Green Banana Curry

Yes, really!  It's delicious.  I first came across this recipe for Green Banana Curry (from the Fair Trade Organisation) by chance about three and a half years ago.  I was on the tube in the late morning when stumbled across that day's copy of The Metro (which is quite rare for me).  I was flipping through it when I saw there were a couple of recipes promoting Fair Trade Fortnight, one of which was this one.  At first it flummoxed me, 'Green bananas' I thought to myself 'what are those when they are at home then?'  Did they really mean plantains? Where would I get them?  Would I have to go to Notting Hill or Brixton or some other Caribbean area of London.  Why had I never heard of them before.  Then, of course, it hit me...they were just not-yet-ripe bananas (you know, ones that were still green).  I still maintain that it would have been simpler to call it a banana curry, and then state in the ingredients list that you should buy ones which are not yet ripe (in the same way that Banana bread recipes often call for over-ripe bananas to be used).

It took me a while to cook the recipe (which I first did in January 2009).  It was a Sunday, after the shops were shut, and I wanted something quick that I could make before the fantastic  'The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency' television show came on.  When I told Alex what was for dinner that night, he sounded a little wary—and he definitely sounded wary as he told his family over the phone what was for dinner.  But we loved it!  Now it's one of Alex's favourite recipes (and mine too).  So get over any reticence you might have about it (or about using bananas for a savoury dish) and give it a go!  We serve it with rice or coconut rice (rice cooked in coconut milk), but you could also serve it with flat-bread.

Quick Cheats (and my variations)
Looking over the recipe now for this posting, I realised that (like most of my favourite recipes) the recipe itself is only a guide to remind me what I actually do.  So here is what I actually do.

Before I start I put on the rice (I was going to make coconut rice tonight, but it turns out that I only had one can of coconut milk, and I needed that for the curry.  Ordinarily I would just pop out to the corner store—or send Alex to the store—but because of the riots, the shops are shut, so plain rice it will be!)

First, I put some oil (veg, coconut—tonight its olive, because that's all I've got in the house) in a wok and heat it.

Next, I dice/slice the onion and put it to cook in the wok quickly.

Then, whilst it cooks, I peel and slice the bananas ( I usually have more than five—greedy me!).

Then I add some curry powders, and other spices (whatever I am in the mood for, cinnamon, nutmeg, turmeric, ginger, allspice etc.)

Then, I put it a couple (or four) of TBL of Korma curry paste (I use Patek's).

Then I open the coconut milk and add it to the wok, and bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

I find this simmering time is useful for doing things like, washing up, putting dishes away, getting into my pyjamas or (of course) straightening my hair!

And yes, I usually forget (read: can't be bothered) to buy coriander (aka cilantro to you Americans), and I have never served it with lime wedges.  Who knows, it might be good with lime wedges, but I really can't comment.

As I cook it, it serves four (or two really hungry for dinner and maybe wanting seconds, with enough left over for a light lunch).  It also seems to freeze well.

Here's a picture of how it looks whilst its keeping warm.

So go on, give it a try tonight!

Zucchini (Courgette) Cake

So, I knew about all the recipes that I could find from the USA on Food Network and from the UK on BBC Food and BBC Good Food, but I got to thinking one day last week—as I reminisced about the trip my fiancé and I took to New Zealand and Australia last September—that there must be an Australian equivalent.  And there is.  I've found it, it's called Taste and it's wonderful!

One of the things I love about the Antipodes is how, as well as having a lot which is all their own (be it Australia or New Zealand or the Pacific Island nations), is what a wonderful mix it is of British and North American.  You can find Band Aid and Elastoplast brand bandages, they sell Cadbury (and a wonderful assortment of it as well) and Willy Wonka.  And this applies to their cooking as well.  So Zucchinis are Zucchinis and not Courgettes, but pie is most likely to refer to a savoury meat pie (and all squash is generically referred to as pumpkin, that's all their own).  Likewise, Taste gives all measurements in both cups and grams.  So on the days I feel like it is easier to measure out a cup of flour, I can go ahead and do that, but on the days I feel like weighing out my ingredients I know its 150g.  Which makes me very happy indeed!

I also rather like that Seasonal Recipes are, of course, reversed.  So when I just can't face looking at another summer berry trifle recipe, I can drool and dream over comforting soups, stews and pies.  And frankly, with this summer being the way it has been, good hearty, warming food is often just what we want in the UK!

Anyway, so for this week's breakfast for me and my fiancé to have, I decided to go with a recipe from their Banana Bread and Sweet Loaves Recipe Collection and try out the Zucchini (Courgette) Cake with Lemon Frosting recipe.  It took about 20 mins to make and another 75 mins to cook.  Remember though that you have to REALLY let the cake cool down before frosting it, otherwise the frosting will just melt. Although, if you ARE in a rush, and must frost the cake while it is still warm, it will still taste lovely.  It's just that instead of frosting you will have more of a glaze.

Here's a couple of pictures of how mine came out (a bit bulgy in the middle as I use a silicone—in red!–loaf tin, it isn't as stable, but it is just so much fun and makes it easy to get loaves out)!

The above picture is with a glaze (I waited a couple of hours till the cake was no longer hot, but just a bit warm...I also went a little mad in the amount of lemon juice I added to the icing sugar and lemon zest!)

This is how it looked when I re-frosted it this morning (with just a little less lemon juice)!