Winter warmers

Tomato Halwa
Ingredients
10 to 12 tomatoes
2 cups sugar
½ ghee
20 cashew nuts
2 tbsp raisins
6 green cardamoms  
4 cloves
¼ tulsi leaves  
¼ rose petals
1 pinch edible camphor (optional)

Method
Wash the tomatoes, remove the eye and make an incision on the lower side.
Boil water and blanch the tomatoes for 2-3 minutes. Drain, peel, deseed and chop.
 Reserve the pulp with the juices. Grind the cardamom with 1 tbsp sugar to a fine powder, sieve and keep aside.
Heat 2 tbsp of ghee and fry cashewnuts and raisins to golden brown.
Wash and shred the rose petals and tulsi leaves and reserve.
Boil the sugar with
½-cup water and make a single-thread syrup and keep aside.
Heat the ghee in a wide kadai (utensil), roast the cloves in it, till it starts to crackle.
Add the tomato pulp and cook till the liquid dries up. Cook on low heat.
Increase heat and add the hot syrup slowly.
 Reduce to low heat, keep stirring to avoid burning and cook till it starts to leave the sides.
Sprinkle the cardamom powder, rose petals, tulsi leaves and edible camphor.
Mix well.
Garnish the halwa with fried cashew nuts and raisins and serve warm.

—Executive Chef Anil Dahiya

Apricot chicken
Ingredients
8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
80 ml olive oil
12 cloves garlic, peel on, smashed
1 tbsp dried oregano
10 sprigs thyme
150 gm dried apricots
24 caperberries
24 green olives
1 strip orange rind
2 bay leaves
120 ml sherry vinegar
250 ml verjus or white wine
2 tbsp brown sugar
Parsley, chopped for
garnish
Salt and pepper, to taste
Flat breads, to serve
Coleslaw, to serve

Method
Combine chicken, oil, garlic, oregano, eight thyme sprigs, apricots, caperberries, olives, orange rind, bay leaves, sherry vinegar, salt and pepper in a ziplock bag. Seal bag and gently massage the flavours into the chicken. Set aside, to infuse, in the fridge for minimum of two hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
Transfer chicken and all marinade ingredients into a large baking dish. Add white wine and sprinkle over the sugar.
Place in the oven to roast until cooked through. Remove from oven and allow to rest 5-10 minutes.
Sprinkle with parsley and leaves of remaining sprigs thyme.
To serve, chop chicken and serve with flat breads and coleslaw.

Recipe by: Matt Preston, for Master Chef Australia

Bhutte ki Kees
Ingredients
4-medium sized corn
2-3 ½ inch ginger
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp oil
½ cup milk
½ cup water
2 tsp lemon juice
½ tsp sugar
Salt to taste
A pinch of asafoetida
Chopped coriander and grated coconut for garnishing

Method
Grate the corn with a hand grater to make a coarse paste.
Chop the ginger and green chilli finely.
Add oil in a pan. Add asafoetida (heeng) and mustard seeds till it splutters.
Add green chillies and chopped ginger.
Add corn paste, turmeric, chilli powder and salt. Stir it occasionally to make sure that no lumps are formed.
Cook it for approximately 10 to 15 minutes until the liquid in the corn paste gets dried off and the colour of the mixture changes to golden yellow.
Add milk and water. Continue stirring till its consistency becomes like halwa or upma.
Add sugar and lemon juice.
Garnish it with chopped coriander, grated coconut and serve hot.