Kumara Curry

Intro.

This is a lovely recipe that I have made many times. It can be made with a firm pumpkin (butternut is lovely) but I prefer the sweetness of kumera (sweet potato). I sometimes tip in 500g or so of peeled prawns and this makes a fairly substantial - although no longer vegetarian - meal served with crusty bread or rice.

Recipe

1 kg kumara - 1 inch dice
8 tablespoons oil or ghee
2 large chopped onions
6 cloves garlic
6 cm root ginger
2 tablespoons mustard seeds
1/4 cup sultanas
8 teaspoons cumin
8 teaspoons coriander
2 teaspoons tumeric
1 - 1.5 tablespoons chilli sauce
2 x 400ml cans coconut cream
sliced green beans
salt
black pepper
*can substitute with potato or pumpkin

Saute onions, garlic and ginger in oil until soft. Add the mustard seeds and stir until they pop then add the other spices and cook gently for a few minutes before adding a few sultanas. Add kumera, and cook while stirring for a few minutes. Add the coconut cream and then simmer gently 30 minutes to cook the kumera. Add the beans (frozen are fine) and cook for 5 minutes or so.

Marshmellow Slice

Intro

I was talking to an older friend last week about how hard it is to find a cafe serving nicely sized slices, proper savouries and club sandwiches. It is increasingly hard these days to buy 'polite' servings when eating out. Huges wedges of thick slices and palm-sized shortbread are simply overwhelming for many people and older people in particular. She has a point. This is the baking of my childhood; slices were cooked in swiss-roll tins and cut into 24 neat squares, savouries were 2 inches across and comprised a thin layer of savoury mince encased in flaky puff pastry and pikelets, as served by Nana Wilson, were tiny pillows of lovliness.

This slice is one of my Mums and I don't remember it being made terribly often. I remember it usually had toasted coconut sprinkled on top but sometimes it had a thin layer of chocolate icing. Nowadays I double this recipe because my favourite tin is a bit bigger than a standard swiss roll tin and  we like our slices a little more generous in size than this recipe from the 1960s.

Recipe

• 3ozs butter
• 3 ozs sugar
• 1 egg
• 5 ozs flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt

Cream the butter and sugar until light, pale and creamy. Add the egg then fold in the sifted dry ingredients.

Spread into a greased swiss roll tin, prick all over and bake 15 minutes at 350f. Remove from oven, pour marshmellow over the top and sprinkle with coconut or ice thinly with chocolate icing when cold.

Marshmellow topping

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 dessertspoon gelatine
• 1 cup icing sugar
• few drops red food colouring

Dissolve the gelatine in the cold water in a saucepan, add sugar and bring to the boil. Simmer 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool for a few minutes, add icing sugar and food colouring then beat for 10 minutes until thick and creamy.

Coconut Cake

Intro

A good, basic coconut cake that is weighty and moist.

Recipe

• 5 ozs butter 
• 5 ozs sugar
• 2 eggs
• 6 ozs self raising flour
• 2 ozs coconut
• a few tblsps milk

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, beat in the eggs 1 at a time, add sifted flour and coconut and add just enough milk until mixture drops from a spoon.

Bake in a greased 8 inch round tin for an hour or so at 350 degree F.

Optional: finely grated rind of a lemon.

Carrot and Chickpeas with Coriander

Intro

This recipe of really simple ingredients has a surprisingly complex flavour.

Recipe

• 3-4 tblsp olive oil
• 1 finely chopped onion
• 4 finely chopped garlic cloves
• 2 teasps ground tumeric
• 2 teasps cumin seeds
• 1 teasp cinnamon
• 1/2 teasp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teasp ground black pepper
• 1 tblsp dark, runny honey
• 3-4 medium carrots, sliced on the diagonal
• 2 x 410g tins of chickpeas
• sea salt
• 2 tblsp rose water
• bunch of fresh coriander, chopped roughly
• 1 lemon cut into wedges to serve

Heat the oil in the tagine and saute onion and garlic until soft. Add spices and cook for a minute, then add honey and carrot. Pour in enough water to cover the bottom of the tagine. Put the lid on and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes.

Pop in the drained, rinsed and skinned chickpeas. Make sure there is still enough water. Put the lid back on and simmer gently for 10 more minutes. Season with salt, sprinkle on rosewater and coriander. Serve with lemon wedges.

Tagine of Butter Beans with Tomatos and Black Olives.

Intro

A gorgeous vegetarian tagine recipe - and really fast to prepare using tinned beans. .

Recipe

• 2 x 410g tins of butter beans (large beans are best)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• knob of butter
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 red onions: chop cut in half lengthwise, then in slices with the the grain
• 1-2 red or green chillies - deseeded and sliced thinly
• 2 teaspoons coriander seeds - crushed
• 25g fresh ginger, peeled and finely shredded and chopped
• a pinch of saffron threads
• 16-20 cherry tomatoes
• 1-2 teaspoons sugar
• 1-2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 2-3 tblsp pitted black olives
• freshly squeezed juice of a lemon
• sea salt
• ground black pepper
• small bunch flat parsley coarsely chopped

Saute garlic, onions, chillies in oil and butter until soft. Add coriander seeds, ginger and saffron. Put the lid on and cook gently for 4-5 minutes. Toss in the tomatoes, sugar and thyme and simmer for 5 more minutes. Add beans and olives, pour on lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook gently for 5 more minutes. Sprinkle on flat leaf parsley and serve. Serve with yoghurt and crusty bread.