Monday 11 March 2024

Indian Chicken Stew with Potatoes



I have a urge to have a saucy Indian dish for this cold winter night to pair it with some nan bread or even rice. Looking for something creamy, tomato-based and comes with potatoes. Eventually I found a recipe that tick my boxes. This recipe is adapted from Seasons & Suppers.

Don't let the long list of ingredients put you off. Once you build up your spice collection, you will realized that many of the recipes are within reach. This stew is packed with flavour and heat, depending on how much  cayenne pepper you add. Searing and then simmering the chicken in the sauce keeps the white meat tender and moist. And, like most stews, it tastes better the second day-if it lasts that long.


Ingredients:
  • 3-4 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 4 large skin-on/bone-in chicken breasts or boneless
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 tsp ground pepper
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 tbsp finely grated ginger
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 2½ tsp garam masala
  • 2½ tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • ½-¾ tsp cayenne pepper, depending on how spicy you prefer
  • 3 cups of chicken stock
  • ¾ cup chopped tin tomatoes
  • ½ cup double cream
  • 500g potatoes, cut into ¼" thickness ( you can use white, Yukon Golds, Maris Piper)
Method:

Heat vegetable oil in a large pan over medium heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper and place skin side down in to the pan. Cook until golden brown without turning, about 8-10 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate.

To the same pot, add onion, garlic and ginger to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is very soft and golden brown, about 8-10 minutes. Add tomato paste, garam masala, cumin, turmeric, coriander, cayenne and cook, stirring often until tomato paste is beginning to darken, about 4 minutes.

Add chicken pieces, chicken stock, chopped tin tomatoes and cream to pot. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until chicken is almost falling off the bone and liquid is slightly thickened, about 1 hours. If using bone-in chicken, remove chicken to a plate and carefully remove chicken from the bone and discard skin and bones. Cut or pull chicken into bite-sized pieces. Return chicken pieces to the pot.

Add potatoes to the pot and cook partially covered, until potatoes are fork-tender and sauce is thickened, 30-45 minutes. Stir every so often to ensure the sauce hasn't thickened too much and potatoes aren't sticking to the bottom of the pot. If sauce is too thick, thin with a bit more chicken stock.

To serve, spoon the stew into a shallow bowl and place a large dollop of yogurt on one side. Sprinkle with some fresh coriander or parsley and serve with nan bread on the side. Alternately, spoon stew over some warm white rice.


Chicken Dopiaza



Dopiaza curry is an ancient Indian dish that is become a favourite worldwide. And it is not surprising, big, bold tastes of spice and lots of onions make this one seriously tasty curry.
Dopiaza means two onions in Persian. But is is not really two onions. It's onion two ways. It refers to a delicious curry recipe using a base of onion puree as well as additional onions for a delicious sauce that can be used with a variety of different meats or proteins.
It is a popular choice at Indian takeaways or restaurants across the UK and other parts of the world.
I like to serve this with simple pilau rice.


Ingredients:
  • 550-650g boneless chicken breast or thighs, cut into bite pieces
  • 1½ cup of chicken stock
  • 2 tsp freshly grated ginger
  • 3 cloves garlic, pureed
  • 1 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1½ tsp cumin seeds
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • ½ tsp chilli powder, depending on your spice level
  • 2 tsp garam masala
  • 4 green cardamom pods
  • 450g onion, chopped
  • 1 large carrot, chopped
  • 80ml natural yoghurt
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 3 tbsp cooking oil
Method:

Bring a small saucepan of ½ cup of water to boil and add 250g of the chopped onion. Boil until soft, drain and puree with a hand blender or in a food processor. Set aside.

Heat a deep frying pan over a medium-high heat, add the oil. Add in the remaining onion and carrots and fry for a few minutes to soften.

Add the garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander, turmeric, chilli powder, garam masala and tomato paste. Stir until paste-like. Add a little drop of water to prevent sticking if needed.

Add the chicken meat and add the cardamom pods. Add in the onion puree and bring to a boil, then reduce heat slightly and simmer for 15-20 minutes. The liquid should have reduced down into a thick gravy that coats the chicken. If it is still liquidly, turn up the heat a little to allow it to bubble gently.

