Today is a day for nostalgia food. And I recently ran across a Pioneer Woman recipe that reminded me of a childhood favourite of mine. Her recipe was a bit more involved than I remember mine being, but it was still clearly in the same genus. I'm pretty sure the version that I grew up with was just ham, cheese, mayo, and pasta (preferably shells). The PW recipe adds mustard, peas, parsley, yogurt, lemon juice, honey, olive oil, bell pepper, and green onions. I thought the mustardd and peas sounded like excellent additions. The parsley and green onions gave a bit of extra green, so I also tossed them in. And the yogurt was a way to lighten it up a bit, so I decided to use that as well. I decided to leave out the olive oil and honey. But I did like the idea of a bit of extra acidity from the lemon juice, so I put that in too. I think the bell pepper would also be nice. (And possibly something that was also included in my childhood version. I just can't quite remember anymore.) But I left it out since I didn't want to poison Reiver.

Ham and Cheese Pasta Salad

Adapted from Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

• 450g small shell or macaroni pasta
• 1 1/2 c. frozen peas
• 3/4 c. mayonnaise
• 1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 3 Tbsp. yellow mustard
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/4 c. chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4-1/2 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 225g mild cheddar, cubed
• 225g ham, cubed
• 1 bell pepper, chopped (optional)
• 3-4 green onions, sliced thin

Directions

1. Boil the pasta until al dente, then add peas and boil for 1 minute longer. Drain.
2. Stir together mayo, yogurt, mustard, lemon juice, parsley, and pepper in a large bowl.
3. Mix in the pasta and peas, cheese, ham, bell pepper (if using), and green onions.
4. Salad may be served immediately, but is best after it has chilled for several hours.

Reiver found a soup recipe online the other day and we decided to give it a go. It's very simple, but did make a tasty soup. Although I'd be tempted to swap out the turmeric for ras el hanout next time.

While I tried to stick pretty close to the recipe for my first time making it, I did end up making a few small changes. I used whole (skin-on, bone-in) chicken thighs rather than skinless, boneless simply because that's what I had on hand. I used a much smaller quantity of dried herbs instead of the large quantity of fresh because, again, I was working with what was on hand. And I dumped in a bunch of frozen spinach toward the end of cooking, just to give it a vegetable and make it a little more nutritionally complete. I also left out most of the olive oil since I felt that there was sufficient fat from the chicken skin.

Red Lentil Soup with Chicken

Ingredients

• 600g chicken thighs
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 onions, halved and sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, sliced (or 2 Tbsp. garlic paste)
• 2L water
• 1 chicken bouillon cube (optional)
• 1 1/2 c. skinned split brown lentils (red lentils/Egyptian lentils/masoor dal)
• 1 tsp. ground turmeric (and/or ral el hanout for a more complex flavour)
• 1 c. fresh mixed herbs (parsley, dill, mint, etc.)
• 1 c. chopped frozen spinach (optional)
• 1 c. plain yogurt
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Directions

1. Pat the chicken dry and season to taste with salt and pepper to taste. (I recommend ~1/2 tsp. of each.)
2. Heat the oil over medium to medium-high heat.
3. Add the chicken, skin-side down, and sear until skin is crisp.
4. Flip the thighs over and sear briefly on the other side.
5. Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.
6. Add the onions, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until soft and caramelized (~30 minutes).
7. Add the garlic and cook for a few minutes.
8. Return the chicken to the pot and add the water and bouillon cube (if using).
9. Increase heat and bring to a boil.
10. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until chicken is cooked through (~15 minutes).
11. Shred the chicken and return it to the pot, discarding the skin and bones.
12. Rinse the lentils and add them to the pot along with the turmeric (and/or ras el hanout, if using).
13. Simmer until the lentils are just tender (~10 minutes).
14. Stir in the herbs and spinach (if using), adjust seasoning to taste, simmer for a minute or two, then remove from heat.
15. Stir the lemon juice into the yogurt and set aside.
16. Serve the soup topped with the lemony yogurt.

Rajmah Mutter (Kidney Bean and Green Pea Curry)

Here's another curry that I made while in NZ. I have to admit, it's been long enough that I don't really remember how it came out. But I assume it was good. (Since Iyer's recipes usually are.) But not remarkable. (Since I don't remember it.)

