Plant & Kraus ~ Trampled Rose
Meredith Brooks ~ It Don't Get Better
Shakira ~ You Don't Care About Me
All Saints ~ Black Coffee
Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band ~ Born With A Broken Heart
Garbage ~ Push It
Alanis Morrisette ~ You Outta Know (Alternative Take)
The Cranberries ~ Carry On
Natalie Cole ~ I've Got Just About Everything
Zac Brown Band ~ Jolene
R.E.M ~ Losing My Religion
Soundgarden ~ Gun
Beth Hart ~ Take It Easy On Me
Whitesnake ~ Too Many Tears
How was your weekend? Mine? Oh mine was lovely as I once again spent time with those that I love. Friday night we had our nephew Myles to stay over and he and ML had a marathon lego (Mixels) session and then we settled down to watch Percy Jackson Sea of Monsters. I say we but really Myles crashed into a peaceful sleep just after the opening titles had finished. lol. Saturday morning was a riot as my sister and her girls joined us for brunch and before we knew it they were gone again and off to an all afternoon birthday party. We had visits from our good friends Jane & Steve, Bev and Ella (four legged family) in the afternoon and then Ann joined us to stay for the weekend. It was a busy day! Sunday was easy as ML & Ann left early to do a car boot sale at the local cricket field. I spent the morning in the kitchen creating and cooking various dishes...one of which is today's post. Ann and I enjoyed it with some Thai red rice and steamed side veggies and I also tested out some Thai flatbread for Ann but as they aren't GF I didn't partake. But apparently they were nice before they cooled because then they turned a little..erm..crunchy! lol.
Last weekend Ann & I had a take out (OMGosh..yes I know take out!! But the restaurant is a very good place and their food is all cooked from fresh! Sheesh!) thai Massuman curry. Ann's being a meat based one and mine obviously a mixed vegetable one. We were both shocked at how liquid the sauce was but it didn't stop us from enjoying every single mouthful. When it came to making a decision what to cook for us yesterday we both agreed that a mussaman curry would be the way to go. I turned to one of my favourite cook book authors Linda Majzilk. I love her A Vegan Taste Of...series of cookbooks. And yesterday I dived between the covers of her A Vegan Taste Of Thailand.
Now I wouldn't normally eat a curry that was based solely around root veggies but occasionally it's a nice treat. It also has taramind puree in it so it's not a perfect meal for my body but again as a one off...and I knew that Ann wouldn't mind taking home the leftovers. Even having to make the curry paste from scratch this isn't a hard recipe to achieve. The paste is a matter of a little prep and then, after the toasting of the seeds, it's a blender moment. The curry itself is one of the easiest I've ever made. And the results are just lovely. The only comparison I made to our takeout curry was that the sauce reduced down a lot and was absorbed into the veggies. We both liked this so it wasn't a problem. The veggies were perfectly cooked, the spices had blended into the coconut and peanut sauce and gave an aromatic spiciness kick to the veggies and had just enough chilli heat that my lips felt it as I ate. I loved this curry and will experiment with the leftover paste with other veggies soon.
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| Mussaman Potato & Carrot Curry |
Mussaman Potato & Carrot Curry Serves 4-6
(Recipe from A Vegan Taste of Thailand/Majzilk)
1 1/2 lb /675g new potatoes, diced
1 1/2lb /675g carrots, peeled and diced
2oz/50g roasted peanuts, finely chopped
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 rounded tbsp mussaman curry paste (recipe below)
1 tbsp groundnut oil
1 tbsp tamarind puree
12fl oz/350ml vegetable stock
8fl oz/225ml coconut milk
6 kaffir lime leaves
1"/2/5cm stick of cinnamon
8 cardamon pods, husked and seeds separated
black pepper
red chilli rings
Mussaman Curry Paste:
2oz/50g red chillies, de-seeded and chopped
1 lemon grass stalk, chopped
1 shallot, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1"/2/5cm piece of fresh ginger, chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
2 cardamon pods, husked and the seeds separated
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 dsp lime juice
2 dsp groundnut oil
black pepper
Dry fry the cumin, coriander and cardamon seeds and, using a pestle, grind them in a mortar. Blend to a paste with the other paste ingredients. Set to one side.
For the curry:
Heat the oil and fry the onion until softened. Add the curry paste, potatoes and carrots and stir around for 2 minutes. Dissolve the tamarind puree into the veggie stock and put in the pan with the lime leaves, cinnamon and cardamon seeds. Season with black pepper and stir well, then raise the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Add the coconut milk and peanuts and continue simmering, again stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the sauce has reduced. Spoon into a serving dish and garnish with red chilli rings.
Enjoy!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope your Monday has been a kind one...
~Red~
NB: This is not my recipe so therefore I take no credit for it whatsoever. It is the hard work and creation of Linda Majzlik and hers alone. I thank her for such great recipes in her The Vegan Taste Of...series. ~R~
