Taking up a pre-pandemic tradition.

POST IN PROGRESS

For now, long story short, my place from about 21.00 till about 01.00.

More details later.

Black lime tofu – IN PROGRESS

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp caster sugar
1 small red onion, thinly sliced into rounds on a mandolin, if you have one, or by hand (60g)
600ml sunflower oil, for deep-frying
2 blocks of extra-firm tofu (560g), patted dry and cut into 2cm cubes
2 tbsp cornflour
2 onions (300g), roughly chopped
6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
60ml olive oil
2 tsp cumin seeds, roughly crushed in a pestle and mortar
2–3 dried black limes, blitzed in a spice grinder to get 2 tbsp (10g – use a food processor if you don’t have a grinder, and pass through a sieve) (if you can’t get any black limes, substitute with 1 tbsp lime juice and 1 tbsp lime zest)
2 tbsp tomato paste
20g parsley, roughly chopped
250g baby spinach
salt and black pepper

METHOD

1. Put the vinegar, 1 teaspoon of sugar, the red onion and ⅛ teaspoon of salt into a small bowl and mix well to combine. Set aside to pickle while you continue with the rest.

2. Heat the sunflower oil in a medium high-sided sauté pan on a medium-high heat. Toss the tofu in a bowl with the cornflour until well coated. Once hot, fry the tofu (in two batches) until crispy and lightly browned, about 6 minutes per batch, then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper and set aside.

3. While the tofu is frying, prepare the sauce. Put the onions and garlic into a food processor and pulse a few times until very finely minced but not puréed. Put the olive oil into a large sauté pan on a medium-high heat. Add the onion mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add the cumin, black limes (or regular lime zest and juice) and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute more. Add 400ml of water, the remaining 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1¼ teaspoons of salt and a generous grind of pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and rich. Add the crispy tofu, parsley and another grind of pepper and stir to coat. Add the spinach in increments, stirring until just wilted, about 3 minutes.

4. To serve, transfer the mixture to a shallow serving platter and top with the pickled red onion (or serve straight from the pan).

I recently made a quick trip to Copenhagen to celebrate my sister-in-law’s 60^th plus one week birthday. (As for the train trip – don’t get me started – see separate post).

Friday evening a nice meal just the three of us in Restaurant Kashmir on Österbro, Saturday a walk around the new part of Copenhagen at Nordhavn, which was under construction last time I visited six years ago (and still is) including brunch at John&Woo, and Saturday evening a lovely (as usual) dinner at Restaurant Godt where we have celebrated many round and not so round family birthdays.

First, the sunrise on the morning of the trip:

Then some time to kill on Hamburg central station:

This photo is SO “on a train in Denmark”:

And finally in Copenhagen:

IN PROGRESS

• 100g red lentils
• 1 large onion, grated
• 400g tin cherry tomatoes
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 2 large aubergines, cut into 3cm chunks
• 2 tbsp groundnut oil
• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 4 cardamom pods, split
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• a small bunch coriander, chopped
• 1 tsp garam masala
• rice and naans, to serve

Method

• STEP 1Put the lentils, onion, tomatoes, turmeric and 1 tsp of salt in a pan with a tomato tin full of water, and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer gently for 20 minutes or until the lentils are tender.
• STEP 2Meanwhile, put the aubergines in a bowl, and toss with the oil and some seasoning. Heat a large frying pan then cook half the aubergines until golden brown and softened. Tip out on a plate and do the next batch.
• STEP 3Tip all the aubergines back into the pan and cook for a minute, then add the spices (not the garam masala) and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for a few minutes then tip in the tomato and lentil mix, plus 200ml of water. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring regularly, then stir in the coriander and garam masala and cook for another 2 minutes. Serve with rice and naans, if you like.

I am creating a whatsapp group with the purpose of visiting wine bars and wine festivals. In other words, not guided wine tastings, although those could also be an option from time to time.

But the main purpose is to try out Berlin’s wine bars and visit wine festivals in order to enjoy a glass or two of good wine, probably on a monthly basis.

