Search Results

This is an adaptation of a friend's fenugreek chicken recipe. His fenugreek chicken, back when we were living in South Africa, was the first time I ever had fenugreek and the memory of it is what then pushed me, back in Switzerland, to try to get a hold of some for myself. I knew so little about ti at that point though that I wasn't even aware that there were fenugreek leaves, seeds and ground fenugreek. When the friend who eventually sourced it for me and picked it up asked me which I wanted, I had no idea, so she got me all three. I made the chicken again and then launched into my own exploration of the spice. This recipe is more or less faithful to his original recipe for the chicken but simply vegetarian, replacing the chicken with sweet potato and carrot (I do have his permission to post). The substitution worked well but obviously altered the end result. Both vegetables are quite sweet, so the emphasised the cinnamon in the recipe and the sweetness and warmth of the flavours. It also ended up a little different as I used rehydrated Kashmiri chilis instead of green chilis for the simple reason that my local grocery store didn't have any chilis available, so I used what I had on hand. This resulted in a warmer, less acidic heat. Both of these made for an excellent new dish, but I would change at least one of the vegetables and cut down on the cinnamon a little next time if I wanted something closer to the original dish but that is still vegetarian. I am sticking with my friend's units of measurement here, firstly because they are excellent, and secondly as a tribute. Ingredients: 2 sweet potatoes, chopped 3 carrots, chopped 1/2 head of garlic, grated medium chunk of ginger, grated (my friend's recipe specifies 1.2 inches) 4-6 green chilis, finely diced 1 - 1 1/2 medium onions, chopped 40% tsp of turmeric 40% tsp chili powder (I used tandoori powder as my other chili powder is too hot for Little Bit) 1 1/5 tsp salt 3/5 c dried fenugreek leaves, rehydrated in enough boiling water to cover them for 30 minutes prior to use) 30-50g butter 1 tbsp vegetable oil 1 1/5 - 2 bay leaves 1 1/5 tsp cumin, heaped, like Everest 1 tsp coriander, heaped, like Mauna Kea 30% tsp cinnamon (I think I accidentally did closer to 50% tsp this time. oops!) 1 tsp dried thyme, optional Drizzle of cream 1) Heat oil in a deep frying pan over medium heat. Throw in onions, salt, and bay leaves and sweat until just beyond golden, stirring occasionally. Add ginger, garlic and chili. Stir for another minutes. 2) Add remaining spices and stir. Add the fenugreek leaves and some of the rehydration water. Stir. 3) Spread the onion and spice mix out over the base of the pan then place the sweet potatoes and carrots on top and stir. Add butter and thyme. Add a little more tumeric if it all looks a little pale. (the original directions were to do so if the chicken looked like a polar bear, but even under-turmericked sweet potatoes don't look very polar bear-esque...) 4) Once the sweet potato and carrot have had a chance to sauté a bit, add the rest of the water and let it reduce to only a thin coating. Cover, and stir every few minutes. 5) Once the sweet potato and carrot are tender, add black pepper until you can taste it and drizzle over the cream. 6) Serve over rice, and cover when not dishing. If the dish dries out it is nowhere near as tasty. Add more water, butter or pepper as needed. This was a very tasty dish in its own right, but quite different to the original (which I will have to make again soon). This one will stick around as a veggie alternative I think, but they are quite different dishes at the end of the day. A simple substitution this wasn't in the end, but still thoroughly worth doing. The remnants in the pan which didn't get packed away immediately quietly disappeared of their own accord, which is always a good sign...

