Carrot and badam(almond) kheer

40 whole almonds
21/2 cups milk (semi-skimmed or 2% is fine)
1/2 cup carrot, finely grated
3 tsp ghee (clarified butter)
1/3 cup + 1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp cardamom powder

Garnish
5-6 raw unsalted cashew, cut in half
10-12 golden raisins

• To prepare the almonds, blanch them in hot water for a few minutes until their skin softens. Peel the skin and keep aside.  
• Heat 11/2 tsp of ghee in a small pan. When it hot, add the grated carrot and 1 tbsp sugar. Cook the carrot till it's raw flavour disappears and starts to come together. It takes between 5-7 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat the milk in a nonstick sauce pan till it just starts to boil. Turn down the heat and allow to simmer.
• Take about  half a cup of milk out and use this to grind the almonds to a paste in a blender. The paste should be just a tiny bit coarse to touch.
• Add this back to the simmering milk along with the remaining sugar and simmer till the milk thickens and reduces a little. This will take about 20-25 minutes on a low flame. Keep stirring occasionally so it doesn't catch at the bottom.
• Finally add the cooked carrot and mix well. Continue to simmer for another 5 minutes. 
• Turn off the heat, add the cardamom powder and mix well.
• Heat the remaining ghee in another pan. When it is hot, add the cashew and stir till it begins to turn golden brown. Add the raisins and continue to stir till the raisins plump up. Mix this into the prepared kheer. 
• Cool and refrigerate for 2-3 hours. 

This tastes best when it is served cold. This makes about 2 generous servings or 3 regular ones.

Tip: Rinse the sauce pan in cold water before adding the milk. This mostly stops the milk from catching at the bottom.

Kerala style soy bean and potato curry

Mum makes this with Avarakkai (broad beans) when it is in season in Bangalore. I have used frozen soy beans instead. The gravy is actually the same as Kerala kadala(black chickpea) curry of the "puttu and kadala" combination.

The heat in this curry comes from the pepper corns rather than the red chillies, so don't skimp on that. The tomatoes add the sourness to the curry. If you don't have them handy, they can be substituted with a little bit of tamarind pulp/paste.

2 cups frozen soy beans
3 small potato, cut into cubes
2 tomato, quartered and chopped into large chunks
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste

To grind
2-3 whole dried red chilli
2 tbsp whole coriander seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
6-7 whole pepper corns
3-4 garlic pods, roughly chopped
1 inch ginger, sliced
5-6 curry leaves
1/2 large onion, roughly chopped
1/3 cup freshly grated coconut
11/2 tsp oil

Tempering
1 tsp black mustard seeds
2-3 whole red chili, cut into pieces
5-6 curry leaves
3 tbsp onion, chopped finely
11/2 tsp oil

To prepare the ground masala

• Heat oil in a pan. Add the red chilli when the oil is hot and sauté for a 10 seconds. 
• Next, add the chopped garlic and ginger and sauté till the garlic is cook and just starts to turn colour. 
• Add the coriander seeds, cumin and curry leaves and sauté till the coriander is well roasted (starts to turn light brown).
• Add the pepper corns and toss for a few seconds and then follow it with the chopped onions. Sauté for a couple of minutes, just to remove the raw taste of onions.
• Add the grated coconut and continue to stir. You want to allow the coconut to cook in  the oil, but not brown. Turn off the heat when the coconut just starts to brown.
• Allow it to cool slightly. Grind the mixture with a little water to form a fine paste.

To prepare the curry

•   Add the soy beans and potato into a pot. Add salt, turmeric and 11/2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over a low heat till the potatoes are half cooked. 
• Add the ground paste and continue to simmer till the potatoes are done. 
• Finally add the chopped tomatoes and bring back to a boil. The gravy should be slightly thick and of pourable consistency. Add extra water if needed.
•  Allow it to boil for a  2-3 minutes and then turn off the heat.
• Heat the oil for the tempering in another pan. When the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds and allow them to splutter. Next, add the broken red chilli and curry leaves and stir for a few seconds. Finally add the chopped onion and sauté till the onions and nicely browned. 
• Add the tempering to the curry. Serve with rice, puttu or even rotis.

Jamaican jerk chicken

I saw this on the telly ages ago and I have made it a few times since. I am not sure if this is 'truly' Jamaican - as with most shows, this was most probably the TV chef's version of it. This is best suited for a open grilling over a coal or gas barbecue, but grilling it in the oven and allowing it to char slightly on the edges works well too. There is a lot of heat that comes from the scotch bonnet (habanero) chili peppers, so adjust the amount wisely. You can also choose to leave the chicken skin on -  I usually remove it to keep it on the healthy side, but it does in fact, keep the chicken really moist. I would also recommend you use the thighs or legs to prepare this. The unusual ingredient for me was the soy sauce. I did some reading and found this is used to impart the dark colour to the meat and there are variations that use brown sugar or molasses as well.  

  

6 part boned chicken legs or thighs

Marinade
1 large onion, roughly chopped
3 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (or 1-2 tbsp dried)
2 tbsp barbeque sauce (any store bought kind)
1-2 scotch bonnet pepper (depending on their size and heat quotient!)
4 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp ground allspice powder
4 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 inch ginger, chopped
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 tsp cooking oil
Salt to taste

• Put all the ingredients listed under the marinade in a blender and blend to a smooth paste.
• Score the chicken pieces. Place them in a shallow dish and pour the marinade over them. Rub it in so that it gets into the scored areas and coats the chicken nicely. Cover and refrigerate overnight. 
• When you are ready to cook, crank up the grill to medium high. Place the chicken on a roasting rack so it does not sit in its own juices and end up steaming. 
• Grill on both sides for about 12-15 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked. Baste with the left over sauce from time to time. 

