See in the dark... Carrots galore (and the kitchen adventures of Coco the Chor)

Eat your carrots...They'll help you see in the dark

Eat your spinach...You'll grow big and strong, just like Popeye

Eat your crusts...Or your hair won't curl (I always eat my crusts and have a mop to show for it!)

Eat your tomato...Before Coco steals it (A new saying - not one that you might've heard before, coz as I just writing the last line, Coco skidded to a halt under the sofa. This is her sign for "I've got something that wasn't given to me so I'm not sure if I'm meant to have it, so I'll hide just in case..." When I looked from one angle I couldn't see anything. This doesn't mean that she's innocent, it just means I should look from another angle...lo-and-behold, my tomato that was sitting on the side in the kitchen, warming up to room temperature and destined to become the filling in a sandwich along with a cheese slice, now has a whole bunch of doggie teeth marks and is Coco's companion below the sofa.)


Tomatoes, onions and carrots always seem to be present in my kitchen, even when there's little else. So bored of tomatoey-oniony things I thought I'd try out a carroty recipe. This is one adapted from a pumpkin/squash recipe that I found over at Mamta's Kitchen, and it turned out quite tasty.

source

Carroty Bhaji:

1 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon jeera (cumin) seeds
A pinch of Hing (asafoetida) powder
1 teaspoon ginger paste
1 green chilli, deseeded and finely sliced
4-5 carrots (use the yummy red variety if you can get them...regular orangy ones are ok too), peeled and chopped into thin-ish rounds
1/2 teaspoon haldi (turmeric) powder
1/4 teaspoon chilli powder
Salt to taste
A little sugar to taste
1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala
1/2 teaspoon amchoor (dried mango) powder
Coriander leaves, to garnish


1. Heat oil over medium heat and add jeera seeds and hing once hot. Allow to splutter or turn light brown.
2. Add ginger and chilli, fry for a few seconds
3. Add carrots, haldi, chilli powder, salt and sugar. Mix thoroughly and stir fry for a minute or two on high heat.
4. Reduce heat and cook until soft, stirring from time to time. You might need to add a little water to stop the carrots from burning
5. Add garam masala, amchoor powder and coriander leaves. Mix well
6. Eat with roti!

If you can't get amchoor powder, then you can use the juice of 1/2 a lemon instead.

Off to get another tomato out of the fridge... will put this one up high, out of the reach of Coco the Chor (Hindi for 'Tea-Leaf' (Cockney Rhyming slang for 'Thief'))