Rajmah Mutter

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 2 tsp. coriander seeds
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp. fenugreek seeds
• 25 fresh or frozen curry leaves
• 2 Tbsp. ginger paste
• 1-2 fresh green Thai, serrano, or finger chilies
• 2 Tbsp. ghee
• 2 c. cooked kidney beans
• 2 c. frozen green peas
• 1 c. water
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 c. plain yogurt
• 1/2 c. half-and-half (10% MF)
• 2 tsp. cornstarch (cornflour)
• 2 Tbsp. cold water

Directions

1. Combine the coriander, cumin, peppercorns, fenugreek seeds, curry leaves, ginger paste, and chilies and grind to a paste with a mortar and pestle.
2. Melt ghee over medium heat.
3. Add the paste and stir-fry for 30-60 seconds.
4. Stir in the kidney beans followed by the green peas.
5. Add the water and the salt.
6. Bring to a boil and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
7. Combine the yogurt and half-and-half and add to the pan.
8. Continue cooking for another 8-10 minutes.
9. Mix the cornstarch into the cold water.
10. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the curry, cook until thickened, and serve.

These high-protein pancakes remind me a lot of the Weight Watchers pancakes that I tried a while back. Although, unlike the Weight Watchers version, this one does include flour. And quite a bit more milk than their version. I do think I like the idea of adding some mashed banana to the batter next time though. Just to add a little fruit and sweetness.

For the version below, I have swapped out the white flour with whole wheat, added a mashed banana, omitted the oil, and added some vanilla and cinnamon. I know that sounds like quite a few tweaks. But I think it still keeps the spirit of the original recipe.

Cottage Cheese and Yogurt Pancakes

Slightly adapted from The Big Book of Breakfast by Maryana Vollstedt

Ingredients

• 140g whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 c. milk
• 1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 3/4 c. cottage cheese
• 2 large eggs
• 1 banana, mashed
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Sift the baking powder and baking soda into the flour and mix.
2. In a large measuring cup, combine the milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, eggs, banana, vanilla, and cinnamon, and mix well.
3. Pour the wet ingredients into dry and stir to combine.
4. Heat a tawa or skillet over medium-low heat and oil as needed.
5. Once the pan/tawa is hot, pour a few 1/4 c. portions of batter into the pan.
6. Cook until bubbles form in tops and sides begin to look dry, then flip and continue cooking until nicely browned on both sides and cooked through.
7. Repeat with remaining batter.
8. Serve with maple syrup, jam, butter, yogurt, and/or fresh fruit.

Gosht Kebab aur Pudhinay ki Chutney (Beef Kebabs with Mint Chutney)

We've made most of the beef curries in the book at this point. But this one in the appetizer section caught my eye. It's really meant to be made on skewers and grilled (on the barbecue), but I chose to leave mine loose and cook it under the broiler indoors. Definitely not as flavourful, but it was very easy!

Gosht Kebab aur Pudhinay ki Chutney

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

Kebabs

• 1/2 c. plain yogurt
• 6-8 fresh green Thai, serrano, or finger chilies
• 6-7 cloves garlic
• 2 Tbsp. ginger paste
• 450g stewing beef
• 1 tsp. ground Deggi chilies (or 1/2 tsp. ground cayenne + 1/2 tsp. sweet paprika)
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. ground cloves

Sauce

• 1/4 c. water
• 1/4 c. firmly packed fresh mint
• 1/4 c. firmly packed fresh cilantro
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. tamarind concentrate
• 1-2 fresh green Thai, serrano, or finger chilies

Directions

1. Combine the yogurt, green chilies, garlic, and ginger paste and a blender and purée.
2. Pour the yogurt mixture over the beef.
3. Add the ground chilies, salt, turmeric, and ground cloves and stir to combine.
4. Cover and chill for at least one hour (or as long as overnight).
5. Add the water, mint, cilantro, sugar, salt, tamarind, and chilies to the blender and purée.
6. If using bamboo skewers, soak them in water for an hour or two before cooking.
7. Preheat a charcoal or gas grill or oven broiler to high heat.
8. Pour into a small pot and keep warm while beef cooks.
9. Lightly oil the grates of the grill or broiling pan.
10. If using skewers, thread the beef (with all of its marinade) onto the skewers and arrange them on the grill over direct heat (or on the broiler pan ~5cm under the element).
11. Grill until medium-rare (~6-10 minutes), turning once or twice.
12. Serve the skewered meat topped with the mint sauce.

Aloo Pudhina Rajmah (Potato-Mint Kidney Beans)

This is yet another curry that I made while still trying to get back into the swing of things after my return from New Zealand. Not a favourite, I don't think. But it got the job done.

Photo goes here.