So, it isn't like we needed more cookies just before New Year, but for Science, it was necessary to make a control batch of these using the more traditional ground almonds rather than the ground Hazelnut variety of Cinnamon Stars I made last week. I had also found that the chocolate variation was too chocolatey and needed to be toned down a little, so I wanted to try them out with only a dash of cacao instead of a full third of the powdered sugar being replaced by cacao. I was a numpty and sent the hazelnuts back to my house before making this batch at my parent's so both the standard and the chocolate variety were made using almonds this time around. I had a bit of an oven problem, so they came out softer than usual, but this was a hit with the family. I also increased the cinnamon content in both varieties, which was also a popular move. Ingredients: For the plain ones: 3 egg whites a pinch of salt 1 1/2 c powdered sugar 3 c ground almonds 3 tbsp cinnamon 2 tsp kirsch For the chocolate ones: 3 egg whites a pinch of salt 1 1/2 c powdered sugar 2 tbsp cacao 3 c ground almonds 3 tbsp cinnamon 2 tsp kirsch 2 tbsp sugar for rolling Optional: 1 tbsp flaked almonds, toasted 1) Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt to form stiff peaks (check out my beautiful, stiff, hand-whipped peaks!). Fold in the powdered sugar and set aside 2 tbsp for the icing. If using, fold in cacao at this point. 2) Mix in the nuts, cinnamon and kirsch to form a stiff dough. Roll out 1 cm thick on a sugared surface and cut out shapes. 3) Lay out on a cookie sheet (preferably greased or with a silicone sheet) and ice with a little dollop of the icing. If using, add a few flaked almonds on top of the icing at this point. 4) (Optional: Allow to rest for 5 hours or overnight. I skipped this step this time) Bake at 240°C for 4 minutes. The consensus, seeing as these were the control batch to the experimental hazelnut cookies from earlier in the week, was that both types of nut work. If you prefer almonds generally, then you likely prefer the classic variety of these cookies (which I will continue to call Cinnamon Stars even though all of these were circular). If you prefer hazelnuts generally, you will probably prefer the hazelnut variety. Just swap out the nuts in a 1:1 ratio. The increased cinnamon was a hit, and I think I've hit on the right proportion of cacao. These were now cinnamon cookies, with almond and a little chocolate, rather than chocolate cookies with some nuts and a little cinnamon. If you want chocolate cookies, check out the classic Basler Christmas Cookie recipe instead (which I like as well), or the orange variation that I tweaked this year. For this type though, I am delighted with these ones. The flaked almonds were an idea of my dad's as we had some left over from the Chicken Tagine the day before.

Due to Covid quarantining we could not be with all the family for Christmas, so I am waiting on the last 3 days of Christmas cookies until we are all together. And in the mean time, something a little different... It sounds a little strange I know, but give it a chance. The arrival at this dish was a little peripatetic. We had peeled a pomelo for breakfast, excited for Little Bit to try another new food, especially a citrus, and we are both very fond of pomelos. We discovered with disappointment though that it was not very juicy, and was too dry with a bitter aftertaste. Fine then. I'll make it into a smoothie. SO I peeled it and prepped it, then spotted a beet in the fridge and decided that the acidity, mild bitterness and sweetness of the pomelo would play nicely with the earthy sweetness of the beetroot. I therefore peeled the latter and chucked it into the blender with the pomelo. I added some orange peel and some spices for good measure, then had to go do something else and left it there on the counter. The plan for dinner at this stage was spiralised sweet potato in a creamy mushroom sauce. When I came to make dinner though, having spiralised the sweet potato I spotted the almost purple smoothie sitting on the counter, and decided that tonight was a test night. Let's see what happens if we use the almost smoothie as a sauce for the sweet potato spirals, with the mushrooms chucked in. So that is what we did, and with a little tweaking it worked. The bitterness from the unjuicy pomelo still came through, but less so when sopped up with bread, so we decided to have the leftover sauce with cheesy gnocchi a couple of days later and it sang. Ingredients: 1 pomelo 1 beetroot 1 - 1 1/2 tsp dried orange peel 2 tbsp lemon juice 1/4 tsp cloves 1 tsp cinnamon 2 tbsp honey 2 tsp Aloha Spiced Cacao Salt and pepper to taste 1) Blitz the ingredients together ( if you prefer a mellower flavour for your beetroot, steam or roast it first. I used raw beet and it worked well though.) 2) Heat slowly in a saucepan, stirring gradually, 3) Add to spirals of veg or to cheesy gnocchi or pasta. The first night the bitterness from the pomelo was a bit much. The dish had promise but needed some tweaking. We found that the starch helped counter the bitterness though and so cooking it with gnocchi, heavier in starch than the sweet potatoes with a less delicate flavour of their own, With a pomelo that was perfectly ripe though, instead of one we needed to use in something rather than just eating, I don't know if we would have encountered the same problem. This is definitely going to stick around though, it was so tasty! EDIT: After making mozzarella of my own for the first time, I used the sauce in puff pastry pockets with the mozzarella and dates. They were beautiful (and tasty!) The sauce also works well as a pink base for pizza.

