Poached pears in spiced red wine

One thing we miss big time here in Germany is Indian food and going out to eat. It's not that we have no restaurants out here. Oh, there are with lots of beer overflowing. To me, eating out is not just about taking leave from the kitchen and relaxing, it's also about feeding my taste buds with delicious delights. Somehow, we have not been able to achieve the latter. The best restaurants that we have come across have been during our travels. So, while in Lohr we rarely venture out to eat. While I do have one particular restaurant in town which is my favorite, thats about it! This means that I need to get that eating out feel at home...:-)

For the past month, lots of Birnen(pears) are being sold in the market. The kids especially sonny loves having a pear daily after dinner. Hubby had picked up the Feb issue of Good Food India during his unexpected trip back home which featured this recipe. The tingling wine soaked in the juicy pear turned out to be one royal dessert for me.

Ingredients:

• vanilla pod 
• red wine 750 ml
• caster sugar 225g
• cinnamon 1 stick halved
• fresh thyme 1 sprig 
• pears 4, peeled but kept whole with stalk intact
• sprigs of thyme or mint for garnishing.

Method:

1. Halve the vanilla pod lengthways, scrape out the black seeds and put in a large saucepan with the wine, sugar, cinnamon and thyme. Cut each piece of pod into three long thin strips, add to pan, then lower in the pears. 
2. Poach the pears, covered, for 20-30 minutes, making sure they are covered in the wine. The cooking time will vary much depending on the ripeness of the pears. They should be tender all the way through when pierced with a cocktail stick. You can make these up to 2 days ahead and chill.
3. Take the pears from the pan, then boil the liquid to reduce it by half so that its syrupy. Serve each pear with the cooled syrup, a stir of vanilla, a piece of cinnamon and a small thyme or mint sprig.(I used only the mint)

Carrot Halwa/Gajar ka Halwa

I do not remember when I made this favorite dessert of ours last. I only know that each time I prepared it, I hoped that it would last for as long as possible given the fact that I had spent hours grating the carrots by hand and then having sore arms for a day or two.  But it never was meant to be. I would increase the quantity of carrots by the kilo and yet, every time this halwa would find a place into my family's tummies as often as possible. 

With my new Bosch Mum I decided to give it a try and was I amazed with how fast and easy it turned out.

Ingredients:

• 1 kilo carrots, washed, peeled and grated
• 400 gm milkmaid or sweetened condensed milk
• 5-6 tablespoons ghee
• 150 gm sugar *
• raisins to garnish
• 1and a half tsp cardamom powder

Method:

1. In a thick bottomed vessel heat the ghee.
2. Add the grated carrot and fry till completely dry(approximately 20 minutes).
3. Add the sugar and mix well, stirring continuously.
4. Add the milkmaid and continue cooking on a low flame till completely dry(approx 15 to 20 minutes), all the while stirring in between so that it does not burn. When the carrot halwa does not stick to the sides of the vessel, its an indication that the sweet is ready.
5. Add the cardamom powder and raisins, mix well. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or refrigerate it and have it cold according to your taste.

* The amount of sugar can be increased or decreased accordingly. Keep in mind that you are using sweetened condensed milk.

Blueberry pancakes with cinnamon butter and syrup

Source: BBC GoodFood India
Serves 4-5
Preparation time: 40 minutes

Ingredients
The pancakes:

• self raising flour 300g
• bicarbonate of soda 1 tsp
• eggs 2
• buttermilk 275ml
• milk 4tbsp
• melted butter 75g
• 225 gm fresh blueberries(the original recipe called for 2 apples and 50g dried cranberries)
• butter or sunflower oil for frying
• maple syrup to serve

The cinnamon butter:

• softened butter 75g
• cinnamon powder 1tsp
• caster sugar 2tsp

Method:

1. To make the cinnamon butter, mix all the ingredients together, wrap in cling film, shape into a log and chill. You can make this up to 3 days ahead.
2. Mix the flour, bicarbonate and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Make a well in the centre, then gradually whisk in the eggs, followed by the buttermilk, milk and melted butter. Once the mixture is smooth, stir in the blueberries.
3. Melt a little more butter in a non stick pan or smear with sunflower oil. When hot, add 1-3 small  ladles of batter to the pan to make 1-3 small pancakes(its dependent on the size of your pan).
4. Cook for 2-3 minutes until bubbles appear and the underside of the pancake is set and golden. Flip and cook for a few minutes more. 
5. Transfer pancakes to a plate, cover with baking parchment and keep warm in an oven. Cook the remaining pancakes.
6. To serve, stack pancakes on plates, top with a big knob of cinnamon butter and drizzle with maple syrup.
7. ENJOY!! 

Pork Bafat

Ingredients:

• 1 kilogram pork cut into cubes
• 5 big onions(cubed)
• 2 inch ginger finely chopped
• 1 pod garlic peeled and halved
• 5-6 green chillies slit
• marble sized tamarind
• 4 cloves and cinnamon sticks each
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 tbsp bafat powder( can increase the quantity depending on tolerance to spice)
• 1 tbsp vinegar
• salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash the pork pieces, drain well and keep aside.
2. Soak tamarind in 3 tbsps water.
3. In a big vessel, mix the pieces of pork with the onion, ginger, garlic, green chillies, spices, bafat powder, tamarind water, and salt.
4. Cook on a low flame for an hour, stirring at repeated intervals.
5. When almost done add the vinegar and mix well.
6. Serve hot with sannas, appams or a bowl of hot rice.

Chicken/Kori Ghassi

Source: Konkan Cookbook by Sanjeev Kapoor

Ingredients:

For the marination:

• 1 kilo chicken, cleaned and cut into small pieces
• 1 and a half tbsps lemon juice
• 1 and a half tbsps ginger garlic paste
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• Salt to taste

To grind:

• 1 and a half cups scraped coconut(I used a cup of desiccated coconut)
• 1 and a half tbsps coriander seeds
• 15 peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp Fenugreek seeds(methi)
• 1 and a half tsps cumin seeds
• 10 whole bedgi red chillies deseeded(I do not deseed)
• 3 tbsps oil
• 3 medium sized onions finely chopped(to use half of this for grinding)

To season:

• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 10 curry leaves(I didn't have any)
• 8 garlic cloves finely chopped

For the gravy:

• 1 and a half tbsps tamarind pulp
• 3/4 cup coconut milk

Method:

1. Marinate chicken with the marinade ingredients for an hour.
2. Dry roast scraped coconut to a light brown color. Lightly sauté coriander, fenugreek, cumin seeds, peppercorns, and whole red chillies in 2 teaspoons of oil. Grind these along with roasted scraped coconut and half the chopped onions to a fine paste using a little water if required.
3. Heat remaining oil in a vessel. Add mustard seeds and curry leaves. When the seeds begin to crackle, add chopped garlic and onion and sauté for 5 minutes on low heat.
4. Add ground masala and sauté for 5 minutes till a nice aroma is given out.
5. Add marinated chicken. Stir well and add one cup of water. Adjust salt. Cover and cook till chicken is well cooked. 
6. Add tamarind pulp and stir well. Add coconut milk and remove from heat just when it comes to a boil.
7. Serve hot with Mangalore roti or with Deutsch brötchen(bun) as I have done...:)