Cinnamon Applesauce Jello

This dish is one that we've had at holiday meals for as long as I can remember. It is usually served with the main meal, to accompany poultry and the other dishes, just like one would serve cranberry sauce. My mom always made this in a special jello mould that was like a tupperware bundt shaped pan that had interchangeable shapes in the center for various occasions. After the jello set up, she'd always turn the mold upside down on the plate and serve the jello free-standing. I've never done that because (a) I don't have a dish like that, and (b) my consistency is never quite right. All the same, I still enjoy this!

Ingredients:
1 (3 ounce) package cherry Jell-O
1 1/4 cups water
1/3 cup cinnamon red cinnamon candies
1 (16 ounce) jar applesauce

Directions:
1. Combine water with candies and boil to melt candies.
2. Pour over Jello and dissolve.
3. Add Applesauce.
4. Chill.


Notes from Thanksgiving 2011's rendition of this.
-- I used an 8oz package of cherry jello
-- I upped all the measurements of the recipe proportionately
-- The tiny cinnamon redhots are not in season (like valentine's day, when you can get a large bag), and the small little bottle in the cake decorating section with sprinkles was disproportionately expensive, so I bought some of the brach's individually wrapped cinnamon candies (size of a butterscotch) and used those instead. Because they were larger, I knew they'd take more time to melt and added a little extra water. Then, fearing it was too watery and would not set up, I added one packet of Knox gelatin.
-- I put 2 ladles of the mixture into small glass cups (pictured), and the rest into pyrex baking dishes. When we served it at dessert time, it had been sitting out for a bit and wasn't as solid as usual. I think putting it back in the fridge for a bit would've fixed it, because it was solid when we were traveling, and the individual cups at home were solid too (see picture below):

Pilgrim Hat Cookies

Not healthy, but fun!!!

Blurry picture taken by my camera phone.

Rohit and I made these on Thanksgiving Eve. So easy, yummy, and a hit at our Thanksgiving dinner!

Ingredients:
1 package striped fudge shortbread cookies
1 package reeses mini peanut butter cups
1 tub prepared vanilla frosting
food coloring
2 plastic sandwich bags
scissors

Instructions:
1. Freeze the reese's cups. We found out the hard way that they get mushy when small hands handle them a lot to unwrap at room temperature. If they start frozen, they hold up fabulously. Give them 30-60 minutes before you get to step 4.
2. Lay all the fudge striped cookies upside down on a cookie sheet (fudge side up, striped side down)
3. Take 1 cup of the frosting, place in a small mixing bowl, and put in 7-8 drops of yellow food coloring. Spoon the mixed icing into a sandwich bag and cut a small hole (<1cm) in the corner so you can pipe the icing out of that.
4. Squish a large dallop of yellow frosting in the center of each cookie and place a reese's cup on it, pressing in gently for the frosting to bind the cookies. I found it worked well to do a circle of frosting around the cookie hole so not as much leaked through.
5. Take a few tablespoons (~ 1/4 cup) of plain vanilla frosting from the container, place in a mixing bowl and add 2-3 drops of both red and yellow food coloring. Mix to create orange frosting. Spoon the mixed icing into a sandwich bag and cut a very small hole (1/8 inch) in the corner. This will be used to pipe on the hat buckles and is a little more precise than the yellow frosting.
6. Do a 'dot' or draw a square with the orange frosting to create a buckle on each hat.
7. Place in the fridge or freezer to set up for 30 minutes, then serve at room temperature.
8. Enjoy!

Vegan veggie lasagna (tofu based)

http://www.food.com/recipe/vegan-veggie-lasagna-115553

Pesto Chicken Penne Casserole

Our tri teammate and friend Ericka and her daughters Avery and Brooke brought this to us after Rajiv was born. Shyam, Rohit and I all agreed that it was downright amazing. Thank you for this recipe, Ericka!!!

This one is not at all Weight Watchers friendly, so I didn't bother calculating points.

