PARUPPU THOGAYAL

This is my husband's favorite thogayal. It tastes the best when paired with vatral kuzhambu . Its is a delectable combination.

INGREDIENTS

• Moong dal - 1 fistful
• Toor dal - 1 fistful
• Red chilly - 2 nos medium sized ( 1 if long)
• Grated coconut - 1 tbsp ( optional)
• Pepper corns - 1 tsp
• Garlic cloves - 6 nos
• Salt - As reqd

METHOD

• Take a kadai and add a tbsp of oil. Fry the dals along with red chillies.
• Once its cool grind adding salt , grated coconut and little water to make a paste.
• Finally add the pepper corns and garlic cloves and grind well .
• Add little water if required.

Mix with plain rice adding sesame oil ..Enjoy !!

Wine of the Week: Sainsbury's Moscatel de Valencia

Moscatel de Valencia, a sweet wine from Southern Spain, has always been good value but it's extraordinary that it still costs only £3.89 a bottle (in most branches of Sainsbury's). A whole bottle, not a half, like most other dessert wines.

OK, it's not particularly fashionable but it tastes just gorgeous. It has a deliciously orangey character that would make it a fantastic pairing for apple tart, pie or crumble (served with cream rather than custard), light chocolate desserts (plain rather than with berries) and - thinking ahead to Christmas - Christmas pudding which is always a tricky one to match. You could also partner it with a Spanish style 'flan' or crème caramel.

As the name indicates, it's a muscat, fortified with a little spirit to bring it up to 15%. Drink it nice and cold.

Pears in mulled cider

Given how much leftover wine we have in the house (I'm also a wine writer for those of you who don't know) I normally poach pears in red wine but I tried them again the other day in cider and I'm not sure I don't prefer them that way. It seems to preserve the pear flavour better. (You could also use an off-dry perry, of course)

This is a great way to use those greenish brown conference pears which never look very appealing but have a superb flavour. You want them not quite ripe enough for eating but not rock-hard either. I'd pick them out by hand rather than buy a bag of them even though they tend to be cheaper that way. You can tell the stage they're at by pressing the top of each pear gently by the stem. There should be a tiny bit of give.

A great dessert for when you've had an indulgent carb-laden main course like a pie!

Serves 4

4 evenly sized, not quite ripe conference pears
330ml medium dry cider
4-5 heaped tbsp unrefined caster sugar
A fine strip of lemon peel + a little lemon juice to taste if needed
1 small cinnamon stick
Pouring cream or vanilla ice cream to serve

Keeping the pears whole remove the peel carefully with a small sharp knife, leaving the stalk on. Fit them side by side in a medium-sized saucepan and pour over the cider. Add enough water to cover the pears. Remove the pears from the liquid and set them aside.

Add 4 heaped tbsp of unrefined caster sugar and place the pan over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Taste the liquid and add a little extra sugar if you don't think it's quite sweet enough (ciders vary).

Return the pears to the pan along with the lemon peel and cinnamon stick and bring the liquid to the boil. Turn down the heat, cover the pan and simmer for about 45 minutes until the pears are soft. Remove them carefully from the pan with a slotted spoon and transfer to a shallow glass dish.

Remove the lemon peel and cinnamon then turn the heat up and boil the remaining liquid by about two thirds until thick and syrupy. Check for sweetness adding a little lemon juice if needed. Pour the syrup over the pears and leave to cool.

Serve just warm or at room temperature with double cream or vanilla ice cream and some crisp home-baked biscuits or shortbread.

Oh, and a happy Thanksgiving to my American readers. I suppose this should have been a pumpkin pie really but I'm sure you've got zillions of recipes for that. This might make a nice change ;-).

Bread Baking Babes - Stromboli

Elle from Feeding My Enthusiasms was the lucky lady to choose our bread for May, and she chose the Stromboli.

The stromboli is a sandwich in every slice - meat and cheese layered on a lovely bread dough, rolled up and baked. The recipe is straightforward to make and the results are delicious.

Our stromboli was layered with proscuitto and salami and swiss cheese and basil.  I rolled it up as tight as I could, sprinkled it with salt and baked it.

Unfortunately I forgot the apparently critical step of piercing the bread before cooking, presumably so your bread doesn't bake up hollow like mine did.

Regardless of the big air pockets in the bread, it was delicious. As Elle mentioned in her post to us Babes, this is a perfect picnic food. If the warm weather decides to stick around, maybe we'll find out!

Please visit Elle for the recipe, and all the deets on being a Buddy with her delicious pick. And please visit the participating Babes (listed over on the left) to see their breads as well.

Cheers!

