Rosemarie's Recipes - A tribute to my wonderful mum

Rosemarie's Recipes - A tribute to my wonderful mum

I feel I should apologise and explain about the lack of posts recently. Those that follow me on twitter will know  this, but I lost my mum in April after a 2 1/2 year battle with bowel cancer. It has been a very difficult couple of months and my distinct lack of healthy eating during this time has shown on my hips with a weight gain of 10lb. I am trying to come to terms with such an enormous loss and trying to get back on track to shift these excess lb but I am not finding it easy.


I am going to make a conscious effort next week to start trying out some new recipes (as this is what I love doing) and hope I can make a start in eating better. After all, a healthy, balanced diet can go a long way to prevent bowel cancer. We are delighted to have raised £890 in lieu of flowers at mum's funeral for Bowel Cancer UK and hope they can continue to raise awareness and help others catch this disease early enough that it can prolong life expectancy.


I feel very lucky to have learnt some of my mum's recipes although I couldn't help but give them my healthy makeover to make them Weight Watcher friendly, and I have given a round up here. Mum's Anglo-Indian upbringing made her cooking very unique and I am so happy to have captured some of these on my food blog. Many of her other recipes exist and I hope to add these in time.  These, and other of mum's dishes will always be favourites of mine and will always continue to remind me how lucky I was to have the most wonderful mother for 37 and a half years. Sleep tight mum.

Chicken Biriyani

Marinated lamb chops / steaks

Devilled kidneys

Chicken and vegetable curry

Tandoori chicken and white bhaji

Tandoori Chicken & White Bhaji

I’m starting to build up a nice collection of my mother’s recipes.  Mum’s tandoori chicken is well renowned among their large circle of family & friends.  At every party my parents host, there is always a huge platter of drumsticks carefully marinated and grilled to perfection.  In the old days Mum would add a few drops of red food colouring to give it a more authentic colour but we live in a more health conscious time where additives are simply not required and can be happily omitted.  It doesn’t change the taste anyway.

The white bhaji is not like anything you will get in a British Indian restaurant or indeed in your local supermarket.  It is a really refreshing, light, mildly spiced mix of vegetables.  I add potatoes to the mix too if I fancy a change from having rice.  This delicious accompaniment does require a few rarer ingredients that you may not have in your store cupboard but these keep forever and are relatively inexpensive.

For the chicken:

• 320g chicken skinless breast, cut into large-ish chunks
• 300g fat free natural yogurt
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 2 tsp paprika
• ½ tsp turmeric
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 level tsp mild curry paste such as Pataks

For the White Bhaji:

• 2 tsp sunflower or vegetable oil
• 1 heaped tsp Garam Masala
• ½ onion finely diced
• ½  head of cauliflower, cut into small florets
• Half a pack of fine green beans, halved
• 3 tbsp frozen peas
• ½ tsp minced garlic
• ½ tsp minced ginger
• 400g new potatoes, cubed into small chunks, quarters or 6ths.
• 1 heaped tsp mixed of Mustard seeds yellow & black, Cumin Seeds, Fenugreek seeds
• 2 – 3 mugs of water
• Seasoning

The chicken is best marinated overnight so this recipe does require some forethought.  Essentially you need to simply mix all the ingredients together and toss the chicken so it is coated.  You can use this with skinless drumsticks and thighs or use breast pieces on skewers as I’ve done.  If using pieces then grill for a good 30-40 minutes until cooked throughout.  The breast chunks will take much quicker.  Or you could stick them on the BBQ to get an even lovelier charred taste.

For the White Bhaji, heat the oil in a saucepan and once hot add the seeds.  When they start popping add the.  Once softened add the garlic, ginger and the garam masala.  Next add the potatoes and stir continuously for a few minutes.  Add the water to the pan and simmer for a good 10 minutes until starting to get tender.  Then add the vegetables and a little water if you think it looks a little dry.  Cover with a lid and cook on a moderate heat for another 5-8 minutes until everything is cooked through.  Lastly season to taste.

WeightWatchers ProPoints Per Serving: 12