All posts by Marlena Spieler

Mridula’s Carrots in Roasted ChannaDahl Sauce

Serves about 4 as a vegetable side dish or, unorthodox-ily, as part of a sort of Indian chutney antipasti, as we did with Mridula (see previous posting). I like this served at room temperature rather than reheated, as the carrots retain their bright orange color and fresh, sweet taste! I ate the leftovers for breakfast the next day!

2 tablespoons +2 teaspoons oil of choice (I use a combination of half canola, half olive for everyday cooking)

1/2-1 tsp black mustard seeds

1- 1 1/2  lb fresh, sweet, large autumn carrots, peeled and cut into 5 cmm/1/4 inch cubes

3/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/2-1 teaspoon mild chile flakes (such as Urfa, Aleppo, or other Turkish chillies, or a pinch hot chile flakes or shake or two cayenne

2 teaspoons coriander seeds

2 tablespoons ordinary green split peas (though the traditional recipe calls for channa dahl or yellow split peas; I find green ones just fine!)

1 heaping tablespoon sesame seeds OR 1 heaping tablespoon tahina + a drizzle of toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice or to taste

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and add the mustard seeds. As soon as they start popping, which will be around 30 seconds to a minute, add the carrots, salt, sugar and chile flakes or cayenne. Stir over medium heat 2-3 minutes, then add 1/3 cup water, reduce heat slightly, and cook, covered, until the carrots are firm but tender, 10-12 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in a small frying pan over a low heat and dd the coriander seeds and split peas. Fry them until they are golden, light brown, but do not let them darken, probably less than 1 minute. Add the sesame seeds and continue to fry 30-40 seconds. (If you are using the tahina and sesame oil instead of sesame seeds, omit this step).

3. Remove from heat and let cool a few minutes, then grind the seeds and peas in a coffee grinder until they form a smooth powder.

4. Add the seeds/pea mixture to the carrots (and if using tahina and sesame oil, add these too),  then cook together, uncovered, until the liquid has evaporated and the mixture has formed a paste that clings to the carrots, about 6-8 minutes. Depending on how much liquid was left in the pan with the carrots, you may need to add a little bit more water–my frying pan is shallow and i had to add about 1/4 cup.  Add the lemon juice and remove from the heat.

You may eat them warm, but I like them best at room temperature.

Indian chef, food writer, and television personality came to lunch yesterday and brought a new selection of her chutneys.  Mridula sells her chutneys and pickles at farmers markets throughout UK, as well as Waitrose, and other deli/food halls. I love all chutneys and pickles, it is true: but i love Mridula’s even more: they are unique: based on her mothers recipes from her Himalayan childhood, made of the fruits and vegetables of the high mountains: pears, citrus, carrots, parsnips, berries, as well as the more tropical fresh things we associate with India such as mango and pineapple. And the spicing for each chutney is individual, as perfectly balanced as a musical tune, with wafts of ginger, mustard, fennel, cumin, cinnamon, nigella, asafetida; some have whole spices, some ground, some both; and some are blessed with the fragrance of garlic. sigh.

So when Mirdula brought her new seasons chutneys for me to taste, I designed our first course of lunch around them:

small bowls of cherry-cranberry chutney; blueberry and pineapple chutney (with its gorgeous hit of cumin); strawberry and chile chutney which i thought would be glorious on top of cream cheese and something crisp and grainy, like wasa brod. we had carrot and orange chutney, green chile and garlic pickle, and i whipped up a raita using my own homemade brinjal pickle (based on Mridula’s recipe) with greek yogurt, a dusting of cumin and sprinkling of cilantro. But the star of the chutney parade was the parsnip and onion chutney: thin strands of caramelized parsnip and onion, studded with raisins and golden with spice.