Skip the raisins and toast to make it keto-friendly, or use gluten-free toast for a gluten-free meal.

On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me eight cinnamon stars, seven Basler Christmas Cookies, six Pumpkin and Pineapple Cookies, five Chestnut Rings, four Poppyseed cookies, three peppermint macaroons, two orange date cookies and a freshly baked ginger snap As with the Basler Christmas Cookies on Day 7, these are a Christmas cookie that are traditional locally so I grew up with them, but we never made them at home. This was the first time I made them, and am glad I did so. They are a different type of cookie to many of the others included in this list, but I think, a fitting inclusion none-the-less. The batter was easy to make, but the icing is a bit of a pain to spread on each cookie individually (Thanks to my sister who had the patience to do so!), and as with the Basler cookies, these are supposed to be left to dry for at least 6 hours, if not over night. Unlike with the Basler ones, I actually did this with these (I am not sure what difference it makes), so the wait time can be a bit of a pain. Ingredients: 3 egg whites 1 pinch of salt 1 1/2 c icing sugar 2 tbsp of cinnamon 3 c ground almonds 2 tsp of Kirsch 1) Beat the egg whites with the salt to form stiff peaks. Fold in the icing sugar and set aside about 2 tbsp for the icing. 2) Add the cinnamon and the ground almonds, and the kirsch if using. Mix until you get a stiff dough. 3) Roll out the cookie dough on a sugared surface to about 1 cm thick and then cut out stars using a small star cookie cutter (or a toy from your Little One's shape sorter, as I did...) 4) Ice the stars, placing a dollop of icing in the middle of the star and using the blade of a knife or a toothpick to draw it out towards the tips. (Optional: 5) Allow the stars to dry for at least 6 hours or overnight. I did for these but not for the Basler cookies. Neither seems to have suffered for the different treatment. 6) Bake at 250°C for 5 minutes (take them out while the icing is still white as I clearly didn't do...) These are very tasty! I did miss our the kirsch by mistake ( trying to make a very belated Thanksgiving dinner at the same time and put Little Bit down for bed was maybe not very conducive to following a recipe), and I do think they suffered for the lack of Kirsch. The allowing them to dry for hours is also a bit irritating, but the cookies in the end are well worth it, and very cute. And no one need ever know that I used a toy instead of a cookie cutter ;)

So this is a bit of a spin on last year's Potato and Cabbage Pie, using sweeter root vegetables and some greens. It is still quite dense but packed with flavour and super satisfying. Sweet potatoes and squash were on sale so they were the base for this pie. I like the cabbage leaves as the pie casing, steamed and then roasted with the pie. We put bacon over the top of this one, but really it would have been just as good without it. Ingredients: 6-8 cabbage leaves 4-5 sweet potatoes, chopped 2 apples, chopped 3 carrots, chopped 1/2 butternut squash, chopped 3 eggs 1/2 - 1 c cheese, grated 1 tsp thyme 1 tsp oregano 1/2 head broccoli, chopped 2 tbsp butter 1 tbsp chutney (I used last year's Green Tomato Chutney) 6-8 strips of bacon Salt and pepper to taste 1) Steam the cabbage leaves until pliant. Boil the sweet potatoes and apples until tender, about 10-15 minutes. Roast the butternut and carrots with the butter at 180°C until tender, about 20 minutes to a half-hour. 2) Roughly mash the veg together, and mix in the eggs, cheese, and herbs, salt and pepper. Add broccoli and mix well. 3) Butter an ovenproof dish and line it with the cabbage leaves, reserving one for the "lid". Fill with the vegetable mix, spread chutney over the top and close it with the cabbage leaf lid. Lay the bacon strips over the top and bake at 180°C for 25-30 minutes. This came out very tasty. Next time I would put the bacon on before the cabbage leaf lid though so that it can cook and melt into the veg rather than just larding the top. I might add a bit of a zingier flavour to it too, but not necessarily. It was very sweet and could have done with a dash of acid of some kind but was very tasty and filling as is. Certainly an idea worth working on though!

