Make it a Turquoise Friday!

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Treat yourself to a luxurious holiday in the Maldives or Mauritius and enjoy some fabulous Black Friday deals with Turquoise Holidays

Turn Black Friday Turquoise with 50 per cent off selected holidays to the Maldives and Mauritius booked from November 26th to 29th.

Turquoise Holidays is offering guests exclusive deals with fabulous prices on spectacular hotels for 2022.

The idyllic Indian ocean paradise of the Maldives and Mauritius offers holidaymakers glorious tropical sunshine amid breath-taking natural beauty, not to mention endless sunshine.

Choose from Constance Moofushi and Constance Halveli in the Maldives both including flights and seaplane transfers.

Travel in May and seven nights in a beach villa at Constance Moofushi, all-inclusive, will cost £2,649 per person, saving £3,100 per couple.

Holidaymakers can enjoy 50 per cent off water villas for travel from April 1st to December 26th, 2022 and 50 per cent off beach villas between May 1st and October 31st, 2022.

Constance Halveli offers seven nights in a water villa, bed & breakfast, from £2,499 per person for travel in May, saving £2,750 per couple. Water villas enjoy a 50 per cent discount for those holidaying from January 4th to December 26th, 2022 and the same amazing saving on beach villas from May 1st to October 31st.

Mauritius invites you to sample the delights of the Constance Prince Maurice and the Constance Belle Mare Plage at prices reduced by 50 per cent for the accommodation.

Junior suites are available at the Constance Prince Maurice for travel from January 7th to December 22nd from £1,549 per person (based on travel in June). Stay for seven nights on a bed & breakfast basis and enjoy return private transfers and flights included in the price, a saving of £1,500 per couple.

Constance Belle Mare Plage has stunning deals for both couples and families. Couples will love benefiting from 50 per cent off prestige rooms, prestige beachfront rooms, junior suites and beachfront junior suites for travel from January 7th to December 22nd, 2022. Spend seven nights half board in a prestige room with return private transfers and flights from £1,449 in June, saving £1,180 per couple.

Treat the family (two adults & two children under 12) to seven nights in paradise staying in a junior suite for £4,600 when travelling in August, saving £2,400 per family.

These exclusive offers and savings are only applicable to bookings made between Friday, 26th November and Monday, 29th November for the Maldives and Mauritius.

Visit www.turquoiseholidays.co.uk or call 01494 678400 to find out more and to book.

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August recipes: Rays of sunshine

Round & About

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We’re serving up two dishes from Sunshine Kitchen: Delicious Creole recipes from the Heart of the Caribbean by Vanessa Bolosier, published by Pavilion Books.

Carnival equals sweet fritters! These treats are traditionally served in the Caribbean every Sunday throughout January and until Ash Wednesday.

Banana & rum fritters

Ingredients:

• Four ripe bananas
• 60g/2¼oz/5 tbsp golden granulated sugar
• Two eggs
• 125g/4½oz/1 cup plain (all-purpose) flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• One vanilla pod, cut in half lengthwise
• Grated zest of one lime
• A pinch grated cinnamon
• A pinch grated nutmeg
• 1tbsp white rum
• 1 litre/1¾ pints/four cups sunflower oil
• 1tbsp icing (confectioners’) sugar

PREP:  2 minutes

COOKING: 5 minutes

MAKES: 20-30

Method:

1. Peel the bananas, put them in a bowl and mash with a fork. Whisk in the sugar and eggs, then the flour and baking powder. Using a small knife, scrape the seeds from the vanilla pod and add to the mixture, then stir in the lime zest, cinnamon, nutmeg and rum.

2. In a deep pan, heat the oil over a medium heat until it reaches 180°C/350°F, or until a cube of bread browns in 30–40 seconds. Make sure the oil doesn’t get too hot and start to smoke. Gently drop tablespoonfuls of the batter into the oil and cook for about 2 minutes on each side, turning occasionally, until dark golden all over.

3. Scoop the fritters out of the oil and drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve hot.

♥ Tip
I like to add a tablespoon of unsweetened desiccated (dry) coconut to my banana fritters to add texture.

Creole rice

Ingredients:

• Two eggs
• 2tbsp vegetable oil
• Onion, very finely chopped
• One spring onion, very finely chopped
• Four garlic cloves, very finely chopped
• 1⁄2 tsp Colombo powder
• 1⁄2 tsp tomato purée (paste)
• 500g/1lb 2oz/21⁄2 cups jasmine rice
• A can (about 300g/101⁄2oz) sweetcorn, drained
• 500ml/18fl oz/two cups water
• Two chicken stock cubes
• A bay leaf
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Colombo powder:

• 2 tbsp coriander seeds
• 2 tbsp ground turmeric
• 1 tbsp cumin seeds
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds
• 1⁄2 tbsp fenugreek seeds
• 1 clove
• 1 tbsp garlic powder

PREP: 15 minutes

COOKING: 32 minutes

MAKES: 4

Method:

Creole rice (also called riz melangé) is a housewife’s godsend. When she serves this — to which you can add chicken or fish — it means she was either in a rush, or just used whatever was in her cupboard. It’s also a favourite to bring when spending a day on the beach with the family and barbecuing some chicken wings in situ.

Many of the migrants who arrived around 1862 came from southern India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), so this is how their spice mix acquired its name. Make your own by putting all the spices in a spice grinder or mortar & pestle and grinding to a fine powder. Sieve it, keep in an airtight container and use within two or three months:

1. Put the eggs in a saucepan of cold water, bring to simmering point and simmer for 7–10 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water. Set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the onion, spring onion, garlic, Colombo powder and tomato purée and cook until the onions start to soften.

3. Add the rice and corn. Stir to coat the rice. Add the water, cubes & bay leaf and stir well. Season. Cover and cook over a low heat for 25 minutes, stirring two or three times so the rice doesn’t stick Cut each egg into six and stir into the rice.

4. Remove the bay and serve hot, for example with chicken fricassée.

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