Spoon some of the gravy into the yoghurt, to bring the yoghurt to room temperature and then remove dopiaza from the heat and stir in the yoghurt.

Decorate with some chopped coriander & serve with plain rice

Tuesday 20 February 2024

Vegetarian Lasagne




Comfort food doesn't get much more classic than this Italian favourite, featuring layers of rich soya minced and a creamy sauce.


Ingredients:
  • 1 packet of meat free minced
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 carrot, diced
  • 1 celery, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 200ml vegan beef stock
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 200ml red wine
  • 1 tbsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
  • 9-12 lasagne sheets, depending on the size of your baking tray
  • 50g Parmesan, grated
  • 150g pack mozzarella, shredded
  • 1 bottle shop bought white sauce
Method:

In a large pan, heat the olive oil over a low heat. Fry the onion, carrot, celery and garlic for 5 minutes or until softened. Add the minced and soy sauce and fry on a medium heat until golden. Turn up the heat, pour in the wine and bubble until reduced. Stir in the tomato puree and stock. Add in the Worcestershire sauce and simmer for 15 minutes or until the liquid has reduced. Season.

Preheat the oven to 200ºC or 180ºC for fan assist oven. Layer up the lasagne in a baking dish, starting with a third each of the ragu, then the pasta, then the white sauce. Repeat twice. Top with the Parmesan and mozzarella then bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes, until piping hot and crisp and bubbling on top. Serve immediately.

Gluten Free Lemon Meringue Pie




This biscuit base lemon meringue pie is an easy take on a classic dessert. It's crunchy cookie crust, perfectly tangy lemon filling and fluffy cloud-like meringue topping, this easy dessert will disappear in no time. There is no need to make a pastry base for this biscuit base lemon pie. In no time, this crust is ready to fill with that luscious lemon filling and light-as-air meringue and it's probably a lot easier than you imagine.
While normally made using a pastry base, I am saving you the hassle and swapping it out for a biscuit base instead. This change makes the base super quick and easy to make but no less crunchy and buttery.
What's great this recipe is gluten free and dairy-free !!! Yes you read it right, gluten free. You can substitute the gluten free biscuits with the non gluten free version. I adapted this recipe from glutenfreecuppatea.co.uk


Ingredients:

For the biscuit  base
  • 300g gluten free digestives
  • 80g dairy free butter, melted
For the lemon filling:
  • 5 lemon zest & juice
  • 65g cornflour
  • 250g castor sugar
  • 5 egg yolks
  • 440ml water
For the meringue:
  • 5 egg whites
  • 340g caster sugar
  • 3 tsp cornflour
Method:

Crush the biscuits with a rolling pin or with a food processor into fine crumbs.

In a bowl, mix together your crushed biscuits and melted dairy free butter. Press into  loose bottomed tin and chill in the fridge whilst you make your lemon layer (minimum 30 minutes).

Zest and juice all the lemons into a bowl. 

Add cornflour and mix to form a loose paste.

Bring to boil 440ml of water. Once boiling add your lemon/cornflour paste. Stir until thickened and remove from the heat.

In a separate boil, mix together the sugar and egg yolks until smooth. Slowly add the egg/sugar mixture to the saucepan, whisking or stirring continuously. Once all the mixture has been added, reduce to a low heat and continue to stir till a little more thickened.

Allow to cool slightly before pouring it over the biscuit base. Put to one side, ideally in the fridge.

To make the meringue add the egg whites to a freestanding mixer. Whisk until soft peaks are formed.

Continue to whisk and gradually add the sugar until stiff peaks have formed and it's glossy.

Finally add the cornflour and whisk once more. Make sure your meringue is lovely and thick.

Spoon your meringue on top of the lemon layer. Swirl it around making little peaks as you go.

Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes at 170ºC.

If you have a cooking blow torch at this point, you could gently torch the top to give it a little more colour (optional).

Allow to cool completely in the tin and then chill in the fridge for a few good hours, preferably overnight, to allow the lemon layer to cool and settle down.

Slice and enjoy! 



Thursday 1 February 2024

Cranberry and Orange Gin


If you are looking for a perfect homemade Christmas gift for your favourite gin pals this year, then i have just one thing: homemade cranberry and orange gin liqueur!

