And so, less than a month in to the new year, I’m already behind on EVERYTHING. Not least blogging. There’s been a lot of pasta-eating going on round here, but not all of it lowbrow: for my birthday several months ago, I was lucky enough to receive a delicious hamper full of foodstuffs (including the best chutney I’ve ever tasted, gooseberry and coriander) from a very charming man. In addition to four types of cheese, Yorkshire parkin, lemon curd, caramel sauce, olive oil, balsamic syrup, fruit cake, and other goodies, it included this fancy pasta:
I’ve been saving it for a special occasion, but so far no such occasions have been forthcoming, and so Friday night seemed good enough. It was beautiful and delicious, coated with a courgette, dill, almond, and goats’ cheese pesto. My poor photography does not do it justice…
In other news, I have mainly been eating Chocolate and Zucchini’s cauliflower, hazelnut, and turmeric soup with parsley, Ottonlenghi’s two potato vindaloo (from Plenty) and Hugh F-W’s sweet potato and peanut gratin (made with coconut cream rather than dairy cream) over the last few weeks, all of which proved very tasty. I also managed to rustle up a big batch of my favourite broccoli coconut curry with tomato and tamarind chutney (recipe to follow soon), which is the best winter comfort food you can find.
I can’t get enough of Indian food at the moment. Maybe it’s a regression thing — I grew up in New Delhi, eating as many chapatis and aloo parathas as I could get my grubby mitts on. Living where I do means that it’s virtually impossible to eat “proper” Indian food unless you make it yourself, as the restaurants here are all Bangladeshi or Pakistani. Nowt wrong with that, unless you want something other than a greasy mattar paneer and an overpuffed naan bread. It’s a tough life.
Anyway, the other week I made a very exciting discovery: a “Sri Lankan and Indian” spice shop tucked away in a nondescript area on the edge of town. I picked up some mustard oil, nigella seeds (kalonji/onion seeds), and the amchoor and urad dal I should have used when I tried to make these lentil dumplings. So far so good with the DIY approach – who doesn’t love having their hair, soft furnishings, and laundry smell of garam masala? It definitely tastes good though: at the moment I’ve got a big pot of okra, tomato, and chickpea curry stewing away, and it smells amazing….
