Potato and chickpea cakes

Are you all enjoying the weather wherever you are? Too hot? Too cold? Too much rain?? or is it just perfect? Too many questions??? :) :)

We have had gorgeous sunny weather for the past few weeks and its been good. Well most of the time that is. I have been out galavanting with friends, attending events and generally being busy which sometimes drains me out in the heat. But I'm not complaining.. Work has taken a back seat for the time being and I'm glad it is so, because I really do need to figure out how to handle the backlog of work that has accumulated over this past few months..yes, you read it right, months. I'm slowly finishing it off and hopefully will learn how to manage time more efficiently. My husband would be very glad I've even declared this in public because he has the biggest issue with me not managing time responsibly and planning well.

Coming to the recipe. No offence to all the vegetarian, but I have the toughest time cooking for them. Its not because there are no recipes available, but because I suck at it. My vegetarian dishes don't really come out nice and paneer, potatoes and spinach are the only options I usually play around with. Its become boring and I've run out of ideas. This combination of potatoes and chickpeas however was a welcome change. The recipe is by Alfred Prasad from Great British Chef's Vegetarian Recipes and a very easy one at that. Few ingredients needed, can be put together in no time and you get a decent vegetarian starter.

I had a bit of trouble with cooking the patties, since there was nothing to really hold them together like egg white or bread crumbs. So after two failed attempts at getting perfect shaped cakes, I decided to try the method mentioned in the recipe (I know, I should have just stuck to it the first time) and then it worked. I happily ate the first two that didn't turn out well without any complaint though. The recipe is apt for kids, but I don't have kids and so chucked in a green chilli which was such a fab idea. Serve it with just ketchup and you have a perfect snack to please your guests

Recipe halved from Great British Chefs

Potatoes- 2 large

Cooked chickpeas- 100 gms (I used canned)

Cumin seeds- 1/2 tbsp

Garam masala- 1/2 tsp

Green chilli- 1, finely chopped

Coriander leaves- 1/2 cup, finely chopped

Salt- to taste

Oil- 1 tbsp

Slice the potatoes into quarters and steam in a dumpling steamer for about 15 minutes or so. I find steaming much easier than boiling. But feel free to boil till tender and a fork goes through easily.

Cool for a while and then peel. Break the potatoes with a fork, but don't mash it completely.

Into a big bowl add all the remaining ingredients except oil and mix well using a masher or even better, your hands.

Again, they need not be completely smooth, a few chunks here and there is fine,

Heat the oil in a frying pan.

While that's heating, shape the potato mix into small discs.

Cook each cake in the pan, making sure you press it down so it gets cooked evenly.

Drain on paper towels and serve hot with ketchup.

Notes: Don't add a lot of oil, the cakes will only fall apart and make life difficult. The 1 tbsp oil was enough for all the potato cakes, but if you feel you need more oil, add bit by bit and fry.

The recipe calls for refrigerating the cakes after shaping them, which i didn't. I'm thinking this would sort the falling-apart issue.

Quorn sausages with mashed potato and onion gravy

 

For someone who doesn't post that many vegetarian recipes here, I actually love vegetarian food. Well not vegetables per se, but you know the Kerala sadya items are an absolute favourite of mine, but sadly I don't know how to make half of them and the only respite comes from eating at a vegetarian restaurant.

We have something non vegetarian every day and when Ro was with his previous company he used to take lunch whenever possible (read, whenever there was leftover from dinner). The occasional one time, he took something vegetarian and apparently his colleague asked him if everything was fine at home. Ro asked him why he thought so, and this person replies that Ro always had non veg for lunch and since he didn't have any that day, he assumed something was wrong at home. That kinda made me sit back and wonder why we never had vegetarian food at home. So for the next few days after that I struggled, really struggled, to manage with just vegetarian food. Quite difficult I must say when you don't eat Indian food every day. Spinach, mushroom and pasta was consumed in abundance but we soon got bored of that. That's when Quorn came to our rescue.

Here's a little about Quorn. It is made of Mycoprotein, a naturally occurring and high quality form of protein produced using a form of fermentation process and the out come is then used as the base for different food products. You get a variety of products in grocery stores- from ready meals like Quorn lasagne and tikka masala to deli foods like ham style slices, peppered beef style slices and the best, you get Quorn mince, fillets and bacon which you can just adapt to any non veg recipe of yours and have a fabulous meal. If that doesn't convince you, then the fact that it is a much healthier option, should do the trick. Being low fat, low calorie and cholesterol-free Quorn can be termed as one of those 'wonder foods.'