Aloo Pudhina Rajmah

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 1 large tomato, chopped
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1/4 c. firmly packed fresh mint leaves
• 2 Tbsp. ginger paste
• 1/4 tsp. black peppercorns
• 1/4 tsp. ground turmeric
• 3-5 fresh green Thai, serano, or finger chilies
• 1 (7cm/3") cinnamon stick, broken
• 2 Tbsp. ghee
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds
• 2 russet or Yukon gold potatoes, cubed
• 3 c. cooked red kidney beans (rajmah)
• 1 c. water
• 1/2 c. plain yogurt
• 2 Tbsp. heavy (35%) cream
• 1 tsp. Punjabi garam masala
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 2 Tbsp. choppsed fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Add the tomato, onion, mint, ginger, peppercorns, turmeric, chilies, and cinnamon to a blender and purée.
2. Heat the ghee over medium-high heat.
3. Add the cumin seeds and sizzle for 5-10 seconds.
4. Pour in the sauce and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to medium, cover partially, and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated (~15 minutes).
6. Add the potatoes, kidney beans, and water and bring to a boil.
7. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender (~20 minutes).
8. Meanwhile, whisk the cream into the yogurt.
9. Once the potatoes are cooked through, stir in the yogurt mixture, masala, salt, and cilantro.
10. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until heated through (3-5 minutes).

Toram Paruppu Vadai (Pigeon Pea Fritters)

Here's yet another recipe that I made while in NZ, but didn't get around to writing up until well after I'd gotten back to Canada.

These are tasty little fritters with an interesting texture. I have to admit... they don't reheat super well and, even fresh, they weren't the star of the show, but they were still good. Especially with the sauce.

Toram Paruppu Vadai

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

Fritters

• 1 c. skinned split pigeon peas (toovar dal)
• 2-4 dried red arbol, Thai, or cayenne chilies
• 1/4 c. yellow split peas (chana dal), soaked in hot water for 30 minutes
• 1/4 c. finely chopped onion
• 1/4 c. finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground asafetida (hinga)

Sauce

• 1 c. plain yogurt
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/4 c. water
• 1 Tbsp. canola (or other neutral) oil
• 1 tsp. mustard seeds
• 1 small (~400mL) can diced tomato
• 1-2 fresh green Thai, serrano, or finger chilies, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Thoroughly rinse and drain the pigeon peas.
2. Fill a pot halfway with warm water and add the pigeon peas and chilies. Cover and soak for 1-4 hours.
3. Drain the pigeon peas and chilies and transfer to a food processor.
4. Process to form a somewhat gritty paste and transfer to a bowl.
5. Mix in the soaked split peas, onion, cilantro, salt, and asafetida.
6. With greased hands, shape ~1 Tbsp. of the paste into a tight, round ball. Press into a flattened patty ~1cm thick.
7. Repeat with remaining paste to make ~2 dozen patties in total.
8. Pour some frying oil into a wok and heat to ~180°C (350°F).
9. Line a cookie sheet with paper towels.
10. Once oil is ready, slide a few patties into the hot oil.
11. Fry, turnning occasionally, until they're nicely browned all over (5-7 minutes).
12. Remove with a slotted spoon or spider and place on the paper towel lined baking sheet.
13. Repeat with remaining patties.
14. Meanwhile, combine the yogurt, salt, and water and mix well.
15. Heat the oil over medium-high heat.
16. Add the mustard seeds, cover, and cook until seeds stop popping (30-60 seconds).
17. Add the tomatoes, chilies, and cilantro and cook, uncovered, until heated through (~5 minutes).
18. Stir the tomato mixture into the yogurt mixture.
19. To serve, place a few fritters on a plate and spoon a generous portion of the sauce over them.

I took a few liberties with this recipe, but I'm quite happy with the results overall. This produced lovely waffles with a crisp exterior and a moist centre. I think I, personally, would have preferred a few more nuts in them. And next time I'd definitely add some vanilla and maybe a few spices, but they were still quite excellent as-is.

The original recipe called for making these with sour cream, but I opted to swap that out for fat-free Greek yogurt instead. And when I came up slightly short on the yogurt, I made up the difference with a bit of cottage cheese. And I swapped out half of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat. And, frankly, I think I probably could've gotten away with doing 100% whole wheat. I also omitted half of the butter and added an extra banana. But, despite all of those modifications, I'm very pleased with how they turned out! And they should be quite a bit healthier this way too: lower fat, higher protein, more fruit, more fibre... Not a bad outcome all-in-all!

Banana-Nut Waffles

Adapted from The Big Book of Breakfasts by Maryana Vollstedt

Ingredients

• 250g whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 c. unsalted butter, melted
• 3 bananas, mashed
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 c. cottage cheese
• 1 1/2 c. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2-3/4 c. walnuts, chopped fine

Directions

1. Preheat waffle iron.
2. Combine the flour, cinnamon, and salt.
3. Sift in the baking powder and baking soda and mix well.
4. Combine the butter, bananas, eggs, yogurt, cheese, milk, and vanilla and mix well.
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir to combine.
6. Stir in the walnuts.
7. Scoop a portion of batter into the waffle iron and cook according to manufacturer directions. Repeat with remaining batter.
8. Serve as-is or topped with butter, maple syrup, applesauce, custard, whipped cream, sliced bananas, nut butter, and/or chocolate sauce.