If you are interested in being added to the whatsapp group, please e-mail me with your phone number here.

IN PROGRESS (need to de-americanise it ….. for example – I THINK 18 ounces mushroom must be about 500 grams. I think. And how many grams of dried kidney beans end up as the equivalent of 15 oz can of same? This obsession with canned food …..YUCK!)

EDIT: Just found this website!! A lifesaver!! https://earthtoveg.com/calc/beans/

• 18 ounces portobello or button mushrooms
• ▢3 tablespoon olive oil or vegetable broth
• ▢½ large onion finely minced
• ▢½ green bell pepper finely chopped
• ▢½ red bell pepper finely chopped
• ▢4 cloves garlic finely minced
• ▢1 (14-oz) can diced tomatoes
• ▢1 (15-oz) can kidney beans rinsed and drained
• ▢½ (3-oz) can tomato paste
• ▢3 ½ cups vegetable broth
• ▢1 tablespoon chili powder
• ▢¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or more to taste
• ▢1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• ▢1 teaspoon oregano
• ▢½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢1 teaspoon maple syrup
• ▢½ teaspoon salt

For serving

• ▢avocado
• ▢vegan sour cream
• ▢vegan mozzarella

Get Ingredients

Powered by

Instructions

Prepare the mushrooms.

• Using a damp paper towel, wipe the caps of mushrooms. Cut a thin slice off the bottom of each stem. Slice mushrooms in half and add them to a food processor. Working in batches, pulse mushrooms 7-10 times until they resemble ground “meat”.
• In a large dutch oven or pot, heat 2 tablespoon of olive oil. Add ground mushrooms and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally until all liquid evaporates. Transfer sautéed mushrooms to a bowl.

Cook the veggies.

• To the same pot, add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil, onion, garlic and both peppers. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Pour in diced tomatoes and beans into the pot with an onion and pepper mixture.

Simmer & serve.

• Dilute tomato paste with 1 cup of vegetable broth and add to pot.
• Add chili powder, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, oregano, cumin, maple syrup, the remaining 2 ½ c of broth and ½ teaspoon of salt to pot. Return cooked mushrooms to pot.
• Give everything a good stir, cover with a lid and reduce the heat to low. If the soup becomes too thick, add ½ cup of broth. Simmer for 20 minutes.
• Serve the ultimate mushroom chili with sliced avocado, vegan sour cream and/or vegan mozzarella. 

Video

IN PROGRESS – more recipes here: https://www.indianveggiedelight.com/indian-salad-recipes

Kala Chana Chaat (Black Chickpeas Salad)

Hesarubele Carrot Kosambari Recipe

Beetroot Chickpea Salad

On public demand – despite the many recipes on-line – here is a description of exactly what I do:

One bag of Rewe’s bio cashew nuts soaks in distilled water for a whole day or a whole night (min eight hours).

Tap water cannot be used. The first couple of times I tried, I thought it was nonsense when I read that it has to be “filtered” water, which I take to mean anything other than tap water. So I used tap water, and then I could not understand why the substance did not ferment.

That changed when I started using distilled water.

After soaking and draining, I blend the cashew nuts with enough water, and long enough, to result in a thick-ish, creamy mass which I then transfer to a pot together with a little bit of extra distilled water whizzed around the blender in order not to waste anything.

I heat the cashew nut milk slowly till it comes to a slow boil, stirring constantly since it burns on the bottom very easily. Once it has bubbled up, I transfer it, still stirring, to a porcelain bowl, and keep stirring occasionally to avoid it drawing skin.

Once it has come to room temperature, I add a little bit of yoghurt from the previous batch. (The first time I made it, I used a starter powder which can be found in ecological supermarkets). Stir well. Cover with cling film, and leave at room temperature for 12-24 hours.

The yoghurt is ready when the surface starts to crack and it seems to be alive when you start stirring it. Stir and transfer to the lidded container or containers in which you want to keep the yoghurt refridgerated. Remember to set aside a little bit as a starter for the next batch.

IN PROGRESS

More information here.