French Cookery Course

I have been very lucky in going on a cookery course in the south of france with my mum this week.  Not only was the setting wonderful, in a sleepy sunny village near Toulouse, the food was endless and delicious. We learned to make many french deserts and I learnt lots of tips, which I am sure are going to flavour my recipes for a while now!

Chinese inspiration

I have recently been watching a tv programme on BBC with Ken Hom and Chin-He Huang, 'Exploring China'. Generally, my favourite cookery programmes involve travelling with tasting local specialties and trying different takes using local ingredients. This was just as inspiring as other such delights such as Two Greedy Italians and The Very Hungry Frenchman, but using my favourite element - spice!

Inspired, I spent a morning at the local chinese supermarket, trying to unravel spices I had never heard of and finding it wholly strange experience. I had previously never even heard of schezwan  peppercorn, and when Chin-He Huang kept saying it was a 'numbing heat', I thought she was just a bit crazy. Little did I know...

I also treated myself to chinese five spice, dried lemongrass powder, chilli bean paste, chilli powder, soy sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil, all kinds of noodles, a large bag of frozen mixed seafood and fresh thai basil, coriander and chilli.

That evening i used my (also newly bought) wok, to make a spicy schezwan stir fry. I used a teaspoon  of the peppercorns and my normal loading of spices, fresh and dry, leaning towards the chinese mix (hence without cumin). The result was outstandingly spicy, and I definitely learnt what that numbing heat she was talking about was! It was like eat a dish with way too much pepper, but as with anything spicy, it was helplessly addictive. I wanted to eat it again the next night, but my husband protested with full might, rightfully warning against consuming that level of spice two days in a row. Shame.

Although the wok has not come out as much since that week as I'd like, I am very glad to have branched out my spice repertoire to include the dragon with my traditional tiger.

Home made delights

 Mussels with tomato, chilli and basil with garlic toast

 Pizza margarita

Strawberry cream victoria sponge

Weekday quickies: seven days of tasty meals on a budget

Monday: Spinach dhal, raita, rice and pickles
Tuesday: French creamy chicken soup
Wednesday: Feta stuffed peppers cooked in tomato sauce
Thursday: Channa masala with rice
Friday: Pan fried mackeral with potato salad
Saturday: Aubergine hummous dip with tabouleh
Sunday: Masala dhosa

Some of these recipes are on the blog already. Some are to come (hopefully with pictures).

South Indian Mangalorean Green Curry

Although we love Thai green curry, we were faced one day with the dilemma of not having any lemon grass available. I remembered my grandmother's traditional indian green curry, and decided to make my version of this, with coconut milk. Serves 2-3

Ingredients:
Large bunch coriander, roughly chopped
Juice from 2 limes
1 medium size onion, roughly chopped
4 cloves of garlic, crushed and roughly chopped
4 cm cube of ginger, peeled and chopped
1-2 green chillies (deseeded and chopped - to taste)
2 chicken breasts, sliced (or you can use chicken thighs as the meat is softer and tastier)
250ml chicken stock
1 tin coconut milk
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspon ground chilli powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch salt
Ground pepper
Groundnut or vegetable oil

1. Season chicken and fry in oil until cooked. Remove from pan and keep aside.
2. Add onions to oil and fry until starting to turn golden. Add chilli, ginger and garlic and fry together with cooking onions but take care not to burn these more sensitive ingredients.
3. Just before the onion mixture is cooked, add the dry spices. You might need to add a little more oil at this stage. If you are feeling naughty you can also add a knob of butter or teaspoon ghee. Fry gently until the aroma of the spices completely fill the room, but once again take care not to burn.
4. Add the chicken and turn so completely coated in spices.
5. Add the coconut milk and chicken stock. Season to taste and allow to simmer
6. You can add fresh vegetables such as peas, broccoli or cauliflower whilst simmerig.
7. The curry should reduce down so it is creamy but still has enough sauce to eat with rice.
8. Finally add most of the copped coriander and lime juice (leave some to serve).

First supper club

 1. Mint and cucumber yogurt

 2. Spiced carrot salad

3. Avocado hummous

4. Lamb, prune and almond tajine, with herby couscous and flat bread.

5. Orange and cinnamon cheesecake!

Ethical eating: underground restaurants and food cycle

Following a growing trend to eat ethically sourced food, I have been plagued by the excess and ease of food in our society. This has been made even worse by my love of good food! However, I have been getting involved with a charity, food cycle, which receives donations of food from organisations and companies that would otherwise dispose of it. In Manchester this is used to provide food to those who need it most, making a vegetarian, healthy version of a soup kitchen, aiming to provide tasty nutritious meals.

On a recent trip to London, however, I went with my mother to food cycle's community cafe, which has a similar ethos of using food that would otherwise go to waste to make a tasty meal; this time bringing the local community together. Donations are 'what you think it's worth'. We started the meal with spring vegetable bruschetta, then a hearty lentil and vegetable spag bol, and finally banana chocolate brownie. Eating this ethically sourced food in a sunny garden in residential London, made this a memorable and enjoyable experience.