Ingredients
1 16oz package penne pasta
6 cups cooked chicken
4 cups (16oz) shredded Italian cheese blend
3 cups fresh baby spinach
1 can (16oz) crushed tomatoes
1 jar (16oz) alfredo sauce
1 jar(16 oz) prepared pesto
1.5 c 2% milk
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp olive oil

Directions:
1. Precook and cube chicken
2. Preheat oven to 350. Meanwhile, cook pasta per package directions. While pasta is cooking, in a large bowl combine chicken, cheese blend, tomatoes, spinach, alfredo, pesto, and milk. Drain pasta and add to chicken mixture, toss to mix.
3. Transfer to 2 8inch square baking dishes.
4. In a separate bowl,combine bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and olive oil. Sprinkle over casseroles.
5. Cover and freeze one casserole for up to 3 months. Cover other casserole and bake at 350 degrees 40-50 minutes.
6. To reheat frozen casserole, thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Remove from fridge 30 minutes before cooking, then bake for 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees.

Lemon Pepper Salmon

Recipe straight from the kitchen of my mom, Sue!



This comes out to one Weight Watchers Points Plus value per ounce.

Ingredients:
Salmon filets
lemon pepper seasoning
non-stick cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray 2 glass baking pans with nonstick spray (or rub with extra virgin olive oil)
3. Rinse salmon, pat dry with a paper towel.
4. Cut slits in salmon filet every 2-3 inches apart so that each portion will get spices on all sides.
5. Cover generously with lemon pepper seasoning (to taste)
6. Separate salmon into thick/thin filets using kitchen shears. Put thick pieces of salmon in one pan, thin pieces in the other (since cooking times vary based on thickness, you can cook the thinner pieces for a shorter time and not overcook them)
7. Place thick filets in first, set timer for 5 minutes
8. Add second tray with thin filets, set timer for 25 (net cooking time of the thick filets is 30, thin is 25)
9. Take out of oven when cooking time complete, enjoy.

Curried Chickpeas (aka Chole or Chana Masala)

This recipe is from a hard copy cookbook I have by Anupy Singla, called The Indian Slow Cooker. Slow cookers aren't popular in India, but a lot of dishes do well in them because long cooking times in a lower heat setting can make the flavor blends simply amazing. We made this recipe a few weeks ago while my friend Katie was visiting, and Shyam commented it was some of the best chickpea curry he's ever had. He was a crockpot skeptic and is often critical of my cooking (in a kind, constructive way), so that say a lot about this recipe!

The entire batch per the measurements below comes out to 59 Weight Watchers Points Plus values, so if you divide into 12 servings, it's 5 Points Plus each. Not bad!

Ingredients

3 cups dried chickpeas, cleaned and washed thoroughly
1 medium yellow or red onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 medium tomato, diced
1 (2 inches) piece ginger, peeled and chopped or grated
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped, minced, or grated
4-6 green Thai, serrano, or cayenne chilis, stems removed and chopped
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon garam masala
1 tablespoon chana masala
1 tablespoon red chile powder
2 tablespoons salt
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
12 cups water
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
thinly sliced red onion, for garnish
lime wedges, for garnish

Directions

1. Put all incrediences except the cilantro, red onion and lime wedges into a slow cooker.

2. Cook on high for 14 hours. Toward the end of the time, use the back of a large spoon to mash some of the beans against the wall of the slow cooker, or pulse 2-3 times with an immersion blender. This is to create a little bit of a 'paste' texture, but not critical to flavor. Then add the cilantro.

3. To serve, sprinkle sliced onions on top and eat with a lime wedge on the side, accompanied by roti or naan, or in a bowl over basmati or brown rice.

Suggested alternative from the author:
Toast a hamburger bun, place a slice of cheese on each half and a spoonful of chana masala in the middle. It's a fast and healthy veggie alternative to the open faced sandwich.

Curried Butternut Squash and Pear Soup

I got this one from allrecipes.com, it was super easy to make, yummy, and filling. The curry flavor is not at all over powering and doesn't hint India too much. A great fall recipe, for sure!

