Say with home made presents this year. Giving what you have made yourself is a really nice way of showing that you care.
Nepalese Vegetable Masala
2 tablespoons cumin seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 tablespoon black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon dried garlic
1 tablespoon dried ginger
5 dried red chilies
1 teaspoon Szechuan pepper
1 tablespoon turmeric
Roast the whole seeds in a dry pan for 1 minute, grind and mix with the other spices
Garam Masala
4 tbsps coriander seeds
2 tbsp cumin seeds
1 tbsp black peppercorns
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cardamom seeds
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 small cinnamon quill
2 bay leaves
Roast the whole seeds in a dry pan for 1 minute, grind and mix with the other spices
Louisiana Hot Sauce
10 fresh red chillies
4 medium cloves garlic, sliced in half and peeled
1 tsp finely chopped fresh basil
1 tsp finely chopped fresh oregano
1/4 tsp ground celery seed
Salt and black pepper
250ml white wine vinegar
Preheat the grill to high
Put the chilies on a tray and under the grill, flipping as needed, until the skins blister and blacken on all sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side
Transfer the chiles to a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let cool for 10 minutes
Stem and peel the chilies
Put the chillies, garlic, basil, oregano, celery seeds, a big pinch of salt, and 1/2 tsp. pepper in a food processor. With the machine running, slowly add the vinegar and process until smooth
You can strain the sauce through a fine sieve and season to taste with more salt
Transfer to bottles and keep in the fridge
Dark Chocolate and hazelnut spread
100g toasted hazelnuts
400g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
100ml vegetable oil
Melt the chocolate in a bowl over barely simmering water
Pop the hazelnuts into a bowl of a blender and blitz until fine
Pour the chocolate in, followed by he oil and vanilla
You can add sifted icing sugar to taste
Beer grainy mustard
100g black mustard seeds
100g yellow mustard seeds
300ml of a good, tasty ale
1 tsp salt
100ml cider vinegar
4 tablespoons of honey
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground nutmeg
Pop the seeds in a bowl with the vinegar and ale and leave in the fridge overnight
Stir in the remaining ingredients
Blend 3/4 of the mixture in a food processor until smooth and combine with the remaining seeds
Rasel Hanout
3 tbsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp coriander seeds
1 teaspoon of green cardamom pods
1 cinnamon quill
2 tablespoons of black peppercorns
1 tsp turmeric
2 tsp ground ginger
pinch of saffron
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/ tsp cayenne papper
Roast the whole seeds in a dry pan for 1 minute, grind and mix with the other spices
Ghee
Melt unsalted butter in a pan until the milk solids (white) and the fat (pure yellow) have separated, bring to boil and cook for 8 minutes. Pour through a sieve lined with muslin into a jar, leave to cool and refrigerate
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