Food – Page 2 – Leith Open Space

Hot potatoes and cool science in the Scottish Parliament

We promised surprises at our food and science event in the Festival of Politics but we weren’t expecting to be quite so surprised ourselves. Who knew China is the biggest producer of potatoes in the world?

The great potato story: food for thought at the Festival of Politics

Make room in your diary for our Festival of Politics event. History of the Potato on Sunday 16 August is not just a highly topical talk by a cutting-edge scientist, but also a multicultural mash-up of potato dishes from around the world. Come hungry and be prepared for surprises as we conjure up sweet, savoury and spicy foods, all made with potatoes. You’ll have had your chips!

HenPower stirs a melting pot of memories

On a drizzly, grey day in South Queensferry there’s a sudden beam of childhood sunshine in the sheltered housing common room. Over coffee and biscuits we’re flicking through ideas for a new recipe book of old family favourites and it stirs a powerful pot of memories: scrumping for apples in the gardens of big houses, clambering over dykes in search of brambles, fishing for watercress in cold, clear streams, pulling turnips from a farmer’s field on the way home for tea.

Spread Christmas cheer: donate to North East Edinburgh Foodbank

Many families are going hungry this Christmas. Volunteers at our local foodbanks have been busy distributing supplies donated over the holiday.There is still time to offer the gift of food for New Year at South Leith Parish Church Halls in Henderson Street tomorrow (Friday 27th December) between 3 and 5 pm.

Eat your way to a better world

So you don’t need the muscles of an Olympic champion. It turned out to be surprisingly easy to pedal a smoothie on this marvellous reinvented bike that seems to be making a name for itself at foodie festivals around Scotland.

Meena’s menu for an Indian brunch

Meena

A beautiful green spinach cake was a hot (literally) favourite at the World Kitchen brunch. Here Meena Bhana shares her recipe for the spicy savoury cake but first she takes us to the bustling streets of Indian cities with her menu for the World Kitchen brunch.

I put together a menu of Gujerati dishes for the brunch and then I spent hours in the kitchen experimenting. We decided to offer Falooda – a spectacular mix of milk, vermicelli and flavourings topped with ice cream – as a complimentary drink for guests arriving at Out of the Blue. With at least 80 bookings, how much milk would that take?

THE MENU

Chickpea and Potato Chaat – chaat is a dish that takes you right back to the streets of India. Chaat tastes hot, sweet, tangy and crunchy. It contains, potatoes, channa, chaat masala, onions, chillie powder, coriander, puffed rice and tamarind chutney.

Spinach cake is a savoury baked cake to get the taste buds tingling whilst sipping a cup of masala tea. It is made with methi (fenugreek leaves), semolina, maize flour and corn.

Dokhrais a savoury steamed cake that can be eaten at any time of the day. It is made with yoghurt, semolina, green chillies and ginger and is topped with mustard seeds, sesame seeds, curry leaves and coriander. Served with green coconut chutney, dokhra is a perfect accompaniment to a cup of masala tea.

Dokhra topped with seeds and spices

Falooda is a culinary spectacle, a rose infused drink that consists of not only an array of beautiful colours but also numerous flavours and textures owing to the variety of ingredients that go into its making. A gastronomic delight thought to be introduced to the lands of India by the Parsi’s.

(And how much milk? In the end we decided on 10 litres, there was quite a lot left over but Out of the Blue Drill Hall Arts Cafe was able to use it up.)

RECIPE FOR SPINACH CAKE

Note: Methi is another word for fenugreek. You will get it at one of the Asian stores in Leith walk. It has small leaves on a stem but if you are not sure, the store owner will definitely know what it is. It has a slightly bitter taste but works well in this cake.

Liquidise the following ingredients: 2 bunches methi, 1 cup oil, 1 onion, 1 cup milk, 2 tablespoons green chillies finely chopped, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt

Sift together: 1 cup semolina, 1 cup gram flour, 1 cup plain flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder

Small tin of corn

Add liquidised mixture to the above dry ingredients. Add drained corn and mix thoroughly. Pour into greased pan and bake at 180 degrees for 30min.

What to eat? Bea and Parvez help guests make the difficult choice.

Dedicated to Japan

Our World Kitchen brunch was a great success (and more about that later). Food is a fantastic way of bringing people together but food is also an essential part of life. For the Women’s Federation for World Peace their new World Recipe Book is now a way to raise money for Japan.

Your DIY guide to the Burns Super Supper

Hello and welcome to a great new idea. This story – first posted for Burns celebrations in 2010 – takes a new turn for 2011 as Clan Radio joins with Kiltr (social media networking for the Scottish diaspora) to bring you the Burns Super Supper. Click here to enjoy the feast.

Burns supper, Zimbabwe style

The internationalist Robert Burns would love it. His memory is celebrated at the Burns Supper following this year’s annual meeting of the Scotland Zimbabwe Group on Saturday 29th January. Raising money for Zimbabwe charities.

World Cafe serves a healthy mix of food and music

The first World Cafe of the year is at North Edinburgh Art Centre on Friday 28sth January. This time with the added ingredient of jazz and a guest performance by singer Cynthia Gentle. The same night another World Cafe supporter Samba Sene launches his album on the other side of town – but with a bit of planning you could do both.