You have to forgive me for not being around these past two weeks. I wish I could put the blame on somebody or something else, but alas my trip home from Scotland was unaffected by the volcano and Don flew home the day before me, so I actually made my plane on time. I could blame jet-lag or too much work but the truth is- I blame the weather. It’s been amazing in New York and time that I usually spend hovering by the oven I have instead spent marching around Brooklyn or lounging in the park.
The trouble with holidays is that I either come back incredibly motivated to work or I get so overwhelmed by the pile of emails and paperwork that accumulated whilst I was away that I swear I will never take another week off again. Or I get distracted by the sun…..which isn’t to say that the weather wasn’t nice in Scotland….
Case in point. If it weren’t for all the green and lack of pine trees it could have passed for the Caribbean.
But, I’m back now- whilst the clouds are covering the sun and I’m nursing a sunburn, anyway. And I will be bringing recipes from Scotland to the blog too, I just need to find the kitchen again. And loose my sunglasses. When I do, I will also be making these pizzas again. Making the keema may seem a little daunting- there are a number of spices but it’s worth the effort and if you ever cook Indian food then you will already have the spices. If you don’t cook Indian food, well, then what the heck are you waiting for? Take it from the queen of gastrointestinal drama, Indian food is not all cream, ghee and night runs to the porcelain God.
After the Keema is made you could toss it through rice and call it a biryani or you could put it on a naan, bake it for 10 minutes until the bottom is crisp and top it with some cooling fresh mint yogurt. Just a suggestion.
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Keema naan pizzas
I usually find recipes with this many ingredients off-putting but they are all things that I have in my spice box, so it really wasn’t traumatic at all….and anyway the result is worth all the rummaging.
Serves 4-8
Diet Facts: healthy
For the keema
1 glug of (1-2 Tbsp) vegetable oil
½ tsp cumin seeds
1 x 1/2″ piece of cinnamon stick
4 whole cloves
3 green cardamom pods
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
2 tsp peeled and finely grated ginger
1 green chili, seeded and diced
1/4 tsp turmeric
450g/1lb lean ground beef
1 cup diced tomato
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
8 blanched almonds, finely ground
2 Tbsp water
1 cup yogurt
1 tsp garam masala
1 x 14oz can cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed (or 1 cup peas)
small bunch coriander, chopped
1 lemon
4 x whole wheat naan breads
To serve
Plain Greek yogurt
chopped mint, optional
• Heat your oil in a large straight sided pan on a high heat. Add the cumin seeds, cinnamon stick, cloves and cardamom and stir for around 30 seconds or until you can smell the spices toasting.
• Add the onion, garlic, ginger and turmeric to the pan and stir together over a high heat until the onion is brown- about 10 minutes. You can add a splash of water if it starts to stick
• Add the beef to the pan and brown all over, using a fork to break it up. add the diced tomato, cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper and salt and stir together. Cook over the heat for 2 minutes.
• Add the ground almonds, water and yogurt and the bring up to a gentle simmer. Let simmer for 30 minutes or until thickened. Add the drained and rinsed beans or peas and heat through for a further 2 minutes.
• Heat the oven to 450F/225F/Gas7. Stir through the coriander, season to taste and if it needs it add a squeeze of lemon. Top the naan breads with the beef, leaving an inch border around the edge. Cover with foil and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a further 5-10 minutes, or until the naan bases are crispy. Meanwhile mix some yogurt with chopped fresh mint and when the pizzas are cooked slice up into 4 pieces and serve with the yogurt dolloped on top.
