And in honor of that, I am making…some mango chut-a-ney!

If you are a New Girl Schmidtty fan, you will know exactly what I am talking about.  If you don’t know, it all started when Schmidt was trying to impress CeCe by telling her all the things he loves about India.

“I love, you know, I love Slumdog, naan… pepper, Ben Kingsley…the stories of Rudyard Kipling.  I have respect for cows, of course.  I love… the Taj Mahal, Deepak Chopra, anyone named Patel… I love monsoons… I love cobras in baskets…growing up to be a doctor… love mango chut-a-ney… really any type of chut-a-ney…”

If you haven’t seen it, watch it here.  If you have seen it, watch it again– I love it THAT much more every time!

So here is a recipe for mango chutaney as well as one for these yummy stick crackers to eat the chutaney with!

PS: If you saw last week’s twirly episode, “AAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!” about what happened at the end and can’t wait for tonight’s episode!

Both recipes below have been reprinted from The Indian Vegan Kitchen by Madhu Gadia by arrangement with Perigee, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., Copyright (c) 2009 Madhu Gadia.

Mango Chut-a-ney

You will need a blender/food processor for this recipe.

I have a confession to make.  I started making this without realizing I basically didn’t have any of the spices….so mine only has the salt, sugar, cayenne pepper, and vinegar lol and it tastes great!  So I can only imagine, with all of the ingredients, how amazing it would taste!

- 3 1/2 cups of mango, peeled, pitted, and sliced into 1″ strips (measure the slices after they have been peeled and sliced)
- 1 1/2 TBS salt
- 1 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
- 1/2 tsp kalonji
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/3 vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar)

In a glass bowl, mix mango slices and salt.  Cover with plastic wrap or lid and let sit at room temperature for 8 hours or overnight.  (In my case I accidentally let it set for like 3 days!  It got hectic and I completely forgot about it!  But after the first night I had stuck it in the fridge– so in case you don’t have time you can do the same

Strain the mango slices over a large bowl, squeezing them to get any excess juice out.  Reserve the juices and set aside.  Place the slices on a clean cloth and let set for one hour.  (I guess because mine had been in the refrigerator for days that there was not that much juice so I didn’t put them on a cloth to set for an hour.)

Blend half the mango slices in a food processor or blender until it becomes the consistency of apple sauce.

In a medium saucepan, place the sugar and reserved mango juices.  (Since I did not have any mango juice, I added a TBS of water.)  Cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes, until sugar has dissolved and syrup has thickened.

Add the mango slices and blended mango.  Bring to a boil.  Add fennel seeds, fenugreek seeds, kalonji, and cayenne pepper.  Lower to a simmer and cook for about 5 to 8 minutes, until mango slices are very soft.

Add vinegar and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes until chutney is thick.  (The chutney will continue to thicken once it cools down.)

Remove from heat and let the chutney cool completely.  Store in an air-tight jar.  The book says you can keep in a cool dry place for up to 6 months.  It is also important to use a clean spoon when dipping into the chutney, and do not return the leftover chutney to the same container.  Refrigerate your chutney if desired (which is what I said.)

This is the most times I have typed “chutney” in my life!

Stick Crackers

The original recipe calls for frying the crackers– I tried both frying and baking.  Both come out nice and crispy, just the coloring is a little different but they taste the same.  I love how easy this recipe is and makes for a great snack!

- 3 cups flour (I used whole wheat– you can use that, AP, or a combination of both)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ajwain (oopsies, I didn’t have any on hand so I used cumin seeds instead…also thought about adding flax seeds next time!)
- 1/3 cup canola/vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup water
- canola or vegetable oil (if frying)

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt and ajwain (or whatever you are using in place of it).  Pour the oil over the flour and mix well.  You can use your hands but a fork works really well and keeps your hands clean.   Mix until all the flour has become coated with oil.

Gradually add 3/4 cup water to the mixture until a stiff dough forms.  I continued to use the fork until the dough started forming, then I used one clean hand to hold the bowl and the other hand to mix.

Knead for 3 to 5 minutes, until dough becomes smooth and soft.  To keep things clean and easy for clean up, I just kneaded the dough in the bowl itself (instead of turning it onto a surface.)

Divide the dough into 2 parts and flatten each into a large disk.  Cover with a cloth or plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes.

On a floured wooden cutting board or plastic pastry sheet, roll out each disk until about 1/8″ thick.  With a knife or pizza cutter (I think the pizza cutter is so much easier and faster!) cut the dough lengthwise into 1/2″ strips.  Then cut crosswise or at a diagonal (for the pointy tips) 1 1/2″ apart.

If frying:
Heat up a large saucepan with about an inch or so of oil.  I didn’t use any more than that since this amount is enough to cover the crackers.

It should take a couple of minutes, and you can test the oil by sprinkling a drop of water into it– if it sizzles, it is ready.

I get really scared when oil splatters everywhere so please remember to be careful and safe!

Once the oil is ready, place several strips into the hot oil.  I actually used my hands but you can use a flat spatula to do this part.  You can cover the entire bottom of the pan with the strips.   Fry each side for about 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown, then flip and cook the other side.

When crackers are done, place on a plate lined with a paper towel to grab the excess oil.  Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

If baking:
Preheat oven to 350F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Place crackers onto parchment paper about 1/2″ apart (they don’t really spread, just rise while they are baking.)  Bake until edges of crackers start to brown.  You can test one and if it is not as crunchy as you like, continue to bake until crispier.

Enjoy with some mango chut-a-ney, while watching New Girl!