 

I must admit, I was a bit apprehensive about using it in my cooking. But you have to start somewhere right? So I decided to give it a go. I picked up their summer special Quorn Sizzling Bangers and decided on the Sausages and mash with gravy and green peas recipe from the Quorn website (which btw has a tonne of easy recipes and is worth checking out). Cooking is fairly straightforward, with clear cut instructions and the outcome was also fairly decent. I however found a distinct flavour difference as opposed to the husband who said it was good. I mean you would obviously know its not the sausage you are used to, but it could easily pass for one when had with the mash and gravy. I also picked up the Quorn mince after that to make some kheema masala and that I must say was a winner. I guess its the fact that its mince and the masala catches on pretty well, which completely masked the fact that it wasn't meat. So considering all this, I guess it is a good option when you want to impress those finicky vegetarian guests at home. I would however stick to chicken style strips and mince meat as opposed to the ready meals in the future.

Mashed potato (serves two as a side dish)

 

Yukon or Russet potatoes- 350 gms, peeled and quartered

Butter- 1 tbsp (around 15 gms)

Double cream- 2 tbsp

Mature cheddar cheese- 1 tbsp, finely grated (optional)

Milk- 1 tsp (give or take)

Salt and pepper- to taste

Boil water in a sauce pan, season with some salt and throw in the sliced potatoes.

Keeping heat on high, bring the water to a boil once again and then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes or till a knife can easily break the potato.

Drain the potato properly.

Wipe the same saucepan clean and place it back on medium heat.

Tip in the drained potatoes and toss around a bit just to get rid of any water content. Transfer the warm potatoes into a bowl.

Then into the same sauce pan add the butter.

Once it melts, pour the double cream and warm gently.

Pour on top of the potato, add the cheddar cheese (if using), season with enough salt and pepper and mash either using a masher or a fork..

Add the milk, a little at a time and using a strong spoon mash further till you get a smooth, lump less mix. Don't over do it though.

Serve warm as a side to meat or vegetables or as a topping (Cottage pie, Oven coddled eggs)

Onion gravy (adapted from here)

 

Butter- 2 tsp

Olive oil- 1 tsp

Red onion- 1 large, finely chopped

Sugar- 1/4 tsp

Balsamic vinegar- 3 tbsp

Chicken stock- 300ml (made using half a stock cube)

Plain flour- 1 tbsp

Salt and pepper- to taste

Heat the butter and olive oil in a sauce pan.

Add the onions and some salt and cook on low heat for about 15 to 20 minutes, or till the onions become a darker shade. Stir in between to prevent the onions from sticking to the bottom.

Add the sugar and wait for it to caramelise, about 10 more minutes.

Pour in the vinegar, stir to combine and cook for a few more minutes.

Sprinkle the plain flour over the onions and stir in the chicken stock bit by bit.

Season with enough salt and pepper (after tasting) and bring to a gentle simmer or until the sauce is slightly thick.

Pour into a gravy boat and serve hot.

Notes: Use white onion if you want it a tad less sweet.

Original recipe called for red wine which I substituted with balsamic vinegar

Chicken stock can be replaced with vegetable stock and plain flour with cornflour.

Assembling

 

Cook the Quorn sausages as per instructions. I pan fried it in about a tsp of oil, tossed it around a bit till the sausages were slightly charred on the outside and cooked through. Drained on paper towels.
Place a large dollop of mashed potato on a serving plate and place the sausages on top.
Scatter a spoon full of green peas (I just stir fried in in some butter, seasoned with salt and pepper and some lime juice) and pour the onion gravy on top.
Dig in :)

Can we be more Brit-Dish?

We had the tastiest Brit-dish of all, Bangers and Mash, two days ago and yes, i made it at home. I'm so proud for being able to recreate the exact same thing we've been having at pubs and making a big deal of, when its actually one of the simplest things to make. The first week we were in UK, about 2 years ago, we were staying in a hotel and had to depend on the various restaurants for our daily meals. I wasn't complaining at all. There were so many options and it was indeed the best time to experiment. So on a Sunday afternoon we decided to have brunch at this pub that had advertised their Sunday roast...in fact almost all the pubs had advertised Sunday roasts and we were quite sure we wanted to try the roast that was apparently so popular. So i opted for the chicken roast with mash and veggies and Ro ordered the beef roast with chips. Huge quantities, but unbelievably tasteless and bland to the core. So we put in ketchup and mayo and all the sauces that were available and still it wasn't worth eating. We wasted the entire things and i have vowed never to try out the roasts at a pub ever again. The apple pie with custard was however yummy.