This cranberry and orange gin liqueur recipe is really easy to make at home, has just 4 ingredients and is SO delicious. You may even want to make a batch for yourself-it makes for a fabulous dinner party aperitif that looks as spectacular as it tastes.

Ingredients:
  • 200g cranberries (fresh or frozen)
  • 200g sugar
  • thinly sliced peel of 1 orange
  • 500-700ml gin
Method:

Take a clean Kilner or Ikea glass jar or bottles and add all the ingredients, pricking the cranberries or gently squeeze the cranberries as you drop them in. 

Add the sugar, orange and gin and shake so all the sugar dissolves. Shake gently everyday for a week. 

You can either decant it then back into a clean bottles or leave it for a little longer if you want more flavour.

Serve: mix with ice, tonic and a twist of lemon for festive G&T or add a dash to prosecco.

Vegan Christmas Pie




Found this recipe while looking for inspiration for a vegan Christmas dinner idea from The Veg Space. This vegan Christmas Pie is packed with vegan sausagemeat, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mushrooms and even roasted sprouts! Just bursting with festive flavours. This pie can be fully prepared a day ahead, so all you have to do on the big day is pop it into the oven.
Like any good vegan option for Christmas, this is a perfect pairing for gravy, crispy roast potatoes, sprouts and all the festive trimmings.
A standard 2lb loaf pan is ideal for this pie. However I like the square corners and I used my pullman loaf pan. You can also make little individual pies in muffin tins if you prefer.

Ingredients:
  • 4 large flat mushrooms
  • 1 red onion
  • 120g brussels sprouts
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 110g stuffing mix, any flavour of your choice
  • 8 vegan sausages in skin
  • 320g ready-rolled shortcrust pastry
  • 2 tbsp cranberry sauce
  • 2 tbsp dairy-free milk
  • 2 drops soy sauce
Method:

Preheat oven to 190ºC or 170ºC for fan assist oven.

Remove the stalks from the mushrooms and place on a large baking tray. Peel and finely sliced the red onion and add to the tray, keeping separate from the mushrooms. Trim and slice the sprouts, adding them to the remaining space on the tray.

Drizzle or spray with oil, season well with salt and pepper and roast in the oven for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, make up the stuffing mix according to packet instructions and set aside.

Slit the skins of the vegan sausages and tip the sausage meat into a bowl, discarding the skins. mash together with a fork.

Grease and line a loaf tin with baking paper. This makes it easy to get the pie out in tact. Use the tin as template to cut around to fully line the tin with pastry. 

Layer up the pie starting with the vegan sausagemeat. Spoon it in small pieces into the bottom of the tin, then gently level out with a fork.

Lay the roasted onion on top of the sausagemeat, then dollop over the cranberry sauce, spreading it right to the edges with the back of a spoon.

Next, lay out the four roasted mushrooms in a line, overlapping slightly as necessary.

Add the stuffing in small pieces, pressing down with a fork to level out.

Finally, scatter the roasted sprouts over the top of the stuffing.

Brush a little water around the pastry edges of the pie, then lay out the remaining pastry over the top to form the lid. Use a fork to crimp the edges of the pastry together, then use a sharp knife to trim off excess pastry.

Use any festival pastry cutters you have to make decorations for the top of the pie.

Mix the dairy-free milk and soy sauce together to make a glaze, then brush this all over the pie lid. Chill until required.

Bake the pie for 30-45 minutes until deeply golden brown.





Sunday 14 January 2024

Vegan Cranberry Tart




 Inspiration for this tart came while browsing on Pinterest. I spotted a photo of an insanely gorgeous, fuchsia-red tart ! The pin shared by My Quiet Kitchen

To make sure the tart is smooth I push the cranberry sauce through a sieve after blending. I did not make my sweet pastry case. I opt for the quick version, the shop bought pasty case. Nothing stop you from making your own.

Ingredients:
  • 1 vegan shop bought tart case, you can make your own too
  • 650g fresh or frozen cranberries
  • 1½ cups sugar
  • 1 orange, zested and juiced
  • 1 tsp lemon zest
  • 1 cup solid coconut cream
  • toasted hazelnuts, finely chopped
Method:

A couple of days before making this tart, place 2 tins of full-fat coconut milk in the refrigerator. This is make the coconut cream to separate from the liquid inside the cans. This step is important as you only need the solid coconut cream and it's crucial for the proper consistency of the filling.

