Jamaican rice and peas with saffron rice

Madhur Jaffrey is definitely my favorite food author. I have 3 cookbooks by her and counting. My favorite cookbook by her is Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian. It is my vegetarian bible. Every recipe I have made has been delicious. Unlike many vegetarian cookbooks that try to replace meat with alternatives, she uses traditional vegetarian recipes from all over the world. I would highly recommend it, although you will  need to build up quite a collection of different spices that need to be tracked down from international supermarkets.

This recipe is so hearty and filling. It is also amazingly cheap and can be made in bulk to feed a crowd (something I seem to always end up doing). Don't be fooled by the name, there are actually no peas involved at all, but red kidney beans. I also added chickpeas to this recipe to bulk it out a little more, but you can use whatever you have on hand.

Jamaican rice and peas with saffron rice

 Serves 4-6
2 cans kidney beans
1 can chickpeas 
475 ml Coconut milk
3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme or 3/4 tea spoon dried
4 tablespoons of finely chopped chives or 6 tablespoons finely sliced spring onions (white and green)
1 Scotch bonnet chilli, or other chilli to taste (I used crushed chilli flakes because that is what I had)
2 cloves garlic
1 finely chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon of ground allspice*
1 teaspoon paprika

1. Heat a splash of olive oil to a pan and add the onion. Fry for 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add the garlic to the pan and cook for a further 3-4 minutes.
3. Add the coconut milk, chilli, thyme, chives, ground allspice and paprika. 
4. Turn the heat down low, cover the pan and simmer for 25 minutes. 
5. Check seasoning by tasting. Remove the chilli (if using fresh whole) and sprigs of thyme before serving.

Saffron rice
300g basmati rice
Pinch saffron
Vegetable stock cube
Chilli flavoured olive oil

1. Add 1 part basmati rice to 2 parts boiling water (from kettle) to a pan on a medium heat.
2. Add the stock cube and saffron.
3. Cover tightly and turn heat to low.
4. Cook for 12 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed by the rice
5. Try not to stir the rice or remove the lid, as this lets the rice steam and not become sticky
6. Check that the rice is cooked, adjust seasoning if necessary and fluff up the rice. 
7. Serve and drizzle with chilli olive oil

*Allspice is a Jamaican peppercorn that you can pick up in international supermarkets, or online if you don't have access to such stores. It has a flavour of a mix of ginger, cloves cinnamon, so if you can't access this lovely spice, you can use a blend of those spices. They look like peppercorns the size of peas. I buy it whole and crush the spice in a pestle and mortar.

One happy customer !

Homemade falafel and halloumi mezze wraps with roasted peppers and chilli mint yogurt

Mezze is one of my favorite cuisines. I love to have the option to pick and choose my flavour combinations, textures and heat. This style of cooking can take time to prepare but it is definately worth it, as you will end up with some complex flavours that will please anyone who is lucky enough to taste it.

My falafel didn't cook as well as they should have after my first batch. This was because I didn't wait for the oil to heat back up to temperature (350 degrees or higher). If your falafel balls don't sizzle as soon as they touch the oil, they are at risk of not sealing and therefore just disintergrating as they cook. This can also happen if there is too much water in the mixture, so when preparing keep the water to a minimum.

Also, if you didn't want to deep fry your falafel, you can heat a couple of tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and shallow fry them, flipping them once they are brown on one side. I have tried baking falafel before but  they became dry and crumbly, which is not what you want from a good falafel.

Homemade falafel and halloumi wraps with roasted peppers and chilli mint yogurt

Serves 4
Falafel
2 cans of tinned chickpeas,drained OR 200g dried chickpeas, soaked overnight
3 garlic coves, crushed and diced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp turmeric
handful of fresh coriander,stalks and all, chopped
1/2 tsp paprika
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Plain flour
Sunflower oil (over 2 inches for deep frying, or 2 tbsp for shallow frying)

Peppers
1 red onion, sliced in half then into strips
1 yellow pepper, sliced into strips
1 red pepper, sliced into strips
A good lug of olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Chilli mint yogurt
2 medium chillies, diced (we left the seeds in but it depends on your chillies and your tastes)
Bunch fresh mint leaves, chopped
Bunch coriander leaves,chopped
300g Greek yogurt
Squeeze lemon
Freshly ground black pepper

Extras
250g halloumi, sliced
Pot of organic houmous
Sweet chilli sauce
Olives
Sundred tomatoes in oil
Iceberg lettuce
Watercress, spinach and rocket
Cherry tomatoes,sliced in half
8 tortilla wraps

1. Heat the oven to 220 degrees and place peppers and onions in a heatproof dish. Drizzle with plenty of olive oil, season and place in the oven.
2. Bring all the falafel ingredients together and whizz in a food processor or use a hand blender. Slowly add the plain flour until the mixture holds together well when moulded. Heat the oil over a high heat.
3. Combine all of the chilli mint yogurt ingredients together.
4. Roll the falafel into balls a little smaller than ping pong balls and flatten a little. Drop into the hot oil. They should begin to sizzle straight away. Flip the falafel if you are shallow frying once they have browned. You will need to do this step in batches. Once one batch is cooked, place the falafel on kitchen paper to drain and begin the next batch.
5. Heat a griddle or frying pan on a high heat and dry fry the halloumi slices. Flip once one side has begun to brown
6. Heat up the wraps in the oven for a couple of minutes once your falafel is almost fully cooked
7. Serve falafel, halloumi,  peppers, yogurt, salad and other extras all seperate so friends and family can have the pleasure of building their own wrap. I recommend putting everything in the wrap (see above).