Below is the actual recipe I made, which comes out to 5 Weight Watchers Points Plus values, plus any sour cream on top. The original recipe had 1 cup of half and half in it, 2 lbs of squash, and 2 pears. With the half and half, it comes to 7 points plus per serving. Below is the recipe as I had it in my WW eTools recipe builder:

Prep Time: 15 Min
Cook Time: 1 Hr 30 Min
Ready In: 1 Hr 45 Min

Ingredients

3 1/2 pound(s) butternut squash
3 tsp margarine
1 medium onion(s), diced
2 clove(s) garlic clove(s), minced (medium)
2 tsp ginger root, minced
1 Tbsp curry powder
1 tsp table salt
4 cup(s) fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 medium pear(s), suggested - Bartlett, cut into 1 inch cubes (peeled/cored)
1 cup(s) half-and-half cream

Instructions

1. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Cut squash in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membrane. Place squash halves, cut sides down, on the prepared baking sheet. 3. Roast in preheated oven until very soft, about 45 minutes.
4. Scoop the pulp from the peel, and reserve.
5. Melt butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion, garlic, ginger, curry powder, and salt. Cook and stir until the onion is soft, about 10 minutes.
6. Pour the chicken broth into the pot, and bring to a boil. Stir in the pears and the reserved squash, and simmer until the pears are very soft, about 30 minutes.
7. Pour the soup into a blender, filling the pitcher no more than halfway full. Hold down the lid of the blender with a folded kitchen towel, and carefully start the blender. Puree in batches until smooth.
8. Return the soup to the pot, stir in the half and half, and reheat.

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries

Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 169 Total Fat: 4.7g Cholesterol: 0mg




Link to original recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/spicy-baked-sweet-potato-fries/detail.aspx

The entire batch of these is 35 Weight Watchers Points Plus units. If divided into 6 servings (1 sweet potato per person), then it is 5 points plus per serving per eTools.

These were a hit with us, what a fun way to 'spice up' sweet potatoes!

Ingredients
6 sweet potatoes, cut into French fry wedge slices
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons taco seasoning mix
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
1, In a plastic bag, combine the sweet potatoes, olive oil, taco seasoning, and cayenne pepper.
2, Close and shake the bag until the fries are evenly coated.
3. Spread the fries out in a single layer on two large baking sheets.
4. Bake for 30 minutes, or until crispy and brown on one side. Turn the fries over using a spatula, and cook for another 30 minutes, or until they are all crispy on the outside and tender inside. Thinner fries may not take as long.

Baked Chicken Fingers

Link to recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/breaded-chicken-fingers/detail.aspx


Rohit is the master of chicken fingers and boca 'chicken' burgers. I got this recipe thinking we could make our own chicken fingers with less preservatives. The online reviews were great, Shyam and I liked them. Rohit, not so much... but, maybe it was just one of those days in the life of a 2.5 year old where nothing sounds good. I would still try them again! We used the other review suggestions to bake them. Yum!

Ingredients
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1/2 inch strips
1 egg, beaten
1 cup buttermilk (I used 2% milk)
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 quart oil for frying (didn't use this, since I baked them)

Directions
1. Place chicken strips into a large, resealable plastic bag. In a small bowl, mix the egg, buttermilk and garlic powder. Pour mixture into bag with chicken. Seal, and refrigerate 2 to 4 hours.
2, In another large, resealable plastic bag, mix together the flour, bread crumbs, salt and baking powder. Remove chicken from refrigerator, and drain, discarding buttermilk mixture. Place chicken in flour mixture bag. Seal, and shake to coat.
3, Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
4. Carefully place coated chicken in hot oil. Fry until golden brown and juices run clear. Drain on paper towels.

Since we baked it, steps 3 and 4 do not apply. We baked in an oven at 375 degrees for 60 minutes, flipping halfway through using tons. I used cookie trays lined with parchment paper.

Unstuffed Pork Chops

I made this and forgot to get a picture, but both Shyam and I enjoyed it. Not the healthiest recipe, not the worst. If you use lean pork and reduced fat soup, it's not too bad.

Unstuffed Pork Chops
4 boneless pork chops
1 box of stove top stuffing (prepared according to box directions)
1 can of either cream or mushroom or cream of celery soup

1. place pork chops in an 8x8 glass dish and season with S&P
2. top with stuffing
3. spread soup evenly over the top of the stuffing bake at 350 for an hour

Bow Ties With Chicken, Red Peppers, and Artichokes

I made this for some Memorial Day BBQ and picnics. I thought it was heavenly, Shyam was not as much of a fan. It was delicious both warm and cold, in my opinion. This recipe doubles easily.