I decided to try another feijoa bread recipe. The first one was good as a fairly basic, neutral loaf. Not too sweet. Not too rich. Pleasingly straight-forward and simple to put together.

This one is a bit richer and a bit fancier. I mean, still nothing ludicrous, but it definitely feels a little bit more special than the previous one. Something you wouldn't mind serving as dessert (and would possibly feel at least slightly guilty serving for breakfast -- despite the name). We all quite liked this one!

Photo goes here.

Feijoa and Cinnamon Breakfast Bread

Slightly adapted from NZ Woman's Weekly

Ingredients

• 115g butter, softened
• 100g brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 400g feijoa pulp, mashed
• 1 large banana, mashed
• 1/3 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 125g whole wheat flour
• 125g soft (plain/standard/cake) flour
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 c. chopped pecans
• 4-5 small feijoas, halved and scooped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease and flour a large (23x13cm/9x5") loaf pan.
2. Cream the butter with the sugar until light.
3. Beat in eggs, one at a time.
4. Mix in feijoa, banana, yogurt, and vanilla.
5. Add the flours and cinnamon, then sift in the baking soda on top.
6. Once all the dry ingredients have been added, stir to combine.
7. Stir in the pecans until just mixed.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, decorate with feijoa halves (and a little extra cinnamon, if desired), and bake at 180°C (350°F) until toothpick comes out nearly clean (~1 hour).
9. Transfer to wire rack to cool.

I had to fudge this one slightly. It was meant to be done with bananas, blueberries, soft tofu, and orange juice concentrate. We didn't have any orange juice concentrate, but we did have some nice honey Greek yogurt that needed to be used up. So I swapped that in instead. Obviously it's a very different flavour, but it still gives a bit of acidity and a bit of sweetness. Not in the same proportions and not with the same flavours, but it got the job done. And, honestly, I suspect the yogurt version is probably a bit healthier as well.

This worked out quite well. It provided something to round out the breakfast this morning, since we didn't have enough pancakes left to feed everybody. It used up some of the ridiculous pile of tofu from the fridge. And it let me easily say "sure, no problem!" when the Kidlet requested a smoothie with her pancakes this morning. And, even more importantly, Reiver and the Kidlet both seemed to enjoy them.

Banana-Blueberry Smoothie

Slightly adapted from The Big Book of Breakfast by Maryana Vollstedt

Ingredients

• 150g soft tofu
• 3/4 c. honey or vanilla Greek yogurt
• 1/2 c. frozen blueberries
• 2 frozen bananas
• 1 c. milk

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients and purée until smooth.
2. Pour into glasses and serve.

I went slightly off-script for this one. The recipe calls for banana, pineapple, and mango for the fruit and then vanilla yogurt and orange juice as the liquid. I found a bag of frozen "tropical fruit blend" at the grocery store yesterday. It did contain pineapple and mango, but it also had a lot of strawberry and honeydew in the mix. I figured that sounded tasty and let me buy only one bag of frozen fruit rather than two, so I just rolled with it. As for the liquids... We already had a bunch of really nice honey yogurt, so I opted to use that with a little vanilla extract mixed in. And for the orange juice... I did juice the orange that we had, but it didn't produce quite enough, so I just rounded it out with a bit of milk and called it a day. So, not quite the smoothie of the recipe, but good nonetheless.

Tropical Smoothie

Slightly adapted from The Breakfast Bible by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1 banana
• 2 c. frozen fruit (preferably a 3:1 mix of mango and pineapple)¹
• 1/2 c. honey yogurt
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2-3/4 c. orange juice and/or milk

Directions

1. Combine ingredients in blender and purée until smooth.
2. Add more liquid as needed to achieve desired consistency.
3. Pour into glasses and serve.

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¹ I think mine was more like 8:6:3:3 strawberries to honeydew to mango to pineapple. ^Back

I've been doing a lot of cooked breakfasts lately, but we got off to a slow start today so I took a slightly different tack and went with these smoothie bowls instead. The original recipe was for a banana-date smoothie, but I just added some extra banana and dates and a bit of yogurt to make a somewhat thicker smoothie and then topped them with almonds, coconut, and granola for an easy, no-cook breakfast.