Slightly more in keeping with my food obsessed travels, I have also been very enthusiastic about underground restaurants recently. Although these may also seem very extravagant, they actually cut out some of the consumerism that restaurants, especially the chains that fill our high streets, bring us daily. There seem to be a variety of terms used: supper clubs seem to invite people into their homes; pop up's are in more commercial settings but with an air of uncertainty and change; underground restaurants are more regular, but still have that homely affect.

So, in London, I went with some friends to an underground restaurant on Upper street - Pip's Barn. It really was in a barn, just behind the main street, and was so different from the hoards of restaurants on Upper street that I completely understood what the comment on their website meant: 'there's nowhere to eat on Upper Street'. At first this seems incredulous, but when there I see their point. There's nowhere to eat like Pip's Barn in Upper street!

We had a 3 course Sunday lunch, with fresh seasonal ingredients, sitting on bales of hay, with a huge brie decorating the disused warehouse, smiling at us from the makeshift kitchen. There were jars of preserved lemons, which immediately made me happy (I do love preserved lemons). A fresh salad was followed by preserved lemon and artichoke roast chicken, smashed potatoes (NOT smash) and greens. Dessert was rhubarb fool. The whole experience lasted 3 hours, and was a delight. I thoroughly recommend to everyone.

Now I think it's time to start fine tuning my supper club menu!

Yummy treats for that post-nights zombie feeling

This weekend I've been working nights, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been active in the kitchen. For breakfast which slightly doubles as dinner as it's at the end of my day) I made hallumi, avocado and sweet chilli baps. Tangy, creamy, salty and delicious. Dinner was a little more adventurous. Pork belly curry with rhubarb, star anise and coconut milk with coriander coconut rice. The rhubarb gave a tanginess that would normally come from galangal, but added a fruitiness that worked really well with the pork. Nothing beats tiredness like a full tummy.

Supper club menus to follow!

Madrid and Valentines Day

Last week we went to Madrid for Valentine's day. Some of the culinary delights included 'tostadas', little pieces of toast with delicious toppings ranging from fresh anchovies to iberian ham, calamari, tortilla and lots of olives. The tapas bars were streaming with people, and around ten o'clock there was no way of finding a seat. You would never imagine there is a recession and unemployment of 30-40% when the streets are brimming with tipsy Spaniards, even on a cold Sunday night. Enjoy every moment.
Sometimes simple food is the best. The Madrid special consists of slow cooked chorizo, black pudding, chicken and a piece of meat, with carrots, potatoes and chickpeas thrown in. So tasty and simple. The city centre was also full of small bars and tiled restaurants that seem to have grown up over the last ten years: at least I don't remember them being so plentiful before. The only things that were missing were a big of dulce de leche with my flan and some chimichurri with my steak!

Adventerous french cooking

My mother recommended a new series about Raymond Blanc combining two of my favourite things: cookery and travel. It has inspired me this week to make everything I cook as tasty as possible. This weekend I made coq au vin and lemon tart. With the left over sweet pastry I made some little spiced biscotti. Now I just need a cookery course in France and I'll be set.

Winter seasonal vegetables

The first week of the vegetable box delivery has been a success! Although the overflowing box of root vegetables was slightly overwhelming at first, it has definitely helped my resolution to eat more vegetarian. Parsnip and celeriac soup, mushroom, leek and feta fritatta, carrot, parsnip and potato gratin and a simple cauliflower cheese have made up the warming dishes of the weekend. Although I seem to be craving a lot more cheese and eggs than when I was eating more meat, I'm starting to rediscover the variety vegetables can provide in the kitchen. Besides, cheese can never be a bad thing from my point of view! These have been simple dishes, nothing fancy, but so satisfying,

Seasonal affective disorder and rediscovering the kitchen


When it's so grey and miserable outside, it's easy to lose enthusiasm about activities that used to bring so much joy to life. I've recently rediscovered that time to myself, in my own home, is of the utmost importance to my mental well-being. For me, an integral part of this is involves cooking. Although I normally prefer to cook for others, entertaining and such, in my latest introverted mood cooking simple meals for my husband and me has revived me and made me feel human again after a hectic month.

As part of the new year January health revival, I've also decided to eat less meat. With my husband being from Argentina and a huge lover of all things from a cow (the opposite of my Hindu upbringing, where cow loving means a completely different thing), I've found myself eating meat almost every day. Shock horror, especially to my almost vegetarian and hugely anaemic mother. So I'm trying to remember the good old vegetarian recipes of my vegetarian teenage years. So we also started ordering seasonal, local vegetable boxes. More to come of how that goes, and whether I can really cook healthy, seasonal vegetarian food without driving my husband crazy...