FLOWER POT KITCHEN: DHAL TARKA WITH TEN MINUTE SPELT FLAT BREADS

26 Feb 2017

DHAL TARKA WITH TEN MINUTE SPELT FLAT BREADS

This is one of my favourite Sunday family Indian cooking comforting food dishes, a protein packed nutrious gorgeous comforting bowl of love, I can eat way to much of this if left alone! This is one of those dishes that is great when just made and just as great cold the next morning straight from the fridge scouped up with flat breads, if I know there is dhal leftover in the fridge when I go to bed I will often find myself at 3 am walking to the fridge for a sneaky few spoon fulls (Sooo good) and then as soon as I wake up it is one of the first things on my mind for breakfast with a poached egg.

Prep time 10 minutes / Cooking time 40 minutes

LEVEL: Super easy

Ingredients

(Serves 4-6)

Tarka Dhal

1 large mug of red lentils soaked

1 tbsp ghee

1 large onion finely chopped

8 cloves garlic finely chopped

1 tsp turmeric

1 tbsp garam masala

4 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

4 tbsp coriander stalks chopped optional

1 tsp sea salt

Ten Minute Flat Breads

500g whole meal spelt flour

50g olive oil

10g sea salt

320g water

Heat the ghee in a sauce pan to a medium heat and gently fry the onion and garlic for around 5 minutes, remove half from the pan and leave to one side for later. Drain the lentils and rinse then add to the softened onions and garlic along with 3 mugs of water and the coriander stalks if using. Bring to a low simmer and pop on a lid and leave to gently cook for around 30 minutes, when the lentils have broken down and are all pulpy cook on until you have the desired thickness you like, I like mine fairly thick where others like their dhal a little looser.

Add the turmeric, garam masala, sea salt and stir in, taste and check for seasoning then top with the reserved pan seared onion and garlic and fresh chopped coriander leaves, that's it your good to go.

Flat Breads

Place all the ingredients in a large bowl or a mixer with a dough hook and mix together until a smooth dough has formed around 3-5 minutes. Divide in to 8-10 balls, roll out each ball to around 6" in diameter. To cook heat a skillet to a medium high heat, place the flat bread on the skillet and cook for around 1 minute on each side, wrap in a tea towel to keep warm while you cook the rest. Serve family style and enjoy.

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LIFE MY PASSION

Welcome to my daily life of cooking, one winters day many years ago my family and I were all inspired by a back to back rainy day of River Cottage this got us to stop talking about and start actually doing, suddenly three weeks later eight vegetable beds were dug, greenhouse erected and our first vegetables were propagating, this was the start to raising and growing our own food, our fabulous son Oscar changed our path in life which lead us to sell our small thriving restaurant of 10 yrs and to start our new life (Terrifying!) a life of the self sufficient in touch with nature and seasons, taking a step back and looking forward to a slower change of pace and making the most of every moment.

My passion for cooking was stronger than ever and having time at home with Oscar I found I had a new direction and I was no longer striving for perfection, I was suddenly very passionate for the enjoyment of the other side of food, something I had not realised, being the Chef/Cook and every other duty of your own small restaurant made me see that I never actually took time to cook what I wanted!

So there I was muddy boots and hands digging deep in more than one sense and I found myself transported back in time to where everyone grew some of their own food, it is a wonderful world with a real sense of achievement and loss, Slugs Snails and Caterpillars! But thats another story! Childhood memories of summers when I lived with my grand parents reminded me of so much that I had learnt about the make do and mend generation that I had forgotten.

Now as a family we love our free wild food days where we gather what nature has provided, have gone from being mini mini garden urban small holders, who did raised pigs at home because we could not wait to find land and supporting ourselves from our garden to now owning a very small farm that allows us to grow more vegetables for the whole of our family and neighbours, raise our own gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs, (Sausages!) and pets! Dorset Down sheep, chickens for eggs and pet goats! Suddenly having large quantities of produce started to wake up the Cook in me!

The Cook was awake that part of me that wants to cook for the masses and I found myself setting up Flowerpot Kitchen, a Farmers Market Stall, I wanted to use our honest raised meats and make old fashioned pork pies, rabbit pies and game pies from the local game keeper along with old fashioned techniques and the best hot water crust pastry. This in turn grew to a small cottage industry from home weekly supplying three farm shops and a deli along with also attending three farmers markets A few years later there came a time when my son Oscar's health changed and it was an easy decision to stop.

I still hold the occasional pop up 40 seater restaurant or gourmet lunch which we do for local charities for the love of sharing food and to remind that Cook in me why I love our go slower self sufficient life!

So here I am sitting amoung the vegetables watching the chickens loving that every season nature teaches me something new and that nature is in charge! She has taught me to just go with it and grow. Give it a try from a tray of salad on your windowsill to a few tomato plants it all counts.