RAW MANGO - DRUMSTICK GRAVY| PORICHA KUZHAMBU

I learnt this from my MIL. Usually we make this gravy only with drumstick. But during mango season , we make this combination. It tastes great with the excellent flavor of mango. If u don't get sour raw mango ,no problem , u can try this with drumstick alone by adding little tamarind extract to get the tangy taste. We mix this gravy in plain rice with little ghee.Here i've used Vengaaya vadagam for seasoning.I think most of u may not have/aware of this. So i've given the ingredients below to replace vadagam.

Try this simple & delicious poricha kuzhambu. Iam sure u'll love it and start to make it often.

 INGREDIENTS

• Raw mango - 1 no ( Medium sized) (cut into cubes as shown in the above picture)
• Drumstick - 2 nos
• Moong dal - 2 tbsp
• Sambhar powder - 1.5 - 2 tsp
• Salt & water- As needed

To grind:

• Grated coconut - 2 tbsp
• Water - As needed.

To temper:( to replace vadagam)

• Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Urad dal - 1/4 tsp
• Jeera - 1/4 tsp
• Small onion - 10 nos ( cut into small pieces)
• Curry leaves - a few (finely chopped)
• Cooking oil - 1 tbsp

METHOD:

• Pressure cook moong dal by adding a pinch of turmeric powder and a drop of oil. Mash it and set aside.
• Now in a bowl , take the drumstick pieces.Add the required water & cover cook. When it is half cooked, add the cubed mango pieces and add more water if necessary. Once it starts to boil , add the sambhar powder, salt  & cooked moong dal. Cover cook till mangoes & drumstick pieces get cooked.{Make sure the mango pieces should not be mushy and dissolved in the gravy}.
• Now grind the grated coconut adding little water to make a smooth paste.
• Mix this paste to the gravy and allow it to boil for sometime. If u feel the gravy is too thick, add water to bring the consistency. (In this step , check the salt & spice, add if needed)
• Suppose if the gravy is too watery after adding the coconut paste , u can add a little amount of rice flour to make the gravy thick.But this step is purely optional.
• At last , season the gravy with vengaaya vadagam or the above mentioned items. If u use the above said items for tempering, saute till everything turns brown. This gives a spl flavor to the gravy.

ENJOY MIXNG WITH HOT PLAIN RICE & A DROP OF GHEE OR SERVE AS A  SIDE DISH FOR VATRAL KUZHAMBU / SAMBHAR RICE.

KITCHEN CLINIC:

DRUMSTICK All parts of drumstick tree are useful and have long been used for nutritional, medicinal, and industrial purposes. The drumstick pods or fruits are used as a vegetable in curries and soups and very popular in Indian food. Crushed drumstick leaves are used as a domestic cleaning agent; powdered seeds are used for clarifying honey and sugarcane juice, and for purifying water. Moringa seeds produce oil, also known as Ben oil, which is a sweet non-sticky oil that doesn't become rancid. This oil is used in salads, for lubricating machines, and in perfumes and hair-care products. The seeds are also eaten green, roasted, powdered and steeped for tea or used in curries. This tree has in recent times been advocated by organizations such as Trees for Life as an outstanding indigenous source of highly digestible protein, calcium, iron, Vitamin C, and carotenoids suitable for use in regions of the world where malnourishment is a major concern. Drumstick and Health Quick Facts Almost all parts of the drumstick tree have medicinal value. The small, round leaves are especially beneficial in treating many ailments because of their high iron content and many medicinal properties. Drumstick leaves can be eaten fresh, cooked, or stored as dried powder for many months without refrigeration, and reportedly without loss of nutritional value. Where starvation is imminent, consuming the drumstick-leaf powder can be life-saving. According to the Trees for Life organization, "ounce-for-ounce, Moringa leaves contain more Vitamin A than carrots, more calcium than milk, more iron than spinach, more Vitamin C than oranges, and more potassium than bananas," and that the protein quality of Moringa leaves rivals that of milk and eggs. Because of the high calcium, iron, and vitamins, drumstick leaves can be used as a wonderful tonic for infant and growing kids and teens to promote strong and healthy bones and for purifying the bloodstream. To prepare the tonic, drumstick leaves should be ground with water, filtered, and mixed with milk. Drumstick-leaf juice is also very beneficial for pregnant women as it can help them overcome sluggishness of the uterus, ease delivery, and reduce post-delivery complications. In India, drumstick leaves are boiled in water and salt, the water is drained, and the leaves are served with ghee (clarified butter) to lactating mothers to increase breast milk. Drumstick leaves are very useful in treating wheezing, asthma, bronchitis, and tuberculosis. A soup prepared by boiling a handful of leaves in 3/4 cup water for 5 minutes and cooled is served to those with respiratory problems. A little salt, pepper, and lime juice can be added to this soup. Drumstick has antibacterial properties and as such is very useful in preventing infections such as those of the throat, chest, and skin. Drumstick soup can be prepared from the leaves, flowers, and pods and used for this purpose as an antibiotic. Dried and powdered bark of the drumstick root can also be used for fungal skin infections. Drumstick leaves, flowers, and seeds are useful in treating sexual debility and weakness. A teaspoonful of fresh drumstick-leaf juice mixed with honey and a glass of tender coconut water taken 2-3 times a day is a wonderful remedy for digestive disorders like diarrhea, dysentery, colitis, jaundice, and cholera. Drumstick-leaf juice is also effective in treating urinary disorders such as excessive urination. Drumstick-seed oil is useful in treating conjunctivitis. Fresh drumstick-leaf juice mixed with lime juice can also be applied to treat pimples, acne, and blackheads.

