Brinjal, Paneer & Spinach Curry

 Brinjal, Paneer & Spinach Curry

I had an Aubergine in the fridge, so I thought I'd try and cook up a new recipe and it turned out really well. Full of flavour, with the added luxurious taste of coconut milk. 

INGREDIENTS

1 Large Aubergine plus veg oil

2-3 tblsps oil

1tsp Black Mustard seeds

1 tsp Cumin seeds

8-10 Curry leaves

5cm Cassia bark

1 Red Onion finely sliced

4 Garlic cloves chopped

1 thumb size piece of Ginger finely chopped

3-4 mild green Chilli's finely chopped

1tsp ground Cumin

1tsp ground Coriander

1tsp Kashmiri Chilli powder

½ tsp turmeric 

1tsp Salt or to taste

3 Tomatoes chopped

100gr Baby Leaf Spinach

150gr Paneer diced

3 tblsps Coconut Milk

1tsp Garam Masala 

Handful chopped Coriander 

METHOD

Aubergine. 

Heat an oven tray in a hot oven 220c

Slice aubergine into 10mm slices, then each slice into 3 batons. 

Toss the Aubergine in some oil in a bowl. 

Tip into the hot tray and roast until browned but not burnt. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. 

Masala Sauce. 

Heat the oil over a medium heat

Add the Mustard seeds, Cumin seeds, Curry leaves and Cassia bark. Cook until Mustard seeds begin to pop. Add the onions and cook until soft, about 10mins.

Now add the Garlic Chillies and Ginger. 

Cook for around 2mins, then add the ground spices and salt, stir, cook for a minute, adding a splash of water. 

Throw in the chopped tomatoes and cook on low-medium heat until the tomatoes break down. Add a splash of water if the sauce starts to catch. 

To Finish. 

Stir in the Paneer and 3 tblsps of coconut milk. Cook for 5mins on low, then add all the Spinach. Cover the pan and cook on low until the Spinach has wilted down. 

Now stir in the roasted Aubergine, warm through, add the Garam Masala, stir and remove from the heat. Add the chopped Coriander and serve!! 

My Homemade Wholemeal Loaf.

 

My Homemade Wholemeal Loaf. 

You will need:

2lb Bread tin

Mixing bowl

2 jugs. 

INGREDIENTS

400g Wholemeal Flour

100g Strong Plain Flour

50g Softened Butter

1 Tsp Salt

1Tsp Nigella Seeds

15g Active Yeast

1Tsp Caster Sugar

300ml warm water. 

METHOD

Make up 150ml of warm water in a small jug, sprinkle over the yeast and sugar. 

Whisk well and leave until the top froths to about 5-10mm. 

Place the flour, salt & Nigella Seeds into a large mixing bowl and using a fork, mix well. 

Now add the butter, using your fingers, rub in well, until you almost have a breadcrumb mixture. 

Add the yeast mixture and the rest of the warm water. Bring together to form a dough. 

Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and begin to knead. 

Knead for 5 - 10mins until the dough becomes smooth but pliable. 

Return the dough to the bowl,(tip: wipe a little oil around the bowl first) cover with cling film and leave in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size. Up to an hour. 

Turn your oven on 200c/180c fan, 

Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface and knead again for 5-10mins.

Shape dough and place into your bread tin, cover with lightly oiled cling film or a damp tea towel. Leave to rise, so that it is just above the bread tin. 

Remove the cling film, dust with a little flour and put on the middle oven shelf. 

Bake for 35-40 minutes. 

Turn the bread out onto a wire rack and allow to cool. 

Enjoy! 

Delicious Vegetable Curry!

 Vegetable Curry

This is a very tasty but simple dish that can either be a main or side. 

For this I've used courgette, green beans and carrots, but any leftover veg will do. 

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsps veg oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 Bay leaf

1 dried red chilli

2 cloves

3 green cardamom

1 large onion, sliced

½ tsp turmeric 

½ tsp chilli powder

1 tsp ground cumin 

1tsp ground coriander

1tsp salt or to taste. 

1 green chilli (optional). 

1 large tomato chopped. 

1 or 2 courgettes sliced

1 carrot sliced

Handful of green beans topped and tailed. 

1-2 teaspoons sugar. 

1 tsp Garam masala. 

METHOD

Heat the oil in a large pan and add the mustard seed, along with all the whole spices. 

Cook until mustard seeds start to pop. 

Now add the onions, lower the heat and cook until golden brown, ( about 10 minutes). Add a splash of water from time to time to avoid burning the onions. 

Now add the ground spices, salt and green chilli. 

Stir and cook for a minute. Now add the tomato and a splash of water and cook on a medium, low heat until the tomato breaks down. 