Chocolate-Banana Smoothie Bowls

Slightly adapted from The Breakfast Bible by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 3 bananas, frozen
• 12 pitted dates
• 1/4 c. almond butter
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 c. milk or almond milk
• 1/3 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp. honey
• 1 Tbsp. Dutched (alkalized) cocoa
• 3-4 Tbsp. toasted almonds, chopped
• 3-4 Tbsp. shredded coconut
• 3-4 Tbsp. granola

Directions

1. Combine bananas, dates, almone butter, cinnamon, milk, yogurt, honey, and cocoa in a blender and purée until smooth.
2. Divide the smooth among two or three bowls.
3. Top with almonds, coconut, and granola. Sliced bananas, dried cherries, and/or chopped dark chocolate would also make excellent toppings.

I was going to make miche as my next sourdough recipe. But then I saw that this new sourdough naan recipe had been posted. And it looked nice and easy to put together. And I figured that it would complement the dal I had planned for dinner well. So I figured why not?!

I've made sourdough naan before. And it was pretty good. But I'm always game for trying new recipes. And this one was a bit different, since it's meant to use sourdough discard (mostly for a bit of flavour) and then adds a generous quantity of commercial yeast to do the actual leavening. (Hence my categorization of it as a "faux sourdough".)

I liked how this naan came out in the end. Although I did have to adjust the recipe fairly significantly. I don't know if it was written for a much higher hydration starter or if there was just a typo in the quantities or what... (A pox on sourdough recipes that don't specify the hydration of the starter!) But, whatever the underlying issue, the dough was way too dry when made according to the recipe. I ended up working in an extra 120g of starter and still needed to add a few extra teaspoons of water to get it to come together into something workable. And, honestly, I think the overall hydration was still a bit on the low side. Next time I might try working even more water into it. I was just trying not to go too crazy with it this time.

Faux Sourdough Naan

Slightly adapted from King Arthur Flour

Ingredients

• 420g hard (strong/high grade/bread) flour
• 120g plain yogurt
• 240g sourdough discard @ 100% hydration
• 120-150g water
• 2 1/4 tsp. instant yeast
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 3 Tbsp. ghee
• extra ghee, sea salt, and/or spices (optional)

Directions

1. Combine the flour, yogurt, discard, 120g of the water, yeast, salt, and sugar and mix until the dough comes together.
2. Turn out and knead for 1-2 minutes.
3. Work in the ghee 1 Tbsp. at a time.
4. If the dough seems too stiff, wet your hands and continue kneading. Repeat until enough moisture has been added.
5. Place in covered bowl to rise for 1-2 hours.
6. Knock back and divide into 100g portions.
7. Round each portion, cover, and proof at room temperature for ~30 minutes.
8. Heat a tawa or cast iron pan over medium heat.
9. Working with one portion of dough at a time, flatten into a round.
10. Wet one side thoroughly and place the naan, wet-side-down, onto the tawa. Sprinkle with desired toppings, cover, and cook for 1-2 minutes.
11. Flip and cook, uncovered, for another 1-2 minutes.
12. Brush with ghee and wrap in a clean tea towel while the remaining naan are cooked in the same fashion. (Shape each one while the previous one cooks.)
13. Serve immediately.

This was really, really good! The passionfruit curd was incredibly delicious. And the meringue and fresh fruit complemented it very well. I would 1000% make this again. (Although I'd try to be a bit more careful with the meringue next time. The curd burst through the side of the meringue this time and made a bit of a mess. It was still delicious, just not very aesthetic.)

Mango-Passionfruit Pavlova

Slightly adapted from Dessert of the Day by Kim Laidlaw

Ingredients

Meringue

• 4 large egg whites
• 1/2 tsp. malt vinegar
• 1 c. sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch (cornflour)

Curd

• 2 large eggs
• 4 large egg yolks
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. unsalted butter
• 1/2 c. passionfruit juice¹
• juice of 1 lime

Assembly

• 1 1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 2 mangoes, sliced
• 3 passionfruit

Directions

Meringue

1. Preheat oven to 165°C (325°F) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
2. Place the egg whites in a clean bowl with the vinegar and whisk until frothy.
3. Continue whisking on high speed while gradually adding the sugar (~1 Tbsp. at a time).
4. Beat until stiff peaks form.
5. Beat in the cornstarch.
6. Spoon the meringue onto the prepared baking sheet and shape into a large bowl.
7. Bake at 165°C (325°F) for 3 minutes.
8. Reduce temperature to 120°C (250°F) and bake for another hour.
9. Turn off oven and let meringue stand in hot oven for 2-3 hours.

