Recipe Time

We were going to finish up some leftover lamb curry for dinner last night. Plan A was to make some naan bread to go with it. Plan B was not to bother with the naan bread because I had a stinking headache, and by the time I'd got home from work and done all the housework I didn't feel like making bread. Plan C was to make the bread after all, because after I'd had a lie down I felt somewhat better, and I wanted to make it to use up some yoghurt that was in the fridge. The problem was that there turned out to be less curry than I had thought, so I needed a reasonable vegetable dish to do duty as half the meal - and there wasn't a lot in the fridge. No cauliflower, no green beans and no cabbage, which are my go-to veg for a main dish. There was a courgette, but I didn't feel like that. A quick look in one of my books turned up this recipe which was a success and will be going into my repertoire.

Green Pepper and Potato  (serves 4 as a side dish)
3 tblsp oil
pinch of asafoetida (optional - sometimes I use it, sometimes I don't want the lingering smell)
1/2 teaspoon each mustard and black onion seeds (kalonji)

9 oz potatoes cut into 1" cubes
9 oz green (bell) pepper cut into 1" pieces
1 tsp each ground coriander and ground roasted cumin seeds
1/2 tsp each salt, garam masala. turmeric and cayenne/chilli (I used less of the chilli, mine is a hot one)
1/4 tsp garam masala and 1 tblsp chopped fresh coriander/cilantro for garnish.

Heat the oil and fry the asafoetida, mustard and onion seeds till they start crackling. Add the potato pieces and fry till lightly browned, stirring often. Add the pepper and cook for one minute. Stir in the dry spices, reduce the heat to low and cook for a further ten minutes, or until the vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with the garnish and serve.


I recently turned up this photo which I had mislaid after taking several off a noticeboard. It's an old photo, but I thought I'd share it - it's always made me smile. I still don't know how he got into that pot!
Brambles was one of my parents cats, acquired from a friend of my brother's who was leaving the country. Before that he'd been a much loved and cosseted only cat who had always lived indoors. Moving to a house where there were already two other cats and a dog was a bit of a shock to his system, and for a while he didn't leave two upstairs rooms. Then he gradually started venturing out via my parents bedroom window, and he started mixing with the other animals. When they moved down to Kerry he became a fully-fledged country cat - and happy to be one, as you can see. He was a sweetie - big and good-natured.

Today was almost a day for basking just like Brambles - even now at 9.30 in the evening I still have one of the attic skylights open.