Loving by Henry Green

Read this for the great dialogue - as recommended by 'Reading Like a Writer' - and was not disappointed. Lovely storytelling, unconventional ending and nice to read something older and so not so cinematic in its scope.

Root veg soup

In the quest to consume root veg, I tried this soup recipe and was pleased by the results.

I added more ginger and garlic than it called for, and it could have had even more. But it was nice, especially with a dollop of Greek yogurt.

1 tablespoon oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 lbs root veg, chopped (I used 1 lb beets, 1/2 lb carrots, 1/2 lb swede)
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
2 large garlic cloves, minced
6 cups stock (I used chicken)
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
About 1 teaspoon salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
Sour cream or yogurt

In large soup pot, heat the oil. Saute the onion until it is translucent. Add the carrots, ginger, and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add beets and other root veg and water or stock. Simmer the soup, covered, for 50 minutes. Add orange rind, and stir well.

Puree the soup in batches (I used blender). Then season with salt and pepper. Garnish with dollop of sour cream or yogurt.

Korma curry recipes

Wild Boar Korma Curry

Notes: This was good but next time, more fresh garlic and ginger. The paste isn't that zesty. And add chilis or chili sauce at the table (didn't add chilis because sharing with toddler).

2 Tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
6 mushrooms, sliced
3 Tbsp korma paste
1/2 c yogurt
1/2 c milk
1/4 c water
400 g wild boar
4 dried apricots, chopped
1 cup peas
About half a ripe mango, chopped.

Saute onion and mushroom in oil until soft. Add korma paste and cook for 1 minute. Add milk, yogurt and water. Add boar and apricots. Bring to simmer, cover and cook about 1 to 1.5 hours, until boar is soft. Mix in peas and mango. Cook about 5 minutes until peas are done. Serve with rice or noodles.


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15/2/10: Finally got this right! Yummy Fish Korma Curry.

1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 inch fresh ginger, minced
3 Tbsp korma paste
3 mushroom, sliced
1 tin coconut milk
1/4 c plain yogurt
One large fillet pollock, cut into large chunks (10-12 ounces)
1/2 cup fresh mango, diced
1 cup frozen peas

Heat the oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion for a few minutes, until soft. Add garlic, ginger and mushrooms, and cook for a minute or two. Add the curry paste and cook 1 minute, then stir in the coconut milk and yogurt. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer. Add the fish and mango. Return to simmer, cover and cook for about 5 minutes, until fish is nearly done. Add frozen peas. Cook 5 minutes until peas and fish are cooked. Serve with steamed rice and hot mango pickle.

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Did this with lamb too and it was good...

1 onion, chopped
2Tbsp oil
3Tbsp korma paste
400 ml coconut milk
4 dried apricots, chopped
600g lamb, chopped
1 cup frozen peas


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This is based on a kids' food recipe from Annabel Karmel - but while the baby didn't go for it, the adults did. And it was super easy. So I got thinking about how to make it more adult-friendly.

Next time: Add ginger and garlic after sauteing onion. Use more korma paste and fewer apricots. Perhaps add a fresh chili.

This is what I made which was tasty but a little sweet and bland:

2 Tbsp oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
3 Tbsp korma paste
800ml/28 oz coconut milk (2 tins)
200g dried apricots, cut into strips
4 boneless skinless chicken things, cut into cubes
1 cup frozen green peas

Heat the oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion for a few minutes, until soft. Add the curry paste and cook 1 minute, then stir in the coconut milk and apricots. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, until the apricots start to soften. Add the chicken, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the frozen peas. Cook another 10 minutes or so until the chicken and apricots are both tender and the peas are cooked. Add a tablespoon of water if the sauce becomes too thick. Serve with steamed rice.

Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Only cracked the cover on this one because the book club is reading it (despite my protests). Just managed to get through the intro without exploding with hatred at the shallowness. Then tried to push through the first section (so I'd have something to say at the club) but got so bored at her talking about finding an apartment, eating, making cool arty friends, I had to put it down. It makes me angry just writing this blurb, just thinking about the book. Blech.

The Wind-up Bird Chronicles by Haruki Murakami

Finally finished this a couple weeks ago. Got distracted by many things, and then lost the book. It was great. Perfect example of the book that would be hard to 'pitch' or workshop but is oh so worthwhile. Melds the everyday world with an extraordinary one effortlessly - and without unnecessary explanation. You are led and you follow.