Curd

1. Combine the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar and mix well.
2. Combine the butter and passionfruit juice over medium-low heat and cook until the butter is melted.
3. Gradually stir in the egg mixture, whisking constantly.
4. Stir in the lime juice.
5. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon (10-20 minutes).
6. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

Assembly

1. Transfer the merginue to a serving platter.
2. Pour the curd into the meringue.
3. Spoon the yogurt on top of the curd.
4. Arrange the mango slices on top.
5. Cut the passionfruit in half, scoop out the pulp, and spoon it onto the pavlova.
6. Serve immediately.

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¹ I couldn't find any straight-up passionfruit juice. They had passionfruit "drink" (which appeared to be cut with applejuice) and passionfruit-mango juice (which had mango juice and mango pulp added to it along with the passionfruit juice). I decided that since it was going to be topped with mango anyway, the passionfruit-mango blend would be the better match. And I think that was the right choice! It was so, so good. Like I said, would absolutely make this again! ^Back

These were alright. They weren't bad. They just weren't amazing either.

The lentils cooked much faster than suggested by the recipe. I gave them five minutes less than called for. But possibly I should have taken them off the heat even sooner. By the time I was trying to "drain" them, they had absorbed pretty much all of the water and were barely holding together. Which made for a very wet burger mix. I ended up having to add an extra 1/4 c. of panko just to get something workable.

Having done that, they did make perfectly reasonable patties. And they were reasonably filling. I just felt that they were a little bland. I think next time I'd cook the lentils in vegetable stock rather than salted water, swap out half of the cumin for dhania-jeera masala, and maybe add a little ras el hanout or 7 baharat.

It would probably also have helped if I had noticed that the sauce called for lemon juice and lemon zest. (I seem to be having some sort of strange lemon juice blindness lately. I missed where it was called for in the poached quince recipe as well!)

I also feel like a little chile, either in the patties or the sauce, would be a welcome addition. I might consider adding a pinch of aleppo pepper flakes to the patties next time. Hopefully that would help round out the flavours a bit.

Red Lentil Burgers with Yogurt Sauce

Adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

Burgers

• 1 c. skinned split brown lentils (red lentils/Egyptian lentils/masoor dal)
• 3 c. vegetable stock
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, grated
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds, ground
• 1 tsp. dhania-jeera masala
• 1 tsp. 7 baharat
• 1/4 tsp. aleppo pepper flakes
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1/2 c. panko breadcrumbs (preferably whole wheat)
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 large egg
• 170g salad greens
• 8 small buns (optional)
• 3 Tbsp. pomegranate molasses (optional)

Sauce

• 1 lemon
• 3/4 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground

Directions

1. Rinse the lentils and place in a small pot with the stock.
2. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Skim any foam that forms.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until lentils are tender (10-15 minutes).
4. Drain lentils very well and set aside.
5. Meanwhile, heat oil over medium heat.
6. Add onion, carrot, and garlic and cook until softened (~5 minutes).
7. Add cumin, masala, 7 baharat, pepper flakes, salt, and pepper and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
8. Transfer vegetable mixture to bowl with lentils.
9. Add panko and cilantro and mix well.
10. Once mixture has cooled enough not to cook egg, add egg and mix well.
11. Shape into 8 small patties and chill for 30 minutes.
12. Meanwhile, juice and zest the lemon.
13. Combine the yogurt, cilantro, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and lemon zest and mix well. Set aside.
14. Heat a bit more oil over medium heat.
15. Add three or four patties to the pan and cook, flipping as needed, until nicely browned on both sides and cooked through.
16. Burgers may be served on a bed of salad greens or on buns.
17. If serving on buns, split the buns and spread both sides with some of the sauce. Add some greens and a patty to each bun. Drizzle with a little pomegranate molasses (if desired).
18. If serving on greens, add a large handful of greens to each plate, top with a patty (or two), top each patty with a large dollop of sauce, and drizzle with pomegranate molasses (if desired).

I had intended to make "eggs Blackstone" for breakfast this morning. Except I used up all my bacon and we still don't have any bread. So I had to toss that idea out for now and try to come up with something else.

Most of the remaining recipes in the Breakfast Bible are either things that I'd need to go out and do a special grocery shop for or things that are really more of a dessert than a breakfast (bread pudding, donuts, puff pastry tarts, iced cinnamon rolls, etc.). I'd still like to make them at some point, but they weren't in the cards for breakfast today. So, instead, I started flipping through some of my other digital cookbooks. And settled on this recipe out of "Eggs".