To go with our chutneys and raita, I served the carrot dish she also brought: served room temperature like a salad or antipasto, cooked carrot squares, sweet and juicy and just tender, cloaked in a spicy chile-flecked mixture of toasted, ground lentils and nigella seeds….i also serve my new found tomato-love dish of the past week: ginger-roasted tomatoes: an array of different types of tomatoes for a complexity of flavour, scattered with thai basil; also pan browned smoked kippers, and toasted pain poilane.

it was like frolicking through a spice garden, with the smokey salty fish the perfect foil to the array of spicy-sweet-tangy fruit and vegetable chutneys!

we followed with a main course of pasta al forno: penne with cream, truffle, tomatoes, peas, and a pecorino-breadcrumb crust. And a lemon-rosemary-garlic roasted chicken. Mridula loves my chicken!

After we had eaten and talked and sipped wine for about three hours we had dessert: fruit salad with rosewater (blood orange, banana, passion fruit, pear, kiwi, mango) and cardomom yogurt. dark strong black coffee in tiny cups and little squares of equally dark strong chocolate (81%).

i sent Mridula home with green tomatoes from my garden; she emailed later that she made chutney from them; i can hardly wait to taste it!

our lovely neighbour Liz came over for dinner tonight. Liz comes over about once a week; I love when liz comes over–she is a good little eater, and clearly enjoys what i offer; and i, in turn, love to think: what might Liz love that she’s never had before.

If something is particularly Australian, I’ll think of that as Liz lived in australia for a number of years. I had been looking for something truffley for awhile, as Liz said she had never tasted truffles. As things happen, I found a jar of fabulous truffle salsa which came, in fact, from Tetsuyas, in Australia. Thus our menu was anchored around the truffley mixture.

Since it is feeling decidedly autumnal tonight, and since i have literally at least 5 cabbages in my kitchen, I decided on braised cabbage in cream with a hit of truffle added at the end. Husband brought home a package of ground veal while i was braising the cabbage. I know, meatballs again: but these are veal, last nights were chicken, and anyhow, i could eat meatballs every night of the week with leftovers in a sandwich. So i began to mix, and roll, brown and braise.

First I blanched the cut up cabbage; then i mixed the veal with onion, garlic, nutmeg, 1 shredded carrot (I have a big bag of carrots in my fridge; if they were zucchini, i would have used that instead. I like to add some shredded vegetable to most of my meatballs, for their lightening effect), and about 1/4 chicken bouillon cube. I rolled them up into tiny meatballs, the size of large marbles, then lightly gilded them in a heavy frying pan in a tablespoon or two of butter.

Meatballs pushed over to one side, I added the drained cabbage, and cooked that in the butter, too. Next came about a cup of chicken broth, a simmer of say, 10 minutes, then a cup of heavy cream. Simmer simmer simmer, gently, until the sauce is creamy and the meatballs are cooked through.

When ready to serve, stir in 2-3 tablespoons of tetsuyas truffle salsa–or any truffle condimento such as tartuflanghe’s–taste for seasoning, add a drop or two of lemon juice, and serve. If you love truffles, cream, and veal meatballs as much as i do, fainting from pleasure might be an option.

Actually, its not a kimono, its a yukata: more informal, easier to wear for big blond beginners like me! And in fact, I’m not simmering chicken meatballs at all when this foto was taken, I was snapped on my way back from the outdoor hot baths on the Japanese island of Kyushu. The hot springs bubbled up into a pool surrounded by rocks; the night was freezing and while you can’t see my feet, be aware that they are tucked adorably into little wooden sandals!

And while i wasn’t simmering my dinner when this pic was taken, in fact whenever I make a dish with strong Japanese flavors, I always FEEL as if I’m wearing my yukata-kimono: I feel exactly as I look in the photo!

The dish is simple; one I make in a million variations, inspired by a hot-pot of chicken meatballs and vegetables I ate somewhere along the way: the chicken mixture came to the table in a bamboo-tube; when the broth boiled, someone at the table, whoever wanted to, spooned the chicken mixture into the bubbling broth; it made meatballs! there was also a plate of mixed vegetables: Napa cabbage, sprouts, onions, broccoli. Since I’ve been back from Japan I make variations of this whenever I yearn for something cozy, light, and quick.

