Pumpkin Butter

I just tried something new today using pumpkin puree. I wish I could say that it was my idea but, no, I got it from www.weelicious.com. I did however change it a little bit. Anyway, I usually buy a whole pumpkin and just steam and puree and freeze it in either ice cube trays or measure it out into 1 cup amounts and freeze individually in plastic bags. The ones I freeze in ice cube trays are easy to add to Aidan's soups, one pot rice dishes, pasta sauces and such (you get the general idea)... a quick and easy way to sneak in a bit of vegetable goodness and fiber into my toddler who refuses to eat anything green or clasified as a vegetable. Whereas the ones frozen in cup measurements, I save that for making treats like pumpkin cake, pumpkin bread & butter pudding (lovely orange when it's done) and vanilla pumpkin custard. I do the same with other vegetables like cauliflower, sweet potato and beetroot, just to name a few.

Now, on to the recipe for pumpkin butter. You'll need;

1 cup pumpkin puree
1/8 cup dark brown sugar
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp cinnamon pdr.
pinch grated nutmeg
1/2 tbsp lemon juice

Combine everything in a saucepan and simmer on low heat for about 5 mins, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture looks glossy and slightly thickened. Cool and serve on toast or crackers.

**Extras can be refigerated for up to a couple of weeks according to the website I got it from but, I don't think it will last that long. My mom thinks it's really good, she's been sneaking a couple of spoons every chance she gets... says it reminds her of 'payasam', an indian sweet dish. I think it reminds me of pumpkin pie minus the calories from the crust, butter, eggs and sugar. And, it looks like a very popular Malaysian spread called 'Kaya' which is made of sugar, eggs and coconut milk. Best bit, I made cheese toast with bread thinly spread with pumpkin butter and a slice of cheese this morning and my son loved it. This looks like it's going to be a new favourite in my family.

What to do with leftover Chapatis???

I find it easier to make a whole batch of chapatis and freeze any leftover flatbreads in a resealable plastic bag. Then whenever we need a chapati or 2, I either take them out ahead of time, let it thaw then heat it on the griddle with a little butter or just take the required no. out of the freezer and pop it into my steamer.

So, what to do with leftover chapatis other than the most common way of soaking up sambar, curries and chutneys? Well, read on to find out.



Cheesy Chicken Quesedillas with Chapati Bread

chapatis
Shredded cooked chicken meat (perhaps from last night's roast chicken or curried chicken)
few slices cheddar cheese (est. 1 slice per chapati)
mayonaise or plain yogurt
veg. like bell peppers, tomatoes, onions (thinly sliced)

1. First, take one chapati and spread a little yogurt or mayonaise on it.
2. Then, tear up one slice of cheese and spread it as evenly as possible on one half of the chapati. You may also use shredded cheese instead of slices.
3. Layer the chicken on top of the cheese(instead of chicken you can use beef or tuna). And, finally place a layer of your choice of veg i.e. thinly sliced bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, etc...
4. If you're using shredded cheese, entirely optional, you can sprinkle just a little bit more on the final veg layer before you fold the chapati over on itself.
5. Finally, use a bit of butter or oil on a griddle or flat based pan and warm your quesedilla through flipping it over once to warm both sides. Once the cheese has melted, you can remove the quesedilla from the pan and cut into wedges and serve with guacamole or salsa. Yummy!




Chapati Wraps

Chapati wraps are my favourite and probably the easiest to make.

Leftover chapatis
asst. salad (no dressing)
protein of choice (i use anything from chicken to fish or tofu/beans or beef. whatever's available)
yogurt/mayonaise/salad dressing of choice

1. Take one chapati, place your salad in a row right in the center. How much salad you use depends on the size of your chapati.
2. Then, place a row of your protein choice on top of the row of salad.
3. Drizzle about 1/2 to 1 tbsp of yogurt or other dressing of your choice on top of your ingredients. BBQ sauce is great too. If ur using yogurt, I like doing this, you can try sprinkling a little cumin for added flavor.
4. Carefully roll your chapati with all the ingredients in it.
5. Lastly, I never have the patience for this step... in fact you can skip it altogether, warm your wrap on a pan for about 30seconds per side pressing it down with a spatulla. This is so your wrap is more likely to hold it's shape. This step makes sense if you're intending to pack it for a take away lunch but, if you're consuming it straight away, it really doesn't matter.


Those are just 2 delicious ways of how I use my leftover chapatis.