I started making my own apple pectin last year, and have used it a couple of times for jellies (like my Lemon and Ginger Chilli Jelly). Apple pectin is entirely naturally occurring in apples, and in the presence of sugar, it helps gel things. I wondered if it would be possible to use pectin instead of gelatine in other things, like Panna Cotta. I do like panna cotta and like playing around with flavours for it occasionally (like my lemon-topped one, or my savoury lemongrass and coconut one!). I was a little worried that the pectin would both flavour and colour the panna cotta as it is a pink colour. As for the flavour, I decided to run with it and pair it with applesauce. The idea has been bouncing around for a little while and I finally decided to try it. Recipe Cook time: 20-30 minutes + chill time 4 hours to overnight -- Portions: 4 -- Difficulty: Easy Ingredients: 2c cream 2 c apple pectin 3 tbsp brown sugar 1 c apple sauce 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp allspice 1) Pour cream and pectin into a saucepan and heat slowly. Stir in sugar. Bring to a slow simmer and cook for about 15 minutes. 2) Mix the cinnamon and allspice into the applesauce and spoon it into the bottom of 4 or 5 glasses. Gently pour the cream mixture over the top of the apple sauce and chill overnight in the fridge. This worked. Ish. Better than I had feared but not as well as I had hoped. I initially started with 1 c pectin, but while the cream did thicken, it didn't gel. I poured it all (apple sauce included as I couldn't seem to get just the cream) back into a saucepan, and added the third tablespoon of sugar and another cup of pectin. I cooked it again and chilled it again. This time it worked! The cream was the right consistency for panna cotta, and absolutely delicious, with little bits of apple and lots of spice caught in it. The only problem was that the cream was a solid layer on top of a layer of juice. I don't know if it was from the apple sauce or from the pectin, or a little of each, but as soon as we started eating the panna cotta, the juice seeped up and mixed with the cream, and it was all a liquidy mess. Next time, I think I need to reduce both the apple sauce and the pectin a bit further to prevent that. It was still tasty though! So very tasty! Science experiment successful though. Pectin works to gel things other than jellies, as a replacement for gelatine. With some caveats! The other issue with using homemade pectin, scientifically speaking, is that it is not going to be a uniform strength. What took 2 cups of pectin this time might take 1 1/2 or 3 next time, there is no real way to know... I guess I will just have to play that one by ear. Luckily, that is how most of my cooking happens, so I'm ok with that. Also, it didn't turn pink, but was a little coloured by the spices. I will have to try this one again, with reduced ingredients, to see how it goes then. Served in little glasses, I think this could work quite nicely as a party food!