For the Filling: Heat a large sauce pan over medium heat. Cook the cranberries, sugar, orange juice and orange zest until the cranberries burst and the sauce thickens, about 15 minutes but might take longer for frozen cranberries. Stir in the lemon zest. Let the sauce cool completely.

Put 1 cup of solid coconut cream into a blender and add the cranberry sauce to the blender. Blend until velvety smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the blender as needed. Then push the sauce through a sieve into a large bowl, then pour into the tart case. Smooth the top. 

Refrigerate the tart, uncovered until chilled and set about 4 hours preferably over night. Garnish with the toasted hazelnuts. You can also serve the tart with vegan whipped cream.

Enjoy!

Monday 1 January 2024

Sloe Gin




Meet Prunus Spinosa, ore better known as sloe berries or blackthorn plums. These dark, small and kind of unpopular berries grow in the wild around northern Europe as hedgerows, and  they are particularly common in UK.
Unlike more popular berries, sloe berries are quite tart and astringent, which is why you won't often see them topping a cheesecake. The British, ingenious folk that they are, did find a way to make good use of the wild berry-they steeped it in gin to give the fragrant spirit a bit more personality, added some sugar, and Slow Gin was born! Yay for us!
Sloe gin is a traditional British after-dinner digestif. Smooth and fruity, with its own unique flavour. It's a real autumn and winter treat, flavoured with fruit from the hedgerow, perfect beside warming fires for cosy evenings at home, enjoying the long winter evenings.
This sloe gin recipe needs only four ingredients: sloe, gin sugar and time. There is something wonderful about having a couple of bottles at the back of a cupboard, gently maturing and gaining flavour from the foraged fruit, ready for the great decanting.
I find that leaving the fruit in for a good long while is really worth it; I usually leave my sloes infusing for at least 6 months and decant at the same time as I make the next batch. Don't leave it too long, however. The bottle needs drinking within a few years of decanting. Very old sloe gin loses its colour and flavour.


Ingredients:
  • 500g sloes
  • 250g sugar
  • 70cl gin
Method:

After gathering your sloes, wash and remove any stems and leaves. Dry the sloes with a kitchen towel and freeze the sloes for a couple of days. 

Pop the frozen sloes into a air-tight glass jar, approximately 1.5 litre. Add the sugar and slowly pour in your chosen gin.

Keep the jar in a dark, cool spot. For the first week or so, give the jar a good shake. Once all the sugar has dissolved, leave it in the dark as long as you can beat, three months at the very least. If you can make a year ahead before drinking for the best results.

Finally strain the mixture through some muslin and decant into two clean bottles, and it will ready to serve either on its own or with a mixer such as tonic water.

This gin is lovely on its own or reduced and drizzled onto cakes, but is also a great cocktail ingredients. To make a slow fizz, simply pour 25ml of sloe gin into a champagne glass and top with prosecco.

Saturday 30 December 2023

Blackberry Jam




This is a stupendously simple blackberry jam that will make the absolute best of your foraged wild blackberries :) As someone who adores foraging English hedgergrows in autumn, this recipe makes my heart so happy. Blackberries are our native super fruits here in the UK. So fill of flavour, fibre, vitamin C and K. 
There are many ways to make a good blackberry jam. Myself, I like to include whole fruits and not strain all that fibre and texture out. It is a jam I am longing for, not a jelly. Store those fresh summer berries in a jam to enjoy all year with this easy, low sugar homemade blackberry jam recipe. Just 3 simple ingredients are all you need to have your own homemade Blackberry Jam!!

Ingredients:
  • 6 cups fresh/frozen blackberries
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1-1½ cups granulated sugar
Method:

Add berries, lemon juice and sugar to a large pot and heat to medium. Use a fork or a potato masher to gently mash down the berries to release some of their juices.

Heat on  medium, bring to a gentle boil, and turn the heat down to medium-low to simmer. The berries will foam, just stir occasionally to reduce the foam.

Let simmer until the jam begins to gel, or when the temperature of the jam reaches 105º. Once ready, add to canning jars and enjoy. 

Tuesday 12 December 2023

Gourmet Sweet Potato and Puy Lentil Dhal


While searching for some ideas using puy lentils, I came across this recipe from Vegan Recipe Club. 