Add the remaining vegetables and the sugar. Cook on a low heat, with a lid on until the vegetables are cooked. Check frequently to make sure the mixture doesn't stick, adding water if necessary. 

Finally, when the dish is ready, stir in the garam Masala and serve. Delicious! 

Lamb & Spinach Curry

Lamb with Spinach

Another Hari Ghotra inspired dish, this Lamb curry is delicious! 

A little spicy with a deep flavour and well worth the effort. 

INGREDIENTS

350g Diced Lamb

3 cloves of garlic

1" piece of ginger chopped

1 tblsp coriander seeds

½ tsp salt

2-3 tblsps oil

1 large onion sliced

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp chilli powder

1 red chilli chopped

1 tsp salt

3 tblsps plain yogurt 

100grs baby spinach

METHOD

Grind the Coriander seeds in a spice grinder and place in a pestle and mortar

With the garlic, ginger and salt. 

Work into a paste and add to the diced lamb, mix well and set aside. 

Heat the oil in a large pan and add the onions, cook until we'll browned on a medium to low heat. Remove a tblsp of onion and set aside. 

Add the lamb mixture and cook on high for 2 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the turmeric, chilli, chilli powder and salt, stir and cook for 2 mins. 

Turn the heat down slightly and add a tblsp of yogurt, stir and cook until absorbed into the mixture, repeat until all the yogurt is used. Now add the spinach, cover the pan, turn the heat to its lowest setting and cook for 40 - 50mins stirring from time to time until the lamb is cooked through. Add a little hot water if the sauce becomes to dry or starts to stick. You should end up with a nice creamy sauce. 

Serve with some of the saved onion sprinkled on top. Delicious!! 

A TASTE OF SPAIN!

SPANISH STYLE CHICKEN WITH CHORIZO

This is absolutely delicious and full of the flavour of Spain.

INGREDIENTS

3 TBLSPS EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

1 SMALL ONION  CHOPPED

1 CLOVE GARLIC  FINELY SLICED

200g GOLDEN POMODORINI (Small sweet Tomatoes) TOMATOES HALVED

100g CHORIZO SLICED

4 SKINLESS CHICKEN THIGHS

3 SMALL TO MEDIUM PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS SLICED

1 TBSP SPANISH SHERRY VINEGAR

HANDFUL FRESH BASIL  TORN

SALT AND GROUND BLACK PEPPER

METHOD

Heat the oil on a moderate setting  in a large shallow pan, add the Onion and Garlic.Fry for five minutes until soft and add the Chorizo, cook for a further two minutes or until the Paprika from the Chorizo is released.  Add the Chicken and continue to cook until browned turning occasionally (about 6 – 10 mins).  Now add the Tomatoes, Mushrooms, Sherry Vinegar, Fresh Basil, Salt and Ground Black Pepper. Cook on a high heat for 5 minutes stirring from time to time so that the   chicken doesn't stick. Now pour in enough hot water to come half way up the chicken, bring to the boil, lower the heat, cover and simmer gently for 30mins. Stir the pan occasionally to avoid sticking. If you like it a little spicy, make sure your Chorizo is picante or even add a chopped mild red chilli. 

Uncover the pan and continue to cook until the sauce becomes a little thicker, dress with a few spare Basil leaves and Serve with Spanish Style fried potatoes. Delicious!

Creamy Saag Paneer!

 Creamy Saag Paneer! 

For all you vegetarians out there, I've recently cooked this dish following the Hari Ghotra recipe and it's delicious! 

If you like curry, but you're a vegetarian, then download the Hari Ghotra app from your app store, you will find a whole selection of delicious meals that you can cook at home! 

Hari's recipes are easy to follow and in my opinion, the best curry recipes anywhere! 

BANANA BREAD!

 Banana Bread. 

I saw this recipe on the back of a flour bag, so I thought, I'm going to have a go at this. 

I mean, it sounds perfect if you're watching your weight. It's full of sugar and butter, it's even got real bananas in it! Perfect!! 

Seriously this is a tasty treat, so why not give it a go? 

Firstly set your oven to: 190c, Fan 170c

INGREDIENTS 

200g Butter

200g Sugar

1tsp Vanilla extract

3 Medium eggs

200g Self raising white flour

2 Ripe Bananas mashed. 

METHOD

Rub some butter round a 2lb loaf tin. 

Put the butter and sugar into a bowl and beat until nice and creamy then stir in the vanilla extract. 

Break the eggs into the bowl one at a time beating as you go. 

Add half the flour to the bowl and beat well. 

Now add the mashed bananas and beat again. 

Mix in the rest of the flour and spoon the mixture into the loaf tin. 

Smooth over the top. 

Bake in the oven for 55 minutes. 

Allow to cool for 20 minutes before turning the loaf out onto a wire rack to cool further. 

That's it, enjoy!!