6 servings
Active Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients
12 ounces whole-wheat bow-tie pasta
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted (see Tip)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided
12 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed and thinly sliced
Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 small red bell peppers, thinly sliced
2 shallots, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary, or 1 teaspoon dried
1 9-ounce package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed, or 1 14-ounce can, rinsed

Preparation
1.Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water until cooled. Set aside.
2.Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a wok or large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and sauté until no longer pink inside, 2 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
3.Add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil to the pan. Add peppers, shallots and garlic, and sauté until the peppers are tender-crisp, 2 to 3 minutes. Add to the reserved chicken.
4.Add broth, vinegar and rosemary to the pan and bring to a boil. Add artichokes and the reserved pasta and cook until heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Return the reserved chicken mixture to the pan and toss with the pasta. Taste and adjust seasoning and sprinkle with pine nuts. Serve warm.
Tips & Notes
Tip: To toast pine nuts: Place in a small dry skillet and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.
NutritionPer serving: 375 calories; 8 g fat ( 1 g sat , 3 g mono ); 49 mg cholesterol; 51 g carbohydrates; 0 g added sugars; 28 g protein; 10 g fiber; 151 mg sodium; 497 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Selenium (82% daily value), Vitamin C (59% dv), Magnesium (31% dv), Folate (28% dv), Iron & Vitamin A (18% dv), Zinc (15% dv).

Carbohydrate Servings: 3

Exchanges: 3 starch, 1 vegetable, 2 1/2 very lean meat, 1 fat

I forgot to take my own picture, this picture from the web is pretty similar:

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/bow_ties_with_chicken_red_peppers_artichokes.html

Spinach Lentil Soup

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Spinach-Lentil-Soup-2/Detail.aspx

I forgot to take my own picture before freezing in individual boxes, so I'll steal the one from the original website.

This was super super easy and I just made a few modifications.

1. Cooked the lentils on their own for about a half hour so they'd be super soft.

2. After cooking the soup, I put 2/3 of it in the blender for it to be more pureed, then put it back in the pot to simmer with the chunkier part.

3. I thought it was a bland (and I don't usually mind bland stuff) - so I added some salt and creole seasoning to spice it up a bit.

I've had it reheated for lunch the last 2 days and it's very yummy for as healthy as it is.

Ingredients:
1 cup shredded carrots
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 cups water
1 (16 ounce) jar salsa
1 1/4 cups dried lentils, rinsed
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 (10 ounce) package fresh spinach, torn

Directions:
In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, saute carrots and onion in oil until tender. Add the water, salsa, lentils and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 50-60 minutes or until lentils are tender. Stir in spinach; simmer 5-10 minutes longer or until spinach is wilted.

Denise's Dulce de Leche Fruit Cake

April 2011 cake

May 2008 Cake

By popular request, I'm sharing the instructions to make this cake. It isn't Weight Watchers friendly or overly healthy (although many cakes are worse for you), but this blog seemed to be the best place to post that would be accessible to many.

I first made this cake in May 2008. We had a cooking competition in the office and I made 2 side-by-side cakes, one to take to work, and one to take to dinner at a friend's house that weekend. I tend to be creative, and had no idea what it would really take to make a cake with lots of layers, so I decided just to give it a try. I ended up realizing this cake was way more effort than I had ever dreamed - but oh my goodness, it is divine. Our friends who had it at dinner loved it, and I recently received a request from them (she is expecting) to repeat. Normally, I wouldn't invest so much time in a dish - but, as I know, people will go an extra mile for a pregnant person, so that's exactly what I did. I took pictures as I went so I could document the recipe for others to replicate. Maybe if they have lots of free time, they can make it for me? :-)

I also learned from some of the things that didn't go so well in 2008 and made it slightly differently this time.
2008 errors
-- Baking 3-4 cakes and slicing layers. It didn't work well because the cut surface of the cake tended to catch on the dulce de leche as I spread it, turning it into a crumbling glob
-- Not draining the juices from the peaches before slicing. It was a bit slimier than I would have liked.
-- Not slicing the fruit thin enough. The thinner, the flatter and more even.