I know, I know. Not another Rösti recipe! We've already had two (the Non-Traditional 6 Veg Rösti from way back, and the Courgette and Apple Rösti from the autumn, made with Chanterelles from a friend's mushrooming excursion), but the combination of the red cabbage and the sweet potato in this one was too good not to share. I wasn't initially sure about the cabbage (Cabbage? In rösti?!). but it worked, and in fact, it was the tastiest part (along with the bacon and the cheese and the peppers and the sweet potato...) I initially had other plans for last night's dinner, but it was snowing harder and harder, and my original plans meant a trip down the mountain to the store. In view of the weather conditions, I decided against that. The veg we had then led me to the idea of a stir-fry. And then the image of the big cast-iron skillet came to mind, which naturally transitioned the dish's conception from stir-fry to rösti. I rooted around in the pantry and grabbed a number of bits and pieces, and that was the basis of the dish. And when is a rösti better suited for than when there is a howling snowstorm outside and a toasty fire in the fireplace? It was perfect, for the mood, the weather and to keep us all warm. Ingredients: 4 tbsp butter 2 tbsp olive oil 1 red cabbage, sliced 4 onions, sliced 1 head garlic, sliced 1 red pepper, sliced 2 sweet potatoes, grated A handful of carrots, grated A handful of small potatoes, grated 1 tsp thyme 1 tsp sage 1 tsp sumac 1 tsp Urfa Biber 1 ball mozzarella, sliced 1/4 c bacon, diced (or more, if you want. Or none at all, although I really do hold with bacon in general) 1 tomme of fresh cheese (I used a tomme vaudoise that we had on hand), cubed 6 quail's eggs 1 spring onion, chopped Salt and Pepper to taste 1) Heat about 2 tbsp butter in a large cast-iron skillet. Fry the onions and garlic on medium heat until beginning to soften. Add the red pepper and bacon and cook for a few more minutes until the bacon bits are cooked on the outside (this is going in the oven after, so don't worry if it isn't completely cooked through yet). 2) Add the remaining vegetables and mix well. Season, add the herbs and spice and fry for about 5 more minutes. Finally, add in the cubes of cheese, and dot with the remaining butter. Crack the quail's eggs on top and arrange them neatly, and place the mozzarella round on top of the rösti. 3) Place in the oven at 180°C for about 10 minutes. Pull it out and sprinkle the spring onion over the top. Add a drizzle of olive oil if the top is looking too dry. Place back in the oven for a few more minutes, until the mozzarella is melted, the eggs are cooked, and the top of the rösti is beginning to brown but the spring onion is still crisp. I am very pleased with how this one came out. Hubby thinks it is my best rösti yet, but then I think his favourite version of many things I cook is the one on his plate at the time... The flavour combos and the deep flavour of the cabbage especially were rewarding. The only oddity really is that the cabbage turned some of the other bits, like the cheese and potato, blue. I can live with that though, especially in such a colourful dish! And I must say that quail's eggs make almost anything look fancy and dainty. It also worked re-heated for lunch today! The bacon could be skipped for a vegetarian version of this. I wouldn't suggest skipping the cheese, but you could turn it vegan if you really wanted to. Switch things up according to your tastes!

As mentioned in Day 30 of The Challenge I used to not be a fan of tapioca pudding. I didn't like the texture, and I had been served it cold which just accentuated the texture that I didn't like. And then my grandmother got sick and struggled with solids and had minimal appetite, so we made a lot of puddings, and I came around to it. Making it again for the first time since she died was bittersweet, but certainly a tasty dessert. And because we always make healthy decisions, we added a chocolate sauce... Happy eating! Ingredients: 1/2 c tapioca 1 1/2 c milk 1 c coconut milk 1/2 c raisins 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 c sugar 1 tbsp butter 2 tbsp cocoa powder 1/4 c coconut milk cinnamon for sprinkling 1) Heat the milk, coconut milk and tapioca in a saucepan over a low heat, stirring constantly. Add vanilla, raisins and sugar and keep stirring until it thickens. If it glops at you, turn the heat down and stir. 2) Melt the butter in a small saucepan and slowly stir in the cocoa powder (personally I like dark cocoa powder, or baker's chocolate with a little sugar, but tweak it to how sweet you want it.) Once it has formed an even mass, add the coconut milk, and blend until smooth. 3) Portion out the tapioca and drizzle over the chocolate sauce, Sprinkle with cinnamon or cocoa spice and serve. Alternately, if you prefer, chill the tapioca and serve cold, with either hot or cold chocolate sauce. So many options! It took me a while to come back to this after my grandmother died, but now that I have, it might make it into more regular rotation again... I'm also wondering about a savoury version. Something to think about. I hope you enjoy and make your own memories with this!