Pub food is very basic and its more or less the same everywhere. Unless its a 'Thai Food' Pub or a 'Mexican Food' pub, they usually have the same fare. I realised I'm actually not a big fan of the usual British fare after my bad experiences with the Sunday roasts, fish and chips and pies ( yes all of them). I usually stuck to burgers and I'm so sick of it now. Bangers and Mash are available only at selected places and once i tried it, i knew it was the best of them all. So I now make it a point to check the menu before i go in. Yes, fussy would be an under statement :)

Bangers (sausages): Beef/ chicken/ pork/ venison- 6 (I used beef)

Extra virgin olive oil- 1 tsp (or just enough to coat a non-stick pan to fry the sausages)

Onion- 1/2, sliced

Button mushrooms- 100gms, sliced

Leek (optional)- 1 (only the white part) (replace with spring onions or shallots)

Salt- as required

Pepper- 1 tsp

Oil- left over from frying the sausage as enough oil oozes out

Colmans sausage casserole sauce mix- 1 packet diluted in half a pint water (replace with chicken/beef stock)

Fry the bangers or even better grill them. Keep aside

In a saucepan heat some oil and sautee onions, mushrooms and leek till soft and fragrant. Add enough salt and pepper and continue. Add the Colmans mix and bring to boil. Add the bangers and simmer.

For the mashed potato. I followed the recipe from BBC. Instead of cream i added milk and cheddar cheese and it tasted just fine.

You can use any vegetable of your choice, I used green peas and carrots blanched and then tossed with a bit of butter and pepper.

Place a spoon full mashed potato in the centre of a plate, arrange the bangers on top and pour the gravy over. Enjoy with a mug of beer and its almost like you are in a British Pub.

Fish Bake/ Pie

This is not the easiest of bakes as i did take quite some tine to get it done. Also i was lazy and did substitute some of the stuff with store bought ones. My aunt passed on this recipe to me and it was somehow much more tastier at her place. I guess I'll have to improve..maybe the next time (if there is one).

Any white fish/tuna- 300 gms (I used cod loins)

Shallots- 1/2 cup chopped

Green chillies- 3 chopped

Pepper- 1 tsp

Ginger paste- 1/2 tsp

Garlic paste- 1/2 tsp

Peas/carrot/corn- 1/2 cup (I used just carrots)

Egg- 2 (optional)

Oil- 2 tbs

Salt- to taste

Clean and cook the fish in a non stick pan with salt and pepper and one tbs of water if its sticking. Once the fish is cooked, take it off the pan and flake it with a fork. Keep aside.

Simultaneously, boil the eggs and once done, peel, slice and keep aside

In the same pan, add some oil and sautee the onions till soft and golden brown. To this, add the green chillies, ginger and garlic paste and sautee till the raw smell dies. Add the carrots and pepper and cook till done. Keep the fish for the end, as it is already cooked. Sautee well with enough salt.

For the mash potato:

Potatoes- 2 big

Butter- 1 tbs

Milk- 3 tbs

Pepper- 1/2 tsp

Salt- to taste

Boil the potatoes with enough water or in a microwave oven. Once cooked, mash with the back of a fork or masher and mix in the butter and slightly warm milk and season with salt and pepper. Keep aside. Make sure you add the milk, bit by bit..just enough to make it fluffy.

For the white sauce:

All purpose flour- 1 1/2 tbs

Butter- 1tbs

Milk 1 1/2 cup

Pepper- 1/2 tsp

Cheddar cheese- 2 tbs (optional)

Salt- to taste

Heat the butter in a sauce pan till it melts. On low flame, add the maida and keep stirring, avoiding lumps. Once it is nicely mixed in, add the milk little by little, again making sure lumps are not formed. Keep flame on high once the entire milk is used up and then add the cheese, salt and pepper. Keep stirring till the sauce becomes thick and creamy. If you think it is too thick, add some more milk.

Final preparation:

Pre-heat the oven to 175C. In an oven proof ceramic casserole layer the fish mix evenly. On top of that layer the eggs and pour the white sauce over this mixture. Finally layer the mashed potato on top and sprinkle some cheese if required. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

Notes: Using canned tuna might be easier as you can then avoid the first stage.

Eggs are optional and so are the veggies. I added it so there is some in take of veggies

I was too lazy to make the mashed potatoes, so bought one container from the store which already had butter, cheese, milk and parsley mixed into it. I just had to layer as it is.

While layering, if you pour the white sauce over the potato, you wouldn't get a brown crust, instead it will be white which is what i did, but you can do as the original recipe calls for. You can also put how many ever layers you want. For e.g., if you are not using eggs, you can use one layer of fish, then mashed potatoes, fish and again potatoes and then the white sauce.

If you do not have an oven, heating on high in the microwave for about 5 minutes serves the purpose. Everything is already cooked and so its fine.