Pre-Thanksgiving musings - a shrimp curry

It is that time of the year when most of us feel reflective, the growing season is winding down, the year is ending the days are getting smaller and yes, it is Thankgiving. Like most people who love to cook, it is my favorite holiday of the year. I also like to reflect more on the things that I can be grateful for. From simple things like the joy I feel in the kitchen to more complicated things. Something that really helps is my children's after-school program that runs holiday coverage. They are right across the road, this helps on a day like today. I was at home but diwas running around trying to get all the shopping done, but did feel a little guilty, so my compromise was to make the kids some warm lunch and drop it off. A classic that never goes out of style is the grilled cheese. How I did theirs today was with oatmeal bread and some turkey and tomato in the center.

They came home very excited, to smells of a kitchen in action. Once they were in bed, I realized that I had to  fix dinner. This gets tricky, since the focus is on the next day. Anyhow, I looked at all that I had around me, it actually was converted into a very flavorful shrimp curry.

Shrimp Curry with Butternut Squash

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 inch piece of peeled ginger

3 pods garlic

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/4 cup oil

1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds

10 curry leaves

1 -2 crushed whole red chilies

1 red onion, finely diced

1 cup butternut squash, diced

3 medium tomatoes, chopped

6-8 cranberries

3/4 cup water

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 pound of shrimp, shelled and de-veined

1 teaspoon honey

1-2 green chilies

1 teaspoon chopped cilantro

Method of Preparation

1. Place the ginger, garlic, cumin and coriander in a mortar and pound to a paste (this can be done in a grinder).

2. Heat the oil and add the mustard seeds and when they crackle add in the curry leaves, crushed red chili and the onion and the spice paste and cook on medium low heat for about 10 minutes, stirring constantly until the onions begin to turn golden.

3. Add in the tomatoes and the squash and continue cooking for another 10 minutes, stirring the mixture frequently until the tomato softens and melts down into a pulp.

4. Add in the water, cranberries and the salt and bring the mixture to a simmer. The mixture should be a fairly think sauce, with pieces of fairly soft butternut squash.

5. Add in the shrimp and the honey and let the shrimp cook for about 5-6 minutes.

6. Finely chop the green chilies and stir into the curry.

10. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

11. Stir in the cilantro, turn of the heat and serve immediately with rice.

I am also thankful for this blog and for all the people who read this, it is a great source of happiness for me, for reasons I cannot explain.