You can use ground turkey in place of the chicken; and while i had a lovely cache of fresh shiitakes, you can use dried–just be sure to presoak in boiling water for about 30  minutes before using, and cut the stems off if they are tough!

Broccoli, Shiitakes, Chicken Meatballs and Miso

Serves 4

Meatballs:

12 ounces ground chicken (or turkey)

2-3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

2 green onions, thinly sliced

(if you have edible chrysanthemum leaves, coarsely chop those and add them; alternatively you can use a few tablespoons chopped arugula, a few leaves of shiso, or even cilantro, chopped)

Several generous shakes soy sauce

1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil (optional)

1/2 chicken bouillion cube or 1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillion powder (optional)

1 medium-large carrot, shredded

For the soup-stew:

4 cups chicken broth

1 teaspoon chopped or grated fresh ginger

6-8 ounces fresh shiitakes, or dried, soaked until rehydrated shiitakes (stems removed if tough)

1 small to medium head broccoli, cut into bite-sized florets and stems

4-6 heaping tablespoons shiro miso (white miso; the light, sweet, pale yellow one)

Combine all of the meatball ingredients; mix well. (note: a little cornstarch or potato starch gives a smoother effect, but I prefer the all meaty vegetable mix for the taste of the meatballs, and also for its flavoring of the soup.)

Heat the broth in a large saucepan; when it comes to the boil, reduce heat to a simmer, then add the ginger, and  spoon in walnut-sized nuggets of meatball mixture.

When meatballs are partially cooked through, add the shiitakes, and broccoli florets. Cook all together for 5-7 minutes or until the broccoli are bright green, the mushrooms and meatballs cooked through.

In a small bowl mix the miso with a few spoonfuls of the soup to smooth it out. Stir it into the pot, remove from the heat, and ladle into bowls. Sprinkle a little green onion onto each bowl, and eat on with a spoon and chopsticks, on a cold damp night, in your favorite kimono or yukata….

Whenever i forget how special Savoy cabbage is, i just remember how blown away i was last year in Champagne, eating the potee Chamenpoise: the grape-pickers soup-stew, a big pot of meats with carrots, leeks, and tons of Savoy cabbage.

The Savoy cabbage was so tender and silky, its frilly edges slightly textured with each strand tasting like the meat and vegetables they cooked with. The cabbage was juicy with the broth, and lightly sweet with the natural sugars of the vegetable itself; I’ve been a Savoy cabbage devotee ever since. In fact, right now i’m spooning up delicious cabbage soup.   someday, someday, i’ll have my foto-skills up-to-date and can share everything with you AT THE VERY MOMENT i’m making/eating/enjoying.

Meanwhile, i’ll tell you how this soup came to be in my pot, and in today’s bowl: Last night, after going through the fridge, and with a view towards low-carb, low-cal, and about 5 min start to finish, I made turkey meatballs: 1 lb ground/minced turkey (with a few spoonsfuls taken out and cooked for the pooches!) mixed with 2 cloves garlic, 1/2 chopped onion, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, a little turmeric, and about 3 tablespoons shredded carrots. Rolled up up into walnut-sized morsel-ettes, then layered them in a pot with whole leaves of Savoy cabbage, sliced onion, and a couple celery stalks, cut up. Chicken broth up to the top, with a sprinkling of turmeric, then simmer simmer simmer until meatballs were cooked through. I went over the 5 minutes mark with this, but didn’t encroach on the 15 minute mark!

The meatballs were delicious; to eat, i  lifted them out of the broth and ate them with broccoli and shiitakes in miso. soothing, comfy, low cal and carb!

But TODAY is what i want to tell you about: TODAY i looked at that broth, then i tasted it, and whoa: delicous! cut the cabbage into bite sized pieces, and added a little more for good measure, then cooked it together til the new cabbage was tender. The broth is amazingly rich from the meatballs and golden from the turmeric, tasting like turkey and garlic and carrots; but that cabbage: what can i say? Star of the show.

Go make those meatballs for dinner tonight–so that tomorrow, you too can have that next-day welcome to autumn soup!