Plenty Epicurean Pantry

Fathers Day is coming up and Plenty is stocked with many things a Dad might like: mortar & pestles, salt & pepper grinders, a rocket ship pepper mill, cardboard moose heads, spices, hot sauces, hamburger and hot dog spreads, origami mechanical robots, jars of Italian tomatoes and fantastic pastas, cookbooks, locally made Venturi-Schulze balsamic vinegar, chocolate frogs, chocolate turtles, and chocolate snails, fantastic coffee beans, exotic teas, masa harina flour & corn husks for tamales … A note to Anton (although not old enough to read this yet), for Fathers Day I’ll always be thrilled to receive a hug and perhaps a jar of Old Fashioned Pickles from Mountain Ash Farm.

I also like to receive books that combine great recipes with insight into people’s experience with food. One of my favourite books at Plenty is Apples Under the Bed: Recollections and Recipes from B.C. Writers and Artists. It’s edited and published locally by Joan Coldwell who has Hedgerow Press in Sidney.

Dads will find many recipes of interest in this collection including Phyllis Serota’s Pepper Steak, Shirley Madill’s Cabbage Rolls, Richard Hunter’s To-the-Moon Flan, Christine Smart’s Honey Garlic Shrimp, M.A.C. Farrant’s Baked Salmon, Linda Rogers’ Mud Pies / Bread, Mike Matthews’ Steak and Kidney Pudding, and Bill Gaston’s Hippie Popcorn.

My favourite recipe from the book, so far, is Manish Om Prakash’s Shahi Paneer, which he has generously let me post for you to enjoy too. I’ll start though with an evocative quote that describes the kitchen of his youth:

The kitchen occupied one whole side of the courtyard. There was a long steel counter with the stove. The shelves on the adjacent walls were lined with neat rows of gleaming steel and brass pots of various sizes and shapes. With windows overlooking the courtyard, there was almost always a draught of cool air. And then there was my favourite portion of the ceiling where lentils shot out from the top of the pressure cooker had left a dotted multicoloured patch.

Shahi Paneer: An easy Punjabi cottage cheese vegetarian recipe.
Mushrooms and peas can be substituted.

• 7 ounces paneer* (home made or store bought) or 1/2 cup frozen green peas and 1 cup halved white mushrooms
• 1/2 large red onion, finely chopped or grated
• 1 1/2 inch fresh ginger grated
• 3-4 cloves garlic grated
• 1 jalapeno-seeded and chopped
• 1/2 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
• 1/4 cup mixed cashews and raisins
• 1/2 cup milk, whole, low fat or skim
• a little light cream
• vegetable oil - 5-10 tablespoons
• salt, ground pepper and cayenne pepper to taste
• cilantro leaves for garnish

*paneer is a fresh, acid-set, home-made cheese that is pressed into a block. It does not melt while cooking.

If using paneer

Cut paneer into small 1-inch cubes.  Heat oil in a pan (medium heat) and quickly fry paneer until light brown, stirring carefully.  Remove and set the fried paneer aside.  Use the same pan for the following steps.

Cooking

Quickly saute the nuts and raisins in 1 tablespoon of oil till cashews are lightly coloured (about 2 minutes).  Remove and set aside.

Fry the onions, ginger and garlic in the same pan until golden brown and oil starts separating.

Add salt, pepper, turmeric powder, garam masala and tomato paste.

Sauté, stirring constantly for 2-3 minutes.

Add 1/2 the milk, mix well, bring to a boil and cook for a minute; add the remainder of the milk and bring to a boil.

Add 1/2 the dried fruits to the gravy.

Reduce heat and cook till the gravy is slightly thickened (5 minutes).

Finally add the paneer pieces and lightly stir in 1-3 tablespoons cream.

Cook gently for 2-4 minutes on medium heat.

If using mushrooms and peas, add the peas once the sauce is ready; cook for  a few minutes and then add the mushrooms and a pinch of sugar.

Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with the remaining nuts and raisins and chopped cilantro.

The recipe is followed by recipes for Cucumber & Mint Raita and a recipe for Kheer (North Indian rice pudding)

I served the Shahi Paneer with rice and a bowl of Karrakadis (pictured in the grey bowl above, made with chickpea flour) from The Great Escape Modern Indian Food in Cumberland (and available at Plenty thanks to the requests of a very wonderful and wise customer).