Traditionally this is served with rice and peas - rice cooked with kidney beans, onion, garlic and thyme in coconut milk.

Scrambled eggs with spinach on an English muffin

For the spinach
1 large clove of garlic, chopped
4-5 handfuls of baby spinach
1 tsp olive oil
Small knob of butter
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper.
Salt to taste

• Heat the oil and butter in a pan. When it is hot add the chopped garlic and saute for a minute.
• Add the spinach leaves, pepper and salt and cook for 3-4 minutes until the spinach has wilted nicely.

For the scrambled eggs
3 eggs
1 tbsp milk (or cream if you so choose)
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp olive oil
Small knob of butter

• Whisk the eggs and milk with pepper and salt till it is well combined. 
• Place a non-stick skillet on the heat and add the oil and butter. Swirl the oil around so it coats the pan. When the oil is medium hot add the egg mixture. Keep moving the mixture around so that it starts to form curds and continue to cook on the low heat till it is almost done and very slightly runny. Turn off the heat at this stage as the eggs with continue to cook while it sits. Anymore heat and it will be overcooked.  

Assembly

2 English muffins

Butter to spread

• Slice the muffins in half, toast and butter them.
• Place a layer of spinach and then top them with the scrambled eggs.
• If you like, you can also sprinkle some paprika or cayenne pepper. Serve warm.

Serves 2.

Marrow and cannellini beans curry

This is a take on the traditional kerala erissery. I usually make this when I have to use up pieces of marror or bottle gourd (Dudhi) and I bulk it up with some form of beans. I have used cannellini or white beans here, but I do sometimes put in pinto or adzuki beans.

2 cups  marrow, chopped into chunks (remove the skin if you like)
1 cup cooked cannellini beans (tinned is fine)
6-8 curry leaves
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste

Grind into fine paste
1 tsp ground rice flour
2 tbsp desiccated coconut
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp dry mango powder

Tempering
1 tsp mustard seeds
1-2 dry red chilli
3-4 curry leaves
11/2 tsp vegetable oil

• Grind all the items mentioned above into a fine paste and keep aside.
• Place the chopped marrow in a medium sauce pan. Add the turmeric and just enough water to come up about half an inch from the bottom of the pan (about 2 cups). Turn on the heat and allow the water to come to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and cook till the marrow is about half cooked . 
• At this stage, add the ground paste, curry leaves and salt. Simmer this on a low heat till the marrow is almost done.  Add little water if the curry is too thick.  Add the beans and continue to simmer for a few more minutes. Remove from heat when the marrow is fully cooked.
• Heat oil in a separate pan. Break the red chilies into small pieces and add to the hot oil. Next add the mustard seeds and allow them to splutter. Finally add the curry leaves. Add this tempering to the curry and mix well. 
• Serve with hot rice. 

Leek and potato soup

A lovely warm winter soup for a cold winter evening! This is absolutely lovely and you would be surprised at how little effort it requires. Google this and you'll find recipes that call for double cream. I like to make it using semi-skimmed (2%) milk and on the rare occasions when I buy it, maybe finish off with a table spoon of single cream. Served with bread it makes for a wholesome supper.

2 large leeks, chopped

4 medium potatoes
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp olive oil
1 litre vegetable stock (or dissolve a stock cube in 1 litre of water)
1/2 cup milk
Freshly ground pepper
Salt to taste

Make sure you clean the leeks very well as they can sometimes contain a lot of trapped dirt.

• Melt the butter along with the olive oil in a pan. Add the chopped leeks and allow it soften over a low flame.
• Meanwhile peel and roughly chop the potatoes. When the leeks have softened nicely, add the potatoes and saute for a minute. 
• Add the vegetable stock, cover and simmer over a slow flame until the potatoes are tender and fully cooked.
• Remove from heat and blend to a smooth puree.
• Pour it back into the pan, add the milk, season with salt and pepper and simmer for further 10 minutes or till it starts to bubble slightly. 
• Finish off with a touch of cream before serving.

Serves 3-4

Burrito wrap

2-3 large tortilla wraps
1 cup refried beans
1/2 cup cooked rice
1/4 cup guacamole
2 tbsp sour cream
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 large tomato, de-seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped coriander leaves
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ginger powder
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp vegetable oil
Salt to taste
Salad leaves

Preparing the refried beans

• Heat oil in a pan. Saute the chopped onion till they turn translucent.
• Add the refried beans and mix for a minute. You can add little water to loosen it into a thick paste consistency.
• Add cumin, garlic, chili and ginger powders, oregano pepper and salt and cook for a few minutes.
• Lastly add the chopped tomato and coriander leaves and continue to cook for a minute.
• Take it off the heat and allow to cool. 

To prepare the wraps

• Heat the tortilla on a griddle to make it flexible enough to fold without tearing.
• Build up layers with rice, refried beans, guacamole, sour cream and salad leaves.
• Fold the tortilla into a wrap. There are a number of videos on YouTube that explain this.

The burrito I made here is vegetarian. You can always add some shredded chicken or add some minced meat to the refried beans to satisfy a non-vegetarian palate.