Tasty tagines and soothing soups

Tagine Saturday has delivered 2 great tagines to date. Both were traditional lamb tagines with fruit and nuts. The first was with dates, almonds and pistachios. Heat olive oil and a knob of butter in your tagine or casserole dish and saute 2 finely chopped onions until golden. Stir in 1 tsp each turmeric & ginger plus 2 tsp cinnamon. Add 1 kg diced lamb & toss to coat. (We always do the full amount and freeze the leftovers.) Add enough boiling water to just cover the meat, bring back to the boil, cover & put in a medium oven for 1 1/2 - 2 hours. Add 250g stoned fresh dates & tbsp dark liquid honey. Return to the oven a further 1/2 hour. Season and sprinkle with 2 tbsp each lightly toasted blanched almonds & pistachios plus some flat leaf parsley.
The 2nd tagine includes prunes and apricots. Heat the oil & this time toast 2 tbsp blanched almonds at the beginning, then add 2 red onions finely chopped plus 2-3 cloves garlic, also finely chopped. Stir in 1 chunk of finely chopped ginger, a pinch of saffron, 2 cinnamon sticks & 1 tsp crushed coriander seeds. Add 1 kg diced lamb & toss to coat. Cover with boiling water & put in the oven 1 1/2-2 hours. (The timing could be less or more - just test that your lamb is tender.) At this stage add 1/2 dozen each stoned prunes & dried apricots that have been soaked about an hour & drained. You want the fruit plumped up before you add it. Add some strips of orange zest & return to the oven 15-20 mins. At the end add 1 tbsp dark liquid honey & season then return to the oven for another 10 mins. Sprinkle with flat leaf parsley. Serve your tagine with couscous and a crunchy sharp salad to balance the sweetness. The date one is my favourite so far. Let me know which you prefer.
Apart from indulging with tagines, it has been soup Monday to Sunday in our house as I have been ill and not able to eat much else. I have 2 new soup discoveries you should try.
The first is roasted pumpkin and thyme. Cut up your pumpkin of choice and scoop out the seeds. Rub with oil, season with salt & pepper & roast on a tray in the oven about 30 mins at 200. When cool enough to handle (or immediately if you have my grandma's asbestos fingers) slice away the skin & cut into smallish chunks. Soften a chopped onion in a pan with a little butter or olive oil and a handful of thyme leaves. Add the pumpkin pieces and 1 1/4 litres vegetable stock (or water) with a pinch of salt. Simmer 20 mins or so then cool slightly & blend with more thyme until smooth. Return to the pan with 150ml cream and warm through. Ladle into warm bowls & pile about 25g grated Gruyere or Comte per bowl. Sprinkle over a few more thyme leaves to garnish. This soup is like velvet to eat - and the pumpkin flavour is very intense but enhanced by the thyme.
Lastly the soup you MUST try this week. You will be amazed. Leek, pea & potato. Heat a little oil & butter in a pan and add 2 leeks finely sliced (use the white & tender green parts), 500g floury potatoes chopped into small pieces, 2 cloves garlic, crushed & tsp chopped thyme. When the leeks are well softened, add 5 cups chicken stock & 1 cup of milk. Bring to the boil & simmer abour 30 mins. The milk will curdle but don't worry - you will blend it smooth at the end. Add 3 cups frozen peas & cook a further 5 mins. Blend till smooth then return to heat to warm through & season. So simple, so green and so delicious.
I have been drinking juice for breakfast through the winter. Didn't prevent the flu but it is delicious and more filling than you would imagine. For one person, juice 1-2 oranges, 1 largish carrot, a small piece of ginger and 1/4 betroot.

