chicken curry, cinnamon-heavy

Usually when I get coldy/fluey I want to eat and I want to eat a lot. But this time hasn't been the same. I could hardly stomach a couple of spoonfuls of porridge this morning and a Weetabix at lunchtime (yes, a whole Weetabix) was a bit of a struggle.

I slept all afternoon and woke up feeling empty rather than hungry; I don't know if you know the feeling.

If I was going to eat something, that something would have to be fortifying, appropriate to the mood of a dreary day rather than my appetite. I'd make a chicken curry - nothing strong, harsh, fresh; but something mellow, gently spiced and gently warming.

Along with the chilli, cumin, coriander seed in my masala, I used, for their genial, aromatic qualities, plenty of cinnamon (a good four-inch stick is enough, or you're in medicine territory - which, in a way, would'nt be wholly inappropriate) and cardamom (half a dozen pods). I toasted the spices and crushed them in a pestle and mortar, still hot and smoking from the pan. I added this to softened onions, now tender and translucent in their butter, along with a couple of chopped tomatoes. I cooked it down for ten minutes. Now I added the chicken - thighs with the bones intact - water to cover, and simmered everything together very slowly, with seasoning, and a handful of ground almonds to thicken the sauce.

I had the curry with rice - spiced with cumin, mustard seed and cinnamon - and a salad of grated carrots.

I didn't eat much of it, but it was just the thing.