Chicken Tikka Masala

Now, I know this isn't really authentic Indian food, but it's quite tasty, so who cares? The recipe calls for grilling the chicken but, since it's 16 degrees out, Jon and I just sauteed it in a little olive oil and it worked out just fine.

1 cup yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
4 long skewers

1 tablespoon butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
3 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup heavy cream (we used regular milk)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. In a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 4 teaspoons salt. Stir in chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Preheat a grill for high heat.
3. Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread chicken onto skewers, and discard marinade. Grill until juices run clear, about 5 minutes on each side.
4. Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and jalapeno for 1 minute. Season with 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika, and 3 teaspoons salt (This was really the only thing I'd change about the recipe, it's too much salt. I'd use 1 and a half tsp tops). Stir in tomato sauce and cream/milk. Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Add grilled chicken, and simmer for 10 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, and garnish with fresh cilantro. Serve with rice of your choice (we used saffron rice which was quite good).
   

Shrimp Fra Diavolo

1 pound large shrimp, peeled, deveined
1 teaspoon salt, plus additional as needed
1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus 1 to 2 tablespoons
1 medium onion, diced
1 (14 1/2 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 cup dry white wine
3 minced cloves of garlic
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
3 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Pasta of your choice

Toss the shrimp in a medium bowl with 1 tsp of salt and red pepper flakes. Heat the 3 tablespoons of oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and saute for about a minute, toss, and continue cooking until just cooked through, about 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the shrimp to a large plate; set aside.

Add the onion to the same skillet, adding 1 to 2 teaspoons of olive oil if necessary. Saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juices, wine, garlic and oregano. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, about 10 minutes. Return the shrimp and any accumulated juices to the tomato mixture; toss to coat and cook for about a minute so the flavors meld together. Stir in the parsley and basil. Serve over the pasta of your choice!

Macaroni and Cheese

A lot of sins have occurred in the name of macaroni and cheese. However, my mom makes a pretty great from-scratch mac and cheese. It definitely takes longer than the Kraft stuff, but I think the end result is well worth it.

5 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
Black pepper (to taste)
Cayenne pepper (to taste)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 cups of milk
1 onion
1 1/2 to 2 cups of grated cheddar cheese
Approx 1/2 box of penne
1 can drained tuna fish (optional)
approximately 1/2 to 3/4 cup of plain bread crumbs
3-4 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Start boiling pasta but take off heat and drain before it is completely cooked.

Over medium heat melt 3 Tbsp butter in a sauce pan and then add diced onion. Saute until soft but not overly brown. Add flour and allow to cook for a minute or two. Add pepper to taste. (We made this last night and accidentally put in more Cayenne than I'd intended, but it gave the dish a good bite without being too spicy). Mix in can of soup.

Turn heat up to high and add milk a little at a time to produce a liquid as opposed to more of a thick paste (You may need to add a dash more than 2 cups). Bring to a boil but do not allow top to skin over, keep stirring.

Lower heat and add shredded cheese a handful at a time. Allow cheese to incorporate before adding more.

Put pasta in a greased 9x9 baking dish. Sprinkle drained and dried tuna over noodles if desired. Pour sauce over pasta and make sure all noodles are under the sauce or they'll end up drying out.

In a very small saucepan, melt remaining 2 Tbsp of butter and add breadcrumbs to make a topping. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over pasta and sauce and then sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese. Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.

**Unless you're cooking for a crowd, you'll likely have leftovers. If so, they should be heated VERY gently or the sauce separates a bit. The best way is to reheat in the oven after bringing leftovers to room temperature. In a pinch, the microwave at a low power will also work.

Spicy Chicken Fajitas w/ Peri-Peri Marinade

These were supposed to be "sweet & spicy" chicken fajitas, but we forgot to add the sweet and the original recipe is incomplete and counter-intuitive. So here is how WE did it. The marinade is actually pretty fantastic.

Peri-Peri Merinade

two or three fresh hot chile peppers (hot red peppers are typical; jalapeno peppers and poblano peppers are also good), chopped
4 Tbsp lemon juice or lime juice (or cider vinegar)
4 Tbsp oil
1 Tbsp cayenne pepper or red pepper (or one Tbsp dried red pepper flakes)
1 tsp minced garlic (or garlic powder)
1 Tbsp paprika
1 tsp salt
dried or fresh oregano or parsley (optional)

Combine all ingredients. Grind and mix the ingredients into a smooth paste. (we probably should've used a food processor, but it worked fine enough without). Adjust the ratio or pepper and paprika to taste. Rub marinade onto meat and allow to marinate in a glass bowl for at least thirty minutes; overnight if possible.

While the chicken was marinading, Sasha and I started preparing some of Robert Rodriguez's Homemade Tortillas. The fajitas themselves were kind of tossed together. We cut the chicken into slices and set them grilling in a pan while we set an onion and two bell peppers saute-ing in butter. We added a splash of tequilla to the chicken before combing the vegetables to our meat.

Serve with Spanish Rice and either a Pinot Noir or Chardonnay (or both). Enjoy.

Spicy Aromatic Chicken

This recipe is from a Greek cookbook that I got from my sister, it's the first one we've tried and has sufficiently inspired me to try more.

Chicken (either 1 or 2 lbs breasts or a whole chicken cut into pieces and skinned)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp allspice
pinch sugar
1 med sized onion, coarsely cut
14 oz. can boiled tomatoes
1/2 cup dry white wine
14 oz. can artichoke hearts (peeled, cut, ready for action), or okra
salt and pepper
olive oil
2 large cloves garlic
1/2 lemon cut into wedges
8 black Greek olives, pitted

This is truly easy to make.

Rub the lemon wedges on the chicken (in lieu of having lemons we just soaked the chicken in lemon juice)

Heat up a few tablespoons of oil in a lidded skillet, a large pot, or a lidded casserole dish. Toss in the garlic and onion and heat until the onions are soft. Add the chicken to the pot and brown (if you're doing this in a skillet it will be easier, suffice to say just make sure the chicken is cooked on all sides before proceeding to the next step). Add the white wine during this step.
Add the tomatoes, spices (including salt and pepper), and sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes. When you've got about 10 minutes left, add the olives and artichoke hearts.

We served this over basmati rice with some turmeric and a chilled Sauvignon Blanc. Enjoy!