In the new cookbook I got for Christmas, Salt Fat Acid Heat by Samin Nosrat, there is a double page of 10 vegetable soup recommendations with topping suggestions, but no recipes (or I'm simply blind and missed them). One of the suggestions was Aubergine Soup with Harissa. As Aubergines were on sale and we seemed to have an endless supply of them, and because it sounded good, I decided to try it. Somewhere along the way I wasn't sure I would be able to get what I needed for the Harissa though and noticed that I had a jar of frozen nettles, so I thought of trying to make a spicy nettle sauce to top the soup. I did end up finding what I needed for the Harissa in the end, but still added the nettles. And then I remembered that I had Queso Blanco left over from my cheese making efforts. I decided I would top the soup with some of this too, and at the last minute added some of this to the harissa too - although at this point I don't think it can any longer be called harissa, but I don't know what else to call it. The soup came out beautifully with a deep, rich flavour, offset but a dash of lemon and the not-too-spicy Nettle Harissa. I found that the queso blanco certainly added something to the soup, but it would have worked well without for anyone wanting to make it vegan or keto friendly. Ingredients: For the soup: 4 aubergines 1 tbsp olive oil 1 onion, chopped 1/2 head garlic, minced 2 - 3 c vegetable stock 1 tsp sumac Juice of 1 lemon Salt and pepper to taste Queso Blanco (or other fresh cheese) to serve For the Harissa: 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped 3 dried chilis, chopped 3 - 4 sundried tomatoes 2 tsp cumin seeds 2 tsp coriander seeds 3 - 4 tbsp olive oil 3 - 4 tbsp nettles (mine were briefly steamed then frozen) 1 tbsp queso blanco juice of 1 lemon 1) Roast the aubergines in the oven under the broil setting at 200°C, turning regularly, until they are soft on the inside and browning on the outside (you could even let them get some char marks) - about 45 minutes to an hour. Cool and then chop. 2) Heat oil in a heavy bottomed soup pot. Sauté onions and garlic until soft and translucent. 3) Add the aubergine and the remaining soup ingredients except the cheese and cook for about 10 minutes. Blitz until smooth and set aside. 4) In a small frying pan, dry roast the cumin and coriander seeds until the first few begin to pop. Stir the pan around a few times to ensure even roasting. Remove from the heat. 5) In a blender, combine all the ingredients except the nettles and the queso blanco. Taste test, then add the nettles and blend again. Taste test, then add the cheese. 6) To serve, ladle soup into bowls. place dollops of the queso blanco around the perimeter of the soup then place briefly in a warm oven (100°C roughly) for a few minutes to encourage the cheese to melt a little. Remove and place a dollop of the harissa in the centre of the bowl. I loved this and will certainly be coming back to it! Hubby and Little Bit liked it too. Little Bit is getting better at using a spoon, but after a few spoonfuls he gave up and started stuffing soup into his mouth by the fistful. Not a bad endorsement! On a different note, I noticed recently that all of my cooking happens either while wrangling Little Bit, or while listening to and Audiobook. When linking the Broccoli and Cheese Scone recipe to the post about making mascarpone to pair with sweet scones, I suddenly had a vivid image in my head of a sedan chair being carried through rice paddies. It took me a second to place it, but then I realised that it was from WS Maugham's The Painted Veil which I had been listening to when I made the scones. After realising this, I scrolled back through older posts and for a fair number of the recipes I could effortlessly conjure up which part of which book I was listening to while making that recipe. This being the case, I have decided to start including a note on what I was listening to at the time on some posts. While making this soup, I was listening to an early part of The Bridge of Sighs by Olen Steinhauer. It is a gritty muder/spy mystery taking place in the late '40s in Eastern Europe. While playing around with my nettles and aubergines, our young beleaguered inspector is following clues in a prominent murder case which he realises he has been given to fail... It's been a while since my last crime book and I thoroughly enjoyed it!