Pineapple Turkey Green Curry with a Hint of Mint

Dispirited is certainly the word to describe how I feel at this time of year when it comes to turkey leftover recipes. Seeing the monotonous ideas of ‘turkey coronation’ and ‘turkey burgers’ dominate the food sections of our newspapers, it gave me inspiration to invent something new - something for those of us who are tired of seeing the same recipes repeated every year. It was coincidental to notice a pineapple sitting on my mother’s windowsill when January is in fact their time of glory. So I thought why not dulcify a curry with some fragrant colourful tangy pineapple? To add to this, I’ll throw in a little mint to give it a refreshing cool aftertaste. Basically, if you yearn for something more on the exotic side than just dull turkey sandwiches, then this is sure to revitalize your inert taste buds.

Serves 4

2 tbsp vegetable oil

½ tsp. mustard seeds

6 green cardamom pods, slightly crushed

½ tsp. cinnamon

1 onion finely chopped

½ lime zest

Thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled and quartered

3 tbsp. basil

3 tbsp. coriander

2 large garlic cloves, peeled

400ml coconut milk

4 green chillies, finely sliced

Salt

100ml water

10 curry leaves

1 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. garam masala

500g cooked turkey, cut into medium chunks

4-5 handfuls pineapple, cut into chunks

1 handful mint leaves

1. Heat the oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds, cardamom pods, and cinnamon and fry for 20 seconds. Add half of the chopped onion and fry for 4-5 minutes until soft.

2. For the time being, place the rest of the onion, the ginger, garlic, lime zest, basil, coriander and 100ml of the coconut milk into a food processor and blend until smooth.

3. Add this paste to the pan along with ¾ of the green chillies and season with salt. Cook over a low heat for 8-10 minutes, giving it the occasional stir.

4. Add the remaining coconut milk, the curry leaves, black pepper, garam masala, turkey and pineapple and leave to cook for 3-5 minutes until the turkey and pineapple are warmed up.

5. Serve with rice. Sprinkle over the remaining chilli and mint leaves.

Orange, Carrot and Thyme Soup

Why make this soup in January? It will help you fight against the frosty cold temperatures. It costs very little, which is surely ideal when we’re all rather broke from Christmas and New Year partying! But also, it’s the time of year when oranges and carrots are in season. Forget your standard carrot and coriander soup by engrossing yourself in this cauldron of sweet carrot, zesty orange and warming bold thyme flavours.

Serves 4:

Knob of butter

1 onion, sliced

1 garlic clove, crushed

700g carrots, thinly sliced

1 litre vegetable stock

A large pinch of cumin

150ml orange juice

2 tsp. dried thyme

Salt

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Then add the carrots, onions and garlic. Cover with a lid on a low heat, until the vegetable have softened but not coloured (about 12 minutes).

2. Add in the stock and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil and simmer. Cover for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are soft. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.

3. Pour into a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour back into the saucepan. Add the orange juice, thyme and cumin. Gently reheat. Season to your likening and serve!