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Hachis parmentier (aka French shepherd's pie)

I've been thinking of making this French take on shepherds pie for a while but what prompted it was having a large bunch of parsley in the fridge. (You can't win with herbs - either you get a ridiculously small packet that costs the earth or a huge bunch that you end up wasting.)

There are of course many ways of making hachis parmentier which is basically a leftovers dish. A lot of recipes base it on a stew but you can make it with mince which is what I've done here having picked up a cut price pack in the Co-op reduced from £2.50 to £1.65. You can add some fried onion and garlic to it (which I did) and some finely chopped carrot and celery if you want. You don't really want it gravy-ish so chuck in half a glass of red wine if you have some and a splash of beef or chicken stock. (It's worth keeping frozen stock in an ice-cube tray when you need this kind of amount.)

The parsley is a touch I remember from a French cookery writer called Mireille Johnston who presented a BBC series back in the 90s. The books that accompanied the series were great but I left the relevant one in France so had to cook it from memory. If your kids don't like 'green bits' as many children don't you could cut the amount of parsley back to a single layer or mix it up with the mince so they don't (hopefully) notice, although, of course, the little blighters always do.

I can't remember if it had a layer of mash at the bottom of the dish but it's a good idea because you get some delicious stuck on crusty bits at the bottom of the pie.

Hachis Parmentier
Serves 2-4 depending on whether teenage boys are involved
2-3 tbsp light olive or sunflower oil
450g minced beef or lamb
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
1 level tbsp tomato paste
75ml beef or chicken stock (or frozen stock cubes)*
75ml red wine (or 1 tbsp red wine vinegar and an extra 75ml of beef stock)
Pinch of cinnamon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A good big handful of fresh parsley, stalks removed and finely chopped

For the potato topping
800g boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into even-sized pieces (halves or quarters depending on size)
25g soft butter
A good splash of warm milk (about 3 tbsp)
40g comté, gruyère or cheddar cheese (optional)
Salt and pepper

You will also need a medium sized shallow baking dish (I used a rectangular dish that was 26cm x 21cm)

Heat a large frying pan, add 1 tbsp of the oil and fry half the mince until lightly browned. Remove the meat with a slotted spoon, letting the fat run back into the pan then discard the fat. Add the remaining mince to the pan, brown it and drain off the fat in a similar way. Add the remaining oil and fry the onion over a low heat for about 5 minutes until soft. Stir in the crushed garlic and tomato paste and cook for a few seconds. then add the wine, if using and beef or chicken stock. Tip the mince back in the pan, bring to simmering point then season with salt, pepper and a pinch of cinnamon. Turn the heat right down and leave on a low heat for about 20 minutes. (If it gets a bit dry add an extra splash of stock or some of the potato cooking water.)

Meanwhile put the potatoes in a saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Cook for about 20 minutes until you can stick the point of a knife in them easily. Drain the potatoes, return them to the pan and cut them up roughly with a knife. Mash them thoroughly with a potato masher or fork. Beat in the butter and warm milk. Season with salt and pepper.


Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6. Butter your ovenproof dish well and cover the base with a thin layer of mash (just over a third of the total). Sprinkle half the parsley over the top (as above) then cover with the mince. Add the remaining parsley then and spread the potato evenly over the top, roughing up the surface with the prongs of a fork. Sprinkle with grated cheese, if using. Place the dish on a baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes until the top is crisp and brown. (If you make it ahead and cool it down before baking it it'll take more like 45 minutes)

* when you make a batch of stock it's worth reducing it then freezing it in an ice cube tray when you need a small amount of stock for a recipe like this