So, step by step, this is what I did for the April 30, 2011 baby shower presentaiton of this cake. I strongly suggest reading the instructions end-to-end before you start, and also planning to divide the project over 2 days. At minimum, if you're very efficient but only have one springform pan, it could take 5-6 hours.

Tools

Pictured: spatula and springform pan.

You will also need:
-- nice platter or cake stand to present cake
-- wax paper
-- 2 large dinner plates (for stacking layers after they cool)
-- cooling rack
-- measuring cups
-- nonstick cooking spray
-- electric hand mixer
-- large mixing bowl
-- paring knife (for cutting fruit)
-- cutting board
-- small bowls/containers to hold cut fruit before it goes on the cake
-- large long knife (like a butcher knife - to be able to cross length of springform pan to separate cake)






Ingredients

-- 2 boxes premade cake mix - I use pineapple and caramel/butter pecan
-- applesauce (in lieu of oil on cake directions, same measurement - it is more moist cake and a tad healthier, too)
-- water (for cake mix, quantity per box instructions)
-- eggs (for cake mix, quantity per box instructions)
-- 2-3 small cans of dulce de leche (I used 2 this time, you may need 3 depending how generously you apply the dulce de leche)
-- fresh fruit. For this cake, I used the following:
*1 small container strawberries
*3 kiwi
*1 container blueberries
*1 16oz can of pineapple rings
*1 16oz cans of peach halves in light syrup


Instructions
Part A - The Cake Layers
1. Preheat oven per directions on cake box.
2. In large mixing bowl, make cake batter for your first flavor per box directions but use the applesauce in lieu of oil. Blend well with hand mixer. You will have approximately 5 cups of mix.
3. Coat bottom and sides of springform pan with nonstick cooking spray.
4. Measure 1/5 of the batter (about 1 cup) and pour into the springform pan. You can use a spoon to spread it out or tilt the pan side to side. The batter will just barely cover the bottom of the pan (this is going to be one of many thin layers).
5. Bake the cake until the edges are golden and pull away from the sides, and you can put a toothpick or knife in and it comes out clean. For example, my box suggested 30-35 minutes for cooking two 9" cakes, however since there was much less batter, I found that I needed 18-19 minutes per layer.
6. When cake comes out of oven, use pot holders while still hot and release and remove the sides of the spring form. While holding bottom layer of pan with cake in it using a pot holder, take the long knife and slide it under the cake, fully separating it from the pan.
7. Put the cooling rack over the top of the cake, then using pot holders, flip the pan/cake/cooling rack together so that the cooling rack is on the bottom. Now, remove the pan and you have a layer of hot cake on the cooling rack.
8. Take the springform pan (base and sides) to the sink, rinse out to remove any residue from the cake, reassemble.
9. Repeat steps 3-8. As one cake layer is getting ready to come out of the oven, the preceding one should already be cool and relatively firm (firm enough to hold with your hands). I've found that when I cook with applesauce instead of oil, my layers usually come out pretty flat. If it's slanted from one side to the other, don't worry - all layers may be slightly off, but you can arrange them so it evens out when you assemble the cake. However, if the middle of the cake appears significantly risen even after cooling off, you can use your large knife to slice off the risen part and discard it so that you are left with a flat layer. I store the cooled layers on a dinner plate, with wax paper between each layer to prevent them from sticking. To transfer them, I usually cut a piece of wax paper slightly larger than the layer, put some nonstick spray on it, put it over the layer that is on the cooling rack. Then I flip it over so that the wax paper is on the bottom, and then shift that to the dinner plate.
10. After you have baked all 5 layers for the first flavor, repeat steps 2-9 for the second flavor. (19 minutes of cooking, plus coating, measuring, transferring to cooling rack --- multiplied by 10 layers, now you see why this recipe takes awhile).
11. The cooled cake layers can be stored overnight without refrigeration, I had one dinner plate for each flavor and put them side-by-side in the microwave so they would not dry out (or be subject to my pesky pets, who are creatures of the night looking for a good eat).

