Rumtopf

So I've been promising myself for many years I'd do a Rumtopf. This year, I've finally got my finger out and started one.

What is a Rumtopf though? Well, I believe it's an old method of preserving fruit, but I always knew it as a time consuming way of making a very alcoholic ingredient for Christmas trifle. Time consuming but very worth it.

To begin with, you need a large, airtight jar. Like this:





You will also need some Rum. I've no idea if quality is a factor. Perhaps someone needs to experiment.
A few years ago, I did some work in Turks & Caicos. This is the local brew that caused a few gaps in my memory.





The only thing now you need is fruit & sugar.

The basic rule is; once a month or so mix about 1lb of chopped fruit with half it's weight in sugar.
Add to jar, then top up with Rum until the fruit is just covered.
Seal & store in a safe place until adding more fruit.

One of my inspirations to start came from my lovely wife, who returned from shopping with a pile of reduced fruit. Mostly grapes & some Kiwi Berries.

Here I've sliced about half a pound of each.



This was mixed with half a pound of brown sugar before being covered in Rum.

For the next fruits I'll try to go seasonal.

Can't wait until Christmas :-)

I Heart Curry

This is a nice recipe based on a beef curry from my Madur Jafrey book. It's unusual in that the recipe is a beef curry, which I don't see too often, & that it actually turns out more like a casserole or stew (or scouse 😉) with just a slight 'curry' aroma/taste, rather than the thick saucy curry a lot of people expect. I can imagine this would be nice with some crusty bread, a bit of mash & some green beans on the side.
Given that it is already a bit unusual, I'm taking this one step further; I got 3 lambs hearts in & immediately thought of this recipe. So here goes, Heart Curry...


Ingredients


3 Lambs Hearts




I've only ever cooked heart whole in the oven or slow cooker so was a little unsure about chopping them. I sliced them across into centimetre slices, then removed some of the fat & as much of the valve as I could before chopping into cubes





2 tsp Cumin seeds
4 tsp Coriander seeds
2 tsp Fenugreek seeds
2 tsp Fennel seeds
1 tsp black pepper seeds
2 dried Chillies

Dry fry these spices in a hot pan until they darken slightly & start to smell nice.




Grind them up with a pestle & mortar or coffee grinder then mix with the following:

1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp salt

Chop up:
5-6 cloves Garlic
3-4 Onions
Some veg

When I say 'some veg', I usually make a curry to use up last of my veg before a shop. I normally have carrots in for the rabbits, and for this I also used 2 sticks of celery & a green pepper




You will also need:
A few large tomatoes, chopped (or a tin of chopped toms works just as well)
A small bunch of Basil.
A glass of red wine
A small cup of lentils

The original recipe uses curry leaves but if like me, you don't have any in, Basil is a good substitute


Method


Fry off the onion & garlic in some oil until clear, then add the tomato & basil. When the sauce is thick, add the spice mix.




Stir for another minute, adding a touch of water if it looks dry, before adding the meat.
Mix well for about 3-4 mins, before adding the veg. Cook for another 3-4 mins before adding the wine & 2 (ish) cups of water. It should be quite liquidy.




Bring to the boil then put the lid on the pan and simmer for about half an hour.
Add the washed lentils and simmer for another half hour, as with most of my recipes, the longer the better.
Garnish with a squeeze of lemon juice & some fresh coriander.




Enjoy!
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Curry Roast Lamb

I love a good curry me. I also love a nice roast dinner. So how about combining the two?

This recipe is perfect for a nice bit of lamb shoulder with a big bone in it, the meat simply falls off and the meat is nice and soft for children.

The amounts here are for a small piece of shoulder. Just about fed two adults and two toddlers with a tiny meal for lunch with the leftovers. Adjust slightly for a larger joint remembering it is not an exact science.

Start by turning the oven on to about 220 degrees (maximum in old money)

Crush about 6 cloves garlic. I like garlic so I would use a lot but reduce the amount if you prefer less of a garlicky mouth the next day.

Using a pestle & mortar or equivalent, roughly grind 1tbsp coriander seeds, 2-3 tsp cumin seeds & 3 cloves allspice.

Mix seeds in a roasting tin with garlic and add 2 tsp paprika, 1 tsp fenugreek & however much chilli floats your boat. I like it hot but my children don't. 1 tsp mild chilli powder is all I'm allowed 😒. Pour in a couple tablespoons of olive oil; just enough to make a nice thick paste.

Stab the lamb before you smear the paste over it, working the mix into all cracks in the joint. If you can, leave to marinade as long as possible.

In the meantime, slice an onion, a couple of sticks celery, a large carrot, a bell pepper & maybe a fennel if your tin is large enough. Layer on the bottom of the tin giving a little mix to infuse the paste. Put the joint on top of the veg. Pour in a glass of red wine. (TIP: Put the last of your red wine from each bottle in a container & freeze. You can then just put a frozen block of wine in when you need it)

Now take some foil, cover & seal the joint in the tin. Put in the (now very hot) oven and turn the heat down to about 160 degrees. Leave to cook for hours. My little joint took about 2 hours.

When cooked, put the meat aside to cool. You should be able to just pick the bone out. When cooled it is nice to flake into bite size chunks.

Drain the juice from the veg & mix with about 2 tsp flour to thicken. This is a lovely gravy

Mix some fresh coriander leaves & a squeeze of lemon juice into the veg.

Serve with a nice sweet potato mash or roasties (cover roasties with a touch of the paste before roasting) or some of your favourite naans/chapati.

Enjoy 😉


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