Apricot, Prune And Tamarind Chutney

Okay, this is the chutney that never did make it to the potluck party. Right now its in the freezer waiting for its turn to be appreciated by my family. This experimental chutney has the right amount of Heat, Sweet, Salt and Tang that makes it incredibly appealing..even to non-chutney loving people. I just had a small sampling of this with the Potato Croquette and taste-wise it took the Croquette to a whole new level. Should marry well with Samosa too.

Ingredients(For 1-1/2 Cup thick Chutney):

• 15#s Pitted Prunes
• 10#s Dried Apricots
• A big lemon-sized Tamarind(The left one in the picture below. Available at Indian Stores as "Imli", "Puli" etc etc), shaved
• 3 Tbsp equivalent Jaggery(Unrefined sugar/ Wholesome Sugar. Known as "Panela" in Mexico, South &Central America)
• 1-1/2 Cups Hot Water 
• 1/2 Cup Water
• 3/4 Tsp Chili Powder
• 1/2 Tsp Cumin Powder
• 1/2 Tsp Salt

Procedure:

• Wash the tamarind under cold water. 
• Soak the cleaned tamarind in 1-1/2 Cups of hot water. This softens the tamarind and facilitates easy extraction of the pulp.
• Extract as much juice as possible and discard the leftover tamarind.

• Add the apricot, prunes, jaggery shavings,1/2 Cup water, chili,cumin powder and salt along with the extracted tamarind juice and bring to a boil for 10-12 minutes.

• Blend using a blender once it cools down. The end result should look like the one in the picture below.

Enjoy it with Potato Croquette or Samosa.

Makes 1-1/2 Cups Thick Chutney.

Note: More water may be added for a thinner variation of this chutney. More Chili powder may be added if a spicier version is desired.