Butternut Squash and Chickpea Curry - Meeru Dhalwala

Well, hello!  It's been a while since I've posted.  Nice to be back.  Nothing wrong in my world--just needed a blog break, I guess.

Noticed this recipe in yesterday's Wall Street Journal.  I had all the ingredients on hand minus the scallions (green onions out here in Arizona) which would have finished the dish off nicely but can't say I missed them. This is such a treat!  Spicy, sweet, great texture.  The recipe notes to bake the dish for 20 minutes--I left mine in for 35 minutes plus another 5 minutes with the chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans).  Perfect.  Everyone had seconds--give it a try!

Butternut Squash and Chickpea Curry

Total Time: 35 minutes Serves: 4-6

¼ cup butter

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 tablespoon ground cumin

10 cloves

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

¼ cup light brown sugar

2 pounds butternut squash, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes

½ cup tomato purée

½ cup Greek-style yogurt (optional)

3 cups cooked chickpeas

Cooked basmati rice, for serving

¼ cup thinly sliced scallions

1. Move oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Set a medium pot over medium-low heat. Add butter and cook until melted and foam subsides, about 2 minutes. Stir in turmeric, cumin, cloves, salt, cayenne and sugar and cook until aromatic, about 1 minute. Stir in tomato purée and squash until well combined. Transfer pot's contents to a large casserole dish and bake on middle rack of oven until squash is browned and easily pierced with a sharp knife, about 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, season yogurt, if using, with salt.

4. Remove casserole from oven. Stir in chickpeas until well combined. Return to oven and roast, uncovered, until chickpeas are heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt to taste. Serve over basmati rice. Garnish with scallions and a dollop of yogurt, if using.

CHICKEN POT PIE - Ann Romney

Have you ever made chicken pot pie?  I have not.  I don't typically make pie crust, rolls, biscuits, that type of thing.  But I wanted to take a one-pot dish to my sister for dinner and found this recipe in Ann Romney's new cookbook The Romney Family Table.  This is perfect comfort food.  The timing was just right after two days of solid rain here in the Valley of the Sun--highly unusual.

Admittedly, I cheated with the biscuit topping and used Bisquick--I didn't even roll out the dough but chose to use the drop biscuit style instead.  No one complained.

The only tweaking I did was to add more carrots and celery. And I used a combination of butter and olive oil to sauté the veggies.  Everyone loved it! And leftover turkey would be just as good, too.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Chicken Pot Pie

4 cups chicken broth                                             Salt and pepper to taste

1 chicken bouillon cube                                        1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 sticks of butter                                             1/4 cup heavy cream

2 onions, finely chopped                                       1 (9 oz) package frozen peas

2 large carrots, sliced in rounds  (add 2 more)      6 chicken breasts, cooked, and cut into chunks

1 rib of celery, sliced (add 1 more)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Heat the chicken broth and bouillon cube in saucepan until cube is dissolved.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onions, carrots, and celery and sauté until tender.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, 2-3 minutes or until blended.  Stir in the hot chicken broth.  Add the heavy cream, frozen peas, and cooked chicken.  Stir to combine.  Spoon mixture into 9x13 baking dish.  Bake 20 minutes.  Top with uncooked biscuits and continue to  bake 12-15 minutes or until the biscuit topping is golden brown.

Homemade Biscuits

2 cups flour                                    1/2 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder           1/2 cup butter

2 teaspoons sugar                          1 cup buttermilk

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.  Work in butter with pastry cutter or hands until mixture is crumbly.  Stir in buttermilk until just blended.  Roll out about 1 1/2 inches thick and cut out with a 3-inch round cookie cutter.  Place biscuits on top of chicken mixture and continue baking 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Biscuits can also be baked separately: Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 450 degrees 10-12 minutes

ARGENTINIAN RED SHRIMP PESTO PIZZA

Happy September 1st! Except that it's starting to freak me out how fast this year is going.  Seriously.