Part B - Preparing Fruit and Assembling
1. Rinse blueberries and straberries.
2. Open cans for pineapple rings and peach halves and drain any liquid from the cans.
3. Peel kiwi.
4. Other than the kiwi, slice the fruit very thin (1/8 inch or so), and keep each fruit separate in its own bowl. I actually take the pinepaple rings and slice them in half cross-wise to cut down the thickness.

5. Get the plate you are planning to assemble the cake on (a nice platter or cake stand) and grab the first layer of cake (pick a flavor). Put the side of cake that was on the top when cooking facing upward (the 'cooked side' that wasn't facing the pan bottom). This will minimize the amount of crumbs that stick to the dulce de leche and is the whole purpose of baking the individual layers.


6. Open the dulce de leche, and with the spatula take 1/3 of the can contents out and spread thinly over the cake layer. Take a little more dulce de leche if needed to cover.


7. Now, pick one fruit to be your first filling. I considered the colors of the fruit I'd chosen and picked an order that would alternate colors between the layers. Spread those thin pieces of fruit onto the cake, covering the dulce de leche. You will not use all of any fruit on a single layer, which is expected. You'll want to save some for the top, and if there are leftovers - it's a healthy snack :-) Each layer, you can do something different. And, if you're worried you'll run out of a fruit (like, I did not have enough blueberries for a full layer), you can do one fruit outside (for external viewing of cake) and then just fill in with another fruit in the middle.


8. Now, pick a layer of the other cake flavor so you'll have alternating flavors. Place it on top of the cake/dulce de leche/fruit that you already assembled. Eyeball the cake to make sure it is relatively flat, rotate the layer if it isn't (I find things don't always bake evenly, but if I put a thick side opposite a thin side, in the end the cake isn't too slotted).

9. Now, repeat the dulce de leche, fruit, alternating cake flavor pattern for as high as you want to build the cake. For today's shower cake, I did six layers of cake, six layers of fruit (5 filling, plus one on the top). I saved the other layers of cake for the 'traditional' baby shower style cake that is more western. However, there is no reason you could not do a taller cake - that is what I did in 2008.







9. When you get to the top layer, put a slightly more generous coating of dulce de leche on the top. This will be holding in the fruit and there won't be any more cake on top of it. Then, arrange the fruit as you see fit. I've gone from inside out (2008, had a kiwi in the center and built out from there). And also have started with the outside, moving in (see 2011 picture, I started with the strawberries).


10. When done, take a picture because you're darned proud of the cake. Then cover with a cake dome or something that would not stick to the cake, and put in the fridge. Because if the cut fruit, this should not be left out overnight.



11. When it's time to serve, remove from fridge, cut, and enjoy.

Butter Chickpea Curry

I'm currently soaking the chickpeas, can't wait to see how this turns out! I am planning to substitute cauliflower for the potatoes and use a can of V8 since that's what I have on hand. Here's hoping!

4 medium potatoes, cubed
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed tomato soup
1/2 cup cream or milk
1 (12 ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained


Directions
Place potatoes in a saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil over high heat; simmer until the potatoes are tender. Drain, and set aside.
Warm oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion and garlic, and cook until the onions are soft and translucent. Stir in curry powder, garam masala, ginger, cumin, and salt. Cook for 1 or 2 minutes, stirring. Pour in soup, cream, and chickpeas. Stir in potatoes. Simmer 5 minutes.

Source: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Butter-Chickpea-Curry/Detail.aspx

Comment after the fact - this turned out well. Not our favorite dish, but not bad.

Catching up

Well, you'd wonder where we've been, as this blog just about died. Busy living life, or something along those lines. We've done lots of grilling, made some tried and true recipes, and also experimented a bit. Unfortunately, I've been horrible at blogging and capturing our favorite recipes. There was one shrimp recipe that was beyond fantastic - I think Shyam, Rohit and I devoured 10 lbs of shrimp in a matter of days! I keep searching my regular recipe sources for it but am still coming up empty. Hopefully we'll find it soon so we can repeat with the summer.

The 2 most recent recipes were so-so. Nothing great, nothing to write home about or get me excited.

Shyam has been seriously dedicated to healthy eating lately, I'm really proud of him.

So, hopefully we'll have a chance to start posting more frequently. That way, next time we say 'honey, where is the recipe for.... it will be obvious!'