Tastey Boy samples the prawn cocktail at tea.

High tea at the Grosvenor House hotel where we're staying.

In Dubai

Hubby and I are spending 2 nights in Dubai on our way back from Calcutta.

We landed in the middle of a sand storm which made the descent scary but the sight of the sand line moving across the desert was like a movie!

The drive from the airport was via immaculate causeways flanked by incredible architecture straight out of the Jetsons. We're decompressing for a few hours and then headed to the top of the world's tallest building-- the Burj Khalifa.

Stay tuned for Fat Sister and Tastey Boy's Arabian adventures....

Ah, glorious weather!

For all my New York peeps, here's the 5-day forecast:

 (in Fahrenheit)

 

(in Celsius)

When the mercury dips to a low of 13ºF in New York on Friday, I'll happily be nestled in sunny Cal where it's projected to be a balmy 75ºF!!

Aromatic Yogurt-Brined Lamb Chops

I’ve been on a brining kick since Thanksgiving when I let my turkey sit for 3 days in a fragrant buttermilk-spice brine before roasting. Since then I’ve used the same technique three more times, changing the brine ingredients to suit the meat in question. For lamb chops, I substituted the buttermilk with yogurt thinned-down with water, and the resulting dish was so irresistibly tender, that hubby and I had to forego the cutlery and dive-in to the lamb chops with our hands.

Ingredients

For the Brine: 
1 small Onion (roughly chopped)
6 cloves Garlic (smashed)
1 tbsp whole Coriander
1 tbsp whole Fennel seeds
1 tbsp whole White Pepper
3 tbsp Salt
5 cups Water
1 cup plain Yogurt
Juice of 1 Lemon (reserve the leftover lemon—rind, pith, and pulp—cut into quarters, for use later in the recipe)

1½ lbs [750 gms] Lamb rib chops (about 16 chops) 
1 tsp freshly ground Black Pepper
1½ tsp fresh Rosemary (finely chopped)

1. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan. Remove saucepan from heat and add all the brine ingredients except the yogurt, lemon juice and quartered lemon. Let steep for 20-25 mins until completely cool. 
2. In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt and remaining 1 cup of water. Pour brine mixture into yogurt, add lemon juice and stir to combine. 
3. Wash and dry lamb chops. Place lamb in a large, food-safe zip-lock plastic bag and pour yogurt brine mixture into bag. Add the quartered lemon pieces, seal bag and let meat marinate in the fridge for 6 hours (or up to 1 day).
4. Remove lamb from fridge and bring down to room temperature. Discard brine and carefully remove any whole spices that may be lodged in the folds of the meat or in between the bones. Pat-dry any excess brine on the lamb with paper towels and sprinkle with black pepper and rosemary. 
5. Place lamb onto a large roasting pan with the fat side up and cook in a 425ºF (220ºC) pre-heated oven for 15 mins. Then lower temperature to 375ºF (190ºC) and cook for 20 mins, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat reads 140ºF (60ºC), i.e.—medium-rare. 
6. Remove lamb from pan and rest on a cutting board, covered in foil, for 15-20 mins. Cut lamb in between each rib bone and serve immediately.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Rosemary and Pine nuts

Here is another quick roasted side dish recipe that is the same simple technique as my roasted brussels sprouts, eggplant and root vegetables. Like all those recipes, this is very easy to tweak and update with different aromatics—I came up with the garlic and rosemary combination at the spur-of-the-moment for Christmas dinner last week and refined it further tonight by adding the musky crunch of toasted pine nuts.

Ingredients 

¼ cup Pine nuts
3 lbs [1½ kg] Sweet Potatoes (peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes)
4 cloves Garlic (finely minced)
Sea Salt (to taste)
1 tsp freshly ground Black Pepper
1½ tbsp fresh Rosemary (finely chopped)
4 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1. In a large skillet or frying pan, toast pine nuts over medium heat until lightly golden. Remove to a bowl and set aside.
2. Pre-heat oven to 450º F (230ºC).
3. Put sweet potatoes on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle with garlic, sea salt, black pepper and rosemary, drizzle with olive oil, and using your hands, toss well to mix.
4. Roast in the oven for 30 mins, then stir the sweet potatoes with a large spoon to ensure that they caramelise evenly. Continue roasting for another 15 mins.
5. Remove sweet potatoes from oven, add pine nuts and toss gently. Sserve immediately.

Spiced Popcorn with Blackened Chillis and Clarified Butter

If you’re planning to stay-in on new year’s eve and watch the crystal ball drop in Times Square parked in front of your TV, then this is the best munchy snack to have on hand. No matter how much of this spiced popcorn I make, there is never enough—I challenge you to try and resist it.

Ingredients 

3 tbsp Vegetable Oil
24 Dry Red Chillis
6 tbsp Clarified Butter (Ghee)
2 tbsp ground Coriander
2 tsp ground Cumin
2 tsp freshly ground Black Pepper
2 cups Popcorn Kernels
Salt (to taste)

1. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large skillet or frying pan over high heat. When the oil is smoking, add chillis and sauté briskly for 2 mins until they are blackened. Remove chillis from pan on to a plate. When the chillis are cool to the touch, crush them with your hands and set aside.
2. Melt the clarified butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add coriander, cumin and black pepper, stir well and turn off heat.
3. Heat remaining oil in a large, deep pot over high heat. Add kernels and toss in oil. Put the lid on the pot and let the kernels pop. Keep the lid on until the popping sound stops, about 5-6 mins. Remove the pot from the heat, sprinkle with salt, put the lid back on and shake well. Pour popcorn into a large serving bowl, sprinkle with crushed chillis and drizzle with clarified butter and spice mixture. Toss well with a large spoon and serve immediately.