Curried Eggs with Cucumber Raita

Slightly adapted from Eggs by Jodi Liano

Ingredients

Raita

• 1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 c. finely chopped English cucumber
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground

Eggs

• 8 large eggs
• 1/4 c. milk
• 1 tsp. bin bhuna hua garam masala
• 1 tsp. madras curry powder
• 1/2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground

Directions

1. Combine yogurt, cilantro, cucumber, lemon juice, salt, and pepper for raita. Mix well and set aside.
2. Beat eggs with milk.
3. Heat a pan over medium heat.
4. Add the garam masala and curry powder and toast for 30-60 seconds.
5. Transfer to a plate or bowl.
6. Reduce heat to medium-low and melt the butter.
7. Pour in the eggs and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and toasted spices.
8. Cook for 2-3 minutes without stirring, then scrape the pan, breaking up the curds a bit, and let the uncooked eggs flow underneath.
9. Cook, stirring occasionally, until eggs are just set.
10. Serve with raita. Whole wheat roti would also make a good accompaniment.

One of TM's friends ended up with a bumper crop of quince this year, so they've been sharing the bounty. And we got extra bonus pears along with our quince!
I have plans for the quince that should hopefully appear on the blog shortly. I actually debated doing up a simple poached quince dessert after dinner tonight. But the pears needed to be used more urgently, so I decided to start there.

I have a lot of pear recipes awaiting testing. But this one had the virtue of being very quick and easy to put together and only needing three pears, which, conveniently, was the exact number we were given. It is also delicious!

The original recipe acutally went for an almond theme. The pears were drizzled with amaretto and topped with toasted sliced almonds after roasting. I didn't have any amaretto, but I did have a bottle of Frangelico in the pantry. And I figured that pear and hazelnut is also a good combo. So I just swapped out the liqueur and replaced the almonds with chopped toasted hazelnuts. It worked very well, if I do say so myself!

Roasted Pears with Honey, Hazelnuts, and Greek Yogurt

Slightly adapted from Dessert of the Day by Kim Laidlaw

Ingredients

• 3 pears¹
• 1/3 c. honey
• 4 bay leaves
• 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
• 2 Tbsp. Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur)
• 1 1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 c. hazelnuts, toasted and chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F).
2. Peel, halve, and core the pears.
3. Bring the honey and bay leaves to a boil over medium heat.
4. Reduce heat slightly and simmer for 3-4 minutes.
5. Place the butter pieces evenly spaced in the pan and place a pear half, cut-side-down, on top of each one.
6. Cover and bake at 190°C (375°F) for 12 minutes.
7. Carefully flip pears over and baste with sauce.
8. Drizzle with Frangelico and return to oven.
9. Roast, uncovered, at 190°C (375°F) until pears are tender (~10 minutes).
10. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly (10-15 minutes).
11. Place two pear halves in a bowl and drizzle with a little sauce.
12. Top with ~1/2 c. of yogurt, ~1 Tbsp. of hazelnuts, and a bit more sauce and serve.

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¹ The original recipe called for 3 "ripe but firm" bosc pears. I'm not sure what variety we were given, but they definitely weren't bosc. They looked a bit like anjou, but I don't know my pears well enough to say for sure. Specifics aside, they were excellent in this application! So, personally, I wouldn't worry too much about what specific type of pears you have as long as they're good ones. ^Back

Dahi Malai Methi Gosht (Creamy Yogurt and Fenugreek Lamb Curry)

I picked up some stewing lamb on sale a while back. I don't often get lamb; too expensive. But we all really like it, so when it goes on sale, I try to make sure to get some. Then it's just a matter of trying to decide which of the many, many lamb recipes to cook.

I had also bookmarked a tasty-looking lamb biryani recipe for this. But it required a lengthy marinade and I didn't have time for that by the time I was getting started, so I opted for this fenugreek curry instead. Maybe next time I can try the biryani...

Dahi Malai Methi Gosht

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 1/2 c. plain yogurt
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 onion, half sliced, half chopped
• 8-10 cloves garlic
• 5-6 fresh green Thai, finger, or serrano chilies
• 3 (4x3x0.3cm) slices fresh ginger
• 450g stewing lamb
• 2 Tbsp. ghee
• 1 c. chopped fresh or frozen fenugreek (or 1/2 c. dried fenugreek, reconstituted)
• 1 c. water
• 1/4 c. heavy (35%) cream¹

Directions

1. Combine the yogurt, salt, chopped onion, garlic, chilies, and ginger in a blender and purée until smooth.
2. Pour the marinade over the lamb and toss to combine.
3. Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes and as long as overnight.
4. When ready to cook, heat ghee over medium-high heat.
5. Add the sliced onion and stir-fry until edges brown (3-5 minutes).
6. Add the lamb along wiht all of the marinade and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has evaporated (~15 minutes).
7. Add the fenugreek leaves and water and bring to a boil.
8. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the lamb is tender and the sauce has thickened (~30 minutes).
9. Mix in the cream and allow to heat through (~2 minutes).
10. Serve with naan and/or rice.

