Danger!

This is from the internet but works very well - tweak to your liking

Ingredients

• 1tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 500g minced lamb
• 1tsp cinnamon
• 1tsp mixed spice
• 1tsp ground cumin
• 100ml lamb (or chicken stock)
• handful mixed fruit
• handful olives - pitted
• 75g dried apricots, chopped
• 50g (2oz) pine nuts
• handful parsley, roughly chopped
• 5-6 Jus-Rol Filo pastry sheets
• 50g (2oz) butter, melted

Method

Preheat the oven to gas 5, 190°C, fan 170°C. Heat the oil in a large pan and gently fry the onion until softened. Add the lamb and cook until browned, breaking up any clumps with a wooden spoon. Stir in the spices, then add the stock. Continue cooking over a medium heat for 15 minutes, or until all the liquid has been absorbed. Add the mixed fruit, olives and apricots through the mince and season well. Cook for a couple of minutes then set aside to cool. Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts in a dry pan and leave to cool. Stir the cooled pine nuts through the mince with the parsley. To assemble the pie, put one sheet of filo pastry in a 20cm (8in) ovenproof dish and lightly brush with some of the melted butter. Repeat with two more sheets, layering the dish until the base and sides are completely covered, with the excess pastry hanging over the edge. Spoon the filling into the dish and fold over the excess pastry to cover. Brush with melted butter. Brush another filo sheet with butter and tear it into strips. Drape the strips over the filling, allowing them to fall unevenly in waves. Repeat with the remaining sheet of filo and brush again with melted butter. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until crispy and golden.

Notes

Taste often during cooking! Adjust the spices and fruits to your liking to get a pie that is not too sweet but full of Moroccan flovours.

Ingredients

Olive oil

500g lamb neck or similar, diced

1 onion, roughly chopped

2 carrots, roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed/chopped

400g can of chickpeas (optional)

200g dried apricots

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp dried coriander

1 cinnamon stick

1 tbsp finely chopped fresh root ginger

250g sweet potatoes

1 can chopped tomatoes

200ml chicken stock

Fresh chopped coriander (optional)

Method

In a large pan, heat the oil over a medium heat and brown the lamb on all sides, then transfer onto a plate. Add the onions, ginger and carrots, then fry for a few minutes until the carrots are starting to brown. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Tip the lamb back in, then stir in all the spices and cinnamon stick, and add the chopped tomatoes, apricots and chickpeas (if using). Season well. Bring the pan to the boil whilst stirring, then reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes or so to thicken the sauce. (You don't have to do this bit, but it will be better if you do). Transfer to the slow cooker, and cook for 6-8 hours on medium. Approximately two hours before you want to eat, chuck in the sweet potatoes. If you're like me and leave it on whilst at work you can leave this bit out, or you can cheat by boiling them up in a pan and throwing them in last minute. Don't be tempted to leave them in all day or you'll have orange slodge in place of your potatoes! Scatter with chopped coriander to serve, if you have it.

Prep: 5 min Cook: 20 min Ready in: 30 min

Ingredients

For Tempering

1 tbsp vegetable oil

10 curry leaves, preferably fresh

1 dried red chilli

2 tsp black mustard seeds

For Cooking

600g/1lb 5oz new potatoes, washed 

1 red onion, finely chopped

pinch asafoetida

2 green chillies, cut in half lengthways

2.5cm/1in piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped

1 tsp ground turmeric

1½ tsp salt

2 tbsp finely chopped coriander

1 lemon, juice only

Method

1. To make the aloo podimas, bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Add the potatoes and simmer for 12–15 minutes or until tender. Drain well and set aside. 
2. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel them and set aside. They need to be marble sized so cut them into two if they are very large. 
3. For the tempering, heat the oil in a large, heavy-based frying pan to smoking point and add all the tempering ingredients. When the seeds crackle and the curry leaves crisp up, add the red onion and cook over a medium heat for 3–4 minutes stirring continuously.  Add the asafoetida, green chillies, ginger, turmeric and salt and stir over a high heat for 30 seconds. Add the potatoes and stir to mix the tempering evenly through the potatoes. Cook for another 2–3 minutes, then sprinkle over the coriander and finish with lemon juice.

