple of years back she made Aloo Saag Pies.  We have similar ingredients, but our approach to making the filling is different.  She uses tamarind.  I don't but if you want you could dollop a tablespoon or two of sweet mango chutney, but its not essential. 

I used tinned Sarson Ka Saag.  there is no way I will ever attempt making saag from scratch at home.  See here why?! I either wait for my mother or sister-in-laws to make some and offer me some, or buy it in tins and then I adapt it to my taste.  I  won't begrudge you if you used tinned spinach - just call it Palak.... please.  I am sharing this with Cook Once Eat Twice hosted by Searching for Spice; and Inheritance Recipes challenge co hosted by Solange at Pebble Soup and Coffee and Vanilla.  

Indo Cymru Leek Stew with Dumplings that give you a Cwtch

Some of you will have noticed that in the past week or so, I have been gravitating towards Welsh recipes and Welsh things.  This is for the simple reason that next week many of us in Wales will be celebrating St David's Day, even the daffodils are coming out to celebrate, though to be honest they have been out posing by the side of the roads a month earlier.

As we enjoyed the Curried Root Vegetable Stew a couple of weeks back, I thought I would make it again, but enhance it further with the addition of spices and leeks and make it somewhat Fusion Welsh - yes we do like our leeks here in Wales, well I do.  Even though the daffodils are confused and finding the British weather warm, some of us are still finding it, so stew-like meals have been on the menu quite a bit.   

Cwtch means hug in Welsh and it a word you will hear and see a lot in Wales. And these light cloud like dumplings definitely give you a big warm welcome hug, who doesn't love a good hug. 

The topping of Welsh cheddar or Caerphilly cheese is purely optional.