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¹ Heavy cream, of course, gives you the richest, most unctuous results, but you can get away with half-and-half (10% MF) in a pinch. (Either because you're trying to cut calories or if, like me, you find your cream has gone off and half-and-half is all you can get to replace it on short notice.) ^Back

Zeera Kamal Kakadi (Cumin Lotus Root Curry)

We had a small amount of lotus root left over in the freezer from the last lotus root curry we made, but it wasn't really enough to do anything with. It was, however, enough to add to a new bag of frozen lotus root to make a different curry. And a very tasty and easy one to boot!

Zeera Kamal Kakadi

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. mustard oil
• 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 slices fresh ginger (5x3x0.3cm), peeled and minced
• 3 fresh green Thai, finger, or serrano chilies, minced
• 1 c. water
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 450g fresh or frozen lotus root, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 c. plain yogurt
• 2 Tbsp. heavy (35%) cream
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds, toasted and ground
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Heat the oil over medium heat.
2. Add the garlic, ginger, and chilies and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add the water, salt, and lotus root and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, combine the yogurt, cream, and cumin and mix well.
6. Once the lotus root is cooked, add the yogurt mixture and stir to combine.
7. Cook until heated through (3-5 minutes).
8. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Chicken Tikka Masala (Dish of the Day)

I've made at least two previous versions of chicken tikka masala. And while this version couldn't hold a candle to Iyer's rendition of it, it was still quite good. TF and the Kidlet especially seemed to enjoy it. And I appreciate that it came together relatively easily as well.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1/4 c. plain Greek yogurt
• juice of 1 1/2 limes
• 4 tsp. ginger paste, divided
• 2 tsp. cumin seeds, ground and divided
• 1 tsp. bin bhuna hua garam masala
• 2 tsp. sweet paprika
• 500g skinless boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 3/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, divided
• 1 Tbsp. canola (or other neutral) oil
• 1-2 Tbsp. ghee
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 green cardamom pods
• 1 tsp. coriander, ground
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. ground Kashmiri chilies
• 400mL diced tomatoes
• 1 fresh green Thai, serrano, or finger chile, minced
• 1/2 c. heavy (35%) cream¹
• 1/2 c. water
• 1/4 tsp. Punjabi garam masala²
• juice of 1/2 a lemon

Directions

1. Combine the yogurt, lime juice, 1 Tbsp. of the ginger paste, 1 tsp. of the cumin, untoasted garam masala, and paprika and mix well.
2. Add the chicken and toss to combine.
3. Cover and chill for 1-8 hours.
4. When ready to cook, preheat the broiler (on high if it has multiple settings) and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat.
5. Shake off any excess marinade and place the chicken on the prepared baking sheet.
6. Season with 1/2 tsp. of the salt and drizzle with the oil.
7. Broil until it develops some good colour and a bit of char (~5 minutes).
8. Turn and continue broiling until other side is also darkened (~5 minutes more).
9. Meanwhile, heat the ghee over medium-high heat.
10. Add the onion, garlic, and remaining 1 tsp. of ginger paste and cook until softened (3-5 minutes).
11. Add the cardamom, coriander, turmeric, ground chilies, and remaining 1 tsp. of cumin and cook for another minute.
12. Add the tomatoes and any residual marinade from the chicken and cook until sauce thickens (5-10 minutes).
13. Add the fresh chile, cream, and water, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until sauce thickens again (another 10 minutes or so).
14. Add the cooked chicken to the sauce along with the Punjabi garam masala and remaining 1/4 tsp. of salt and cook until heated through.
15. Remove from heat, stir in lemon juice, and serve.

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¹ I actually swapped out the heavy (double) cream for half-and-half (10% MF). Mostly because I had it and it needs to be used. That said, if you want maximum richness, go for the full fat cream. If you want minimum calories, you can get away with half-and-half, but table (single/18%) cream would probably be better if you have it. ^Back
2 The original recipe calls for 1 1/4 tsp. "garam masala" (which generally means bin bhuna hua garam masala) which then gets divided between the marinade and the sauce. That said, since the last 1/4 tsp. of garam masala doesn't get added until right near the end of cooking, I think that a toasted blend like Punjabi garam masala would work better there while the untoasted blend goes into the marinade. And that's how I'd meant to prepare mine. Unfortunately, I got a bit muddled and put the full 1 1/4 tsp. of garam masala into the marinade and forgot to put any in the sauce. Whoops! But that's why I write up these notes. Now I'll have better instructions for next time. ^Back