Tuesday 17 September 2013

Mango Raita and Tomato & Onion Salad

A couple of great refreshing side dishes that go with any Indian meal, that needs the heat toning down.

Mango Raita - you can make variations of this using different ingredients, cucumber and mint, beetroot, apple, orange.
1 Large mango
200g plain yogurt
1 Tbl  dessicated coconut
salt & pepper to taste
handful of chopped coriander
1/4 tsp chilli powder

Slice the cheeks of the mango and cut diagonal lines into the cheek, pop it out and then cut the pieces  out
Mix the yogurt and coconut and S&P and add the mango pieces, mix together and then add the chopped coriander and chilli to decorate.

Tomato and Onion Salad

2-3 medium size Tomatoes, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
handful of chopped coriander
handful of chopped cucumber (optional)
Mix the ingredients in a bowl.
For the dressing
1 Tbls Oil
1/4 Tsp Salt
pepper
1/4 -1/2  Tsp chilli powder
1/2 Tsp white vinegar
1/4 Tsp sugar
Mix all the ingredients and taste, add more salt, chilli to taste. drizzle over the salad.

Enjoy!

Till next time

Ashia





Spicy Lamb Kebabs with Pita Pockets

Spicy Lamb kebabs is one of my children's favourite meals.  It's easy to prepare and perfect for a mid week "fast food" option.  You can make these up and freeze them before or after cooking them, and defrost as you need them.  They can be eaten hot or cold, served with warm pita bread, salad, and a yogurt dip.  I also serve them with potato wedges.



Great for summer as you can barbecue them if you choose or cook them in a griddle pan.

You will need -:
500g Lamb Mince (you can use other minced meat if you wish)
1 Tsp Cumin powder
1 Tsp Coriander powder
1/4 Tsp Turmeric
1-2 Cloves fresh garlic, crushed
2 Tsp Crushed Green chilli & coriander mix (this is optional as it gives quite a kick)
1 Tbls Fresh chopped coriander
1/2 Tsp salt and peppar to taste
2 Tbls Oil
1 Egg
Handful of breadcrumbs

Method -:
1. In a large bowl, mix the minced meat, all the spices, egg, coriander (& green chilli if using) and breadcrumbs, until it is all mixed well together
2. Divide the mince into 12-14 balls (the number will depend on how big the kebabs will be)
3. Taking a wooden spoon and using the handle, mould the ball around the handle into an oblong and gently slide it off the handle.  You should end up with an 8-10cm long sausage shaped kebab with a hole in the middle.

4.  At this point you can either BBQ, griddle or freeze them for later use.




If you are using a griddle pan, lightly coat with oil and fry them on a medium heat, until they are cooked through and brown on both sides.

To assemble -:

Heat the oven to 200c, wrap 2-3 pitas in foil  making sure there are no gaps, heat in the oven for 5-7 min, remove from the oven and cut the tops off to form a pocket, and then add your salad, kebabs, chilli sauce and raita.

8-10  Pita Pockets with a slit on the top
Mixed salad leaves
Raita (Yogurt, cucumber & coriander dip)
Thai sweet chilli

 
 
Enjoy!
 
Till next time
 
Ashia.
 

Friday 13 September 2013

Wedding Celebration Lunch

 
So I have been back for just over 2 weeks and its so hard to get back to routine and normality. I miss my family, and I miss my mum's cooking! While we were away celebrating my sister, Farah's wedding, we had lots of family occasions to celebrate. One of these were the civil ceremony of my sister, where we had a vintage themed lunch, with some Indian food for good measure, I'm just going to post some photos of that special day











We had petite sandwiches, and wraps and  mini filled rolls,
 gorgeous chocolate eclairs and cheesecakes, fruit tarts, petite pattisserie savoury pastries, pasta salads,  spicy  potatoes with a tamarind sauce and cupcakes.




It was a beautiful day, filled with love, laughter and food, happy family memories to treasure forever.


 
Enjoy!
 
Till next time
 
Ashia