Ingredients:

For potato puree:
  • 750g sweet potatoes
  • 250ml coconut milk
  • 5g salt
For Lentils:
  • 150g puy lentils
  • 5g salt
For Tamarind Sauce:
  • 40g tamarind pulp
  • 200ml hot water
  • 5g salt
  • 50g dates
  • 5g toasted cumin
  • 2g chopped red chilli
Crispy Puy Lentils:
  • 125g puy lentils
  • oil for frying
Method:

Soak the 125g puy lentils for the crispy lentils component for several hours or overnight in cold water, before preparing anything else.

For Potato Puree: Roast the sweet potatoes in the oven on a tray covered with aluminium foil. When soft, remove the skins and discard any dark outer flesh.

Weigh 700g of the roasted sweet potato flesh and leave to cool in the room temperature. 

Transfer to the blender with coconut milk and salt and blend until smooth.

Pass through a fine muslin cloth and keep into a container and reserve in the fridge.

For the lentils: Weigh the lentils and salt directly into a pan and cover with cold water.

Bring to a boil on the stove and then reduce to a simmer. Continue to cook until the lentils are al dente.
Drain the lentils and leave it to cool to room temperature.

For Tamarind Sauce: Pour the hot water over the tamarind and salt and leave to steep for 10 minutes. Use your finger, try to get as much out of the tamarind flesh. Pass through a muslin cloth to get a smooth sauce into a pan. Heat the tamarind sauce to 100ºC. Remove from heat and transfer to a container to cool at room temperature.

For Crispy Lentils: Drain the soaked lentils very well and dry out thoroughly on cloths. Deep fry the lentils in vegetable oil until crispy and drain on a tray with kitchen paper to absorb the oil. While lentils are hot season with salt and pepper.

To Assembly: To serve, arrange the puree on the plate and add the warm cooked lentils. Arrange the tamarind sauce around the plate and sprinkle on the crispy lentils. 

Garnish with coriander leaves before serving.  

Nyonya Kueh Sago (Tapioca Pearl Cake)





Tapioca sago pearls are one of the common Southeast Asia ingredients and are used in all manner of desserts. This kuih sago is naturally vegan, and a very easy entry-level kueh to make at home!

Kuih sago is a common nyonya kuih (snack/dessert) found all over Malaysia & Singapore. This kuih uses only a few ingredients. The main ingredients is sago and another important ingredients is pandan. Ideally, you would use fresh pandan leaves, but you can use pandan paste if you can't find the fresh leaf.
The top layer is infused with gula melaka (palm sugar) to give it's brownish colour. Supremely soft and bouncy with chewy goodness of lightly salted grated coconut in every bite. 


Ingredients:
  • 350g sago/tapioca pearls
  • some banana leaves
  • 1 tbsp cooking oil
  • 7" square baking pan
Pandan layer:
  • 50g fresh grated coconut
  • 40ml pandan juice
  • 35ml thick coconut milk
  • 75g sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
Gula Melaka layer:
  • 50g fresh grated coconut
  • 40ml gula melaka syrup
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 150g fresh grated coconut
  • 2 knotted pandan leaves
  • ¼ tsp salt
Method:

Clean and grease banana leaf with cooking oil. Use it to line the baking pan. 

Rinse sago pearls to remove starch, drain and soak in water for 30 minutes. Then drain the soaking water and divide into 2 equal portions.

For the pandan sago layer: Mix together the soaked sago pearls, grated coconut, pandan juice, coconut milk, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. Spread the mixture evenly in the baking pan. Steam over medium-high heat for 15-18minutes.

In the meantime, prepare gula melaka sago layer. Mix together the soaked sago pearls, grated coconut, gula melaka syrup, coconut milk and salt in a mixing bowl. Then pour the gula melaka mixture on top of the steamed pandan sago layer. Spread with spatula evenly. Steam over medium-high heat for another 15-18 minutes.

Leave the kuih to cool completely before cutting.

Mix the additional fresh grated coconut with salt. Steam with knotted pandan leaves for 10 minutes and let it cool completely.

Grease a knife with cooking oil to cut the kuih into bite-sized pieces. Coat the kuih evenly with steamed grated coconut and serve.