Prep: 10 min Cook: 20 min Ready in: 30 min

Ingredients

For Fresh Masala

2 tbsp Ginger

2 tbsp Garlic

1 Green Chilli

2 tsp Lemon Juice

½ tsp Turmeric Powder

1 tbsp Oil

For Cooking

½ kg Ladysfinger / Okra – left whole or chopped

3 large Potato – chopped

1 tsp Cumin Powder / Jeera Powder

1 tbsp Coriander Powder

1 tsp Chilli Powder

½ tsp Turmeric Powder

1 tsp Mustard Seeds / Kaduku

1 tsp Fenugreek Seeds / Methi

Salt to taste

1 tbsp Oil

Method

1. Start by making fresh masala.

Grind ginger, garlic, green chilli and turmeric together to a smooth paste.

Transfer to a bowl and add lemon juice and oil.

Mix well.

This is fresh masala.

2. Now make subzi.

Heat oil and add mustard and fenugreek seeds.

Add potato and ladysfinger and mix well.

Add salt and mix well.

Now add in chilli, coriander, turmeric and cumin powder. Toss well.

Add the fresh masala and mix well.

Cover and cook for 10-15 mins.

Now open the lid and cook for 5 more minutes.

Serve hot with rice or roti.

Prep: 10 min Cook: 50 min Ready in: 60 min

Given to me by my best friend Masami - delicious!

Ingredients

Half a packet of a good japanese curry paste

chopped onions

diced beef

diced potatoes

diced carrots

(All fairly big chunks)

Method

High heat, fry beef.

Add carrots, onions.

When onions cooked add boiling water. Leave on high heat and do not close the lid. When you start seeing brown foamy stuff on top, scoop as much as you can out with a ladle (this should make the meat more tender - if you close the lid the brown gunk dissolves into the liquid). Scooping gunk out only takes 3 minutes or so.

Once no more brown gunk floats on top then put the lid on and let it cook for 20 mins or so on low heat.

Add 1/3 of a cup of water (roughly) just to bring the temperature down a bit. Put one block of curry paste (i.e. half of the box) and keep mixing until it's all dissolved (make sure there are no lumps left).

Put the lid on and let it cook for another 20 mins or so on low heat.

Add the potatoes and let it cook on slow heat for 30 mins or so or until the potatoes are done.

Once the curry paste is in make sure you stir once in a while so it doesn't get stuck to the bottom. It can look a bit watery at times, if you put too much water to start with, in that case just leave it cooking for a bit longer so it evaporates (but of course not too long if spuds are already in).

You can vary the cooking times a bit really, they don't matter that much, but aim for a minimum of 45 mins.

Serve with some rice and pickles...Yum!

Prep: 10 min Cook: 10 min Ready in: 20 min

Ingredients (makes 1 pint)

1 pint milk

4 to 5 tablespoons cornflour

1 block cheese of choice, grated

Method

Pour your desired amount of milk (how much cheese sauce you wish to have) into a cup or jug.

Add 4 to 5 tablespoons of cornflour to the milk and mix till dissolved.

Pour your mixture into a pan and set your hob to medium heat. Keep on stirring! (If you stop it'll go lumpy.)

Wait until your mixture has become more difficult to stir and thickened (should be white). Turn down the heat and start to sprinkle in your grated cheese (it will change colour). Wait till all your cheese has melted into the sauce and stop stirring.

Pour onto your choice of food and enjoy!!

Prep: 60 min Cook: 40 min Ready in: 100 min

Ingredients

1 UK sized medium pumpkin

400g can of sweetened condensed milk

2 eggs

1 tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp ground nutmeg

½ tsp salt

500g Jus Rol (or similar) shortcrust pastry block or ready made pie dish crust

To make pumpkin puree

1. Preheat the oven to 165 degress C.
2. Wash and halve the pumpkin and scoop out the seeds and the stringy bits. (I'd keep the seeds to toast and have as a healthy snack).
3. Place the pumpkin halves cut side down in a baking tray and bake for 45-60 mins or until the pumpkin is soft to the touch.
4. Remove from oven, let it cool, then scrape out the pumpkin meat.
5. Puree in a processor or blender.

Pastry base

If you are using a short crust pastry block or have made your own pastry rather than a ready made pie dish crust, you will need to blind bake the pastry. Click here to understand how to blind bake pastry.

Method

1. To make the pie, preheat the oven to 220 degrees C
2. In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin puree and condensed milk. Add the eggs, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. Mix together with a wire whisk until thoroughly blended
3. Pour the mixture into the pie crust and bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 175 degrees C and bake for another 35-40 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean.

Let it cool before slicing the pie and enjoying with some double cream poured on top!