A bit of this & a bit of that

I have discovered another Asian dish, this time with chicken. For four, pound 5 cloves garlic, 2 tsp black peppercorns, 2 tbsp coriander root & 1/2 tsp sea salt in a pestle & mortar. You want a thick paste. Using 2-3 large chicken breasts, depending on size, into bite size pieces. Fry the paste in a little vegetable oil until fragrant then add the chicken pieces and stir until coloured. Add 2 tsp brown sugar, 2 tsp fish sauce & 1/2 cup chicken stock. Simmer until cooked. Meanwhile prepare the greens. I used choy sum but try gai larn when in season. Pull the greens into individual stems & blanch 1 minutes, refresh in ice cold water & drain. Dry thoroughly. In a tbsp peanut oil, fry 2 tbsp grated ginger & 2 cloves garlic crushed. Add the greens & toss until hot. Stir a little chicken stock with 2 tsp cornflour top make a paste then combine with 3 tbsp oyster sauce & 1/4 cup chicken stock. Add to the pan and stir until thickened. Serve the chicken & greens with brown jasmine rice.
The sourdough starter is going well. I have shared & the recipient is having great success. I bought a new breadpan to bake it in - a Romertopf Pane. It is working well. It gives a good shaped loaf.
A couple of weekends ago we picked the last olives from the trees of a colleague & we are in the process of brining them. Should be ready in 6-8 weeks.
As a welcome dinner for the new arrival from Melbourne I made a vegetable tagine. It was something I could transport easily and we could eat on our knees with minimum utensils. A few years ago I was given a lovely book of tagine recipes & I just kept making the same one. The carrot and chickpea tagine so inspired me that I have now instigated tagine Saturday until we have worked our way through the entire book. In a tagine or heavy casserole saute 1 finely chopped onion & 3-4 finely chopped garlic cloves, until soft. Add 2 tsp turmeric, 1-2 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp cayenne & 1/2 tsp ground black pepper. Stir through onions then add 1 tbsp dark liquid honey & 3-4 medium carrots sliced on the diagonal. Pour in enough water to cover the base of the dish & bring to the boil. Simmer on the stovetop or put in the oven at 180 for 15 minutes until the carrots are softened. Add 1-2 tins drained chickpeas & cook covered a further 15 mins until carrots are cooked. Sprinkle with a little rosewater & chopped parsley & serve with lemon wedges.
You may know I am not a tamarillo fan but they seemed the right thing to take a NZer returning home in winter. Baked with honey & red wine they did have more appeal. Use 1-2 tamarillos per person and try a mix of colours. To skin the tamarillos, make a small cross in the pointed end, place in a bowl & cover with boiling water. Stand for 2-3 minutes & refresh in cold water. Heat the oven to 160. Cut the tamarillos in quarters & roll back the skin from the point to the stem. Lay them in a baking dish. Wear an apron & take care not to splash.
For 4-6 people, combine 1 cup red wine with 2 tsp dark liquid honey & 2 star anise. Simmer until the honey is disolved in the wine. Pour over the tamarillos & cover loosely cover. Bake about 15 mins then baste & continue cooking another 10 mins. Serve with cream or ice cream.
While we've had Phoebe back in Wellington, for the few evenings we've had her home we've been delivering her favourite meals. Onion soup, pork chops in mustardy cider, home made hamburgers, tex mex, meatballs and one of her all time favourites - toad in the hole.
Make a Yorkshire pudding style batter. Break 2 eggs into a bowl & season. Whisk lightly & add 1/2 cup milk. Whisk again & add 125g flour. Whisk to form a thick batter & whisk in another 1/2 cup milk. Add chopped thyme or sage & set aside. You can rest for several hours in the fridge. I use sage for pork & thyme for beef sausages.
Preheat the oven to 210. In an oven proof pan, fry 1 sausage per person in a little olive oil until lightly browned on 2 sides. Add 1 sliced onion and 1 capsicum cut into thick slices. Fry lightly. Push the sausage and vegetable towards the centre of the pan & with the pan still on the heat pour the batter around the edge. Put the pan straight into the top third of the hot oven & bake about 20 minutes. Serve with sauce & follow with a crisp salad. This is real comfort food - not for everyday but it will warm your heart on a cold winter's evening.

Spicy Vegan Feast

I love Indian food - not takeaways which always seem to be the same meal served up in different coloured sauces. I love vegetables fried with freshly ground spices or simmered warm flavourful sauces & served with an aromatic pilau. Back in the 70s I bought 2 books which have stood the test of time - Middle Eastern Vegetarian Cookery & Indian Vegetarian Cookery. If you ever see them anywhere snap them up. They are where I turn when I need inspiration of an Indian nature. So when I was intending a vegan feast to celebrate having my two daughters in the same city it was to Jack Santa Maria I turned & he did not disappoint. He gave me a magnificent pilau. I usually do a middle eastern version and it is very similar but with subtle differences.
Fry a thinly sliced onion and 4 cloves garlic, crushed, in ghee or oil (for Indian I use a flavourless oil rather than olive) until golden (I would normally soften without colouring). Then Jack suggests 1 inch piece of ginger, grated, 6 cloves, cinnamon stick, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, 2 cardamom pods, bashed, 1 tsp garam masala, 1 tsp cumin seeds, salt. Cook with 1 1/2 cups rice (I do 1/4 cup per person & leftovers are essential) until the grains are opaque. Add water or vegetable stock (2-1 liquid to rice) & bring to the boil. Simmer until done. When I am doing a lot on the stovetop I do this in the Le Creuset & shove it in the oven on 150 for 20 minutes to finish off. Then I just turn the oven off & let it sit until I am ready to serve.
Next, take your favourite pumpkin - I had butternut left over from last week's lentils. Chop into large chunks & toss in sunflower oil & a mix of spices which will cohabit well with what you're already using in the other dishes - garam masala, cumin, coriander. Or you could cheat and toss in a flavoured oil such as AvoHealth Flavours of India avocado oil. Remember those pita crisps with olive oil & cumin - well use this & you have Indian style chips. Back to my pumpkin - spread in a shallow baking dish & bake at 180 about 40 minutes.
Then onto the potatoes. Cook 2 finely chopped onions in oil until golden, then add 3 cloves garlic, crushed, 3 cm piece of ginger, grated, 600g floury potatoes, peeled & cubed. Cook for a couple of minutes then add 1tsp each cumin, coriander & garam masala, 1/2 tsp each turmeric & chilli flakes. Cook until the spices release their aroma then add, 1/2 tin tomatoes, 2 cups vegetable stock & salt to taste. When the potatoes are just done add 1 cup frozen peas & cook until the peas are done.
In the meantime prepare the spicy cauliflower. Cut a cauliflower into florets & saute in oil for a few minutes. Remove from the pan & set aside. Add a little more oil & cook 1 tbsp each black mustard & cumin seeds and cook until they pop. Add 2 cloves garlic, crushed, 1 tsp turmeric, pinch chilli flakes and the other half of the tin of tomatoes with 1/2 cup water. In summer I would use fresh peeled, chopped tomatoes in both of these dishes. About 2 per dish. Return the cauliflower to the pan, cover & simmer until it's tender. Stir through coriander leaves to serve.
This was all so delicious it reminded me why I like to cook & eat Indian food & I plan to do it again soon. It is not hard & so much nicer than those takeaways. If you have any vegetable in your fridge looking for attention spice it up & serve it with rice & tamarillo chutney.