But, I calmed down once I realized I had all the ingredients for this yummy pizza and quickly put it together today--loved every bite.  One more recipe to make with Trader Joe's Argentinian Red Shrimp which I had stashed in my freezer. The pesto sauce, flatbread, and goat cheese were all Trader Joe's brand as well and just perfect.
Ingredients for 2 pizzas

12 shrimp
2 whole wheat flat bread
1 tablespoon pesto sauce
1 clove of garlic, minced
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
2 tablespoons goat cheese

DIRECTIONS

Saute shrimp in olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, until shrimp are cooked (5 minutes)

Spread pesto sauce on pizzas, add cooked shrimp, sprinkle with mozzarella and goat cheese

Bake pizzas at 350 for 15 minutes until cheese melted

Note:  I cannot remember where I first saw this recipe (it is all over the blog world) so I cannot give it proper credit!

KATHLEEN'S CRAB CAKES with Remoulade

I love crab cakes, don't you?  And these are super easy to make.  Serve atop a bed of greens or on a toasted english muffin--just perfect.  Don't know why you couldn't substitute canned salmon for the crab.  It's on my list to try so I will let you know.  This recipe came from my friend, Kathleen.  Not sure  the origination but knowing Kathleen, I'm sure she tweaked it a bit.

Ingredients

·         Crab cakes:

·         2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives

·         1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

·         1 1/2 tablespoons canola-based mayonnaise 

·         1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind

·         1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

·         1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

·         1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

·         1 large egg 

·         1/3 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

·         1 pound lump crabmeat, drained and shell pieces removed – Costco sells a pound of lump crab meat for a great price and it doesn’t have any shell pieces to remove

·         1 tablespoon olive oil

Preparation

1.     1. To prepare crab cakes, combine first 8 ingredients. Add panko and crab, tossing gently to combine. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes. 

2.     2. Fill a 1/3-cup dry measuring cup with crab mixture. Invert onto work surface; gently pat into a 3/4-inch-thick patty. Repeat procedure with remaining crab mixture, forming 8 cakes.

3.     3. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 4 crab cakes to pan; cook 4 minutes or until bottoms are golden. Carefully turn cakes; cook 4 minutes or until bottoms are golden and crab cakes are thoroughly heated. Remove cakes from pan; keep warm. Wipe pan dry with paper towels. Heat remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in pan. Repeat procedure with remaining 4 crab cakes.

    Remoulade:

·         1/4 cup canola-based mayonnaise

·         1 tablespoon chopped shallots

·         1 1/2 tablespoons capers, drained and chopped

·         2 teaspoons Creole mustard

·         1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

·         1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

·         1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

To prepare rémoulade, combine 1/4 cup mayonnaise and remaining ingredients in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Serve with crab cakes.

OR, do what I did and combine a bit of these two ready-made goodies to taste.  Excellent.  

TRADER JOE'S ARGENTINIAN RED SHRIMP with LINGUINE

I'm so sorry if you don't have a Trader Joe's nearby.  Truly.  And I am hoping you can find this sweet lobster-like shrimp if you don't have a TJ's--it's worth the search.  My friend, Ashley, grabbed several bags when she spied these because apparently it is only available a few times a year. Lucky me--she gave me a bag.

I had lots of pasta so concocted a recipe using what I had in the pantry.  But grilled and served with vegetables would work well, too.

INGREDIENTS
Serves 4

Bag of Trader Joe's Argentinian Red Shrimp (frozen)
8 oz Linguine
4 cloves of garlic, minced or crushed
1/2 to 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
Olive oil (I used garlic infused olive oil)
Fresh parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS


Forgive me, I didn't measure much in this recipe, but I know you will turn all these ingredients into a lovely dish.

While pasta is boiling, drizzle olive oil in a skillet and add crushed garlic cloves and red pepper flakes.  Cook the garlic for a few minutes and then add the frozen shrimp sprinkling with salt and pepper.  Cook until shrimp is pink and curled (about the same amount of time it takes to cook the pasta).

Drain the pasta saving 1 cup of pasta water.  Add pasta water to the shrimp, stir, and then add the linguine.  Peel fresh parmesan strip over the shrimp and linguine. Serve with fresh parmesan.

Really, this is so yummy and easy.  Do make it!  From start to finish it took less than 30 minutes.

CHICKEN WITH YOGURT AND INDIAN SPICES & BASMATI RICE - Mark Bittman

My cute nephew and his girlfriend gave me Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything app for my iPad (which also transferred to my iPhone) and I love it.  So, as I sat in the parking lot after spin class scrolling through recipes, I quickly came across this one and lo and behold I had every single ingredient on hand (yes, every one of those spices, thank you Penzey's) and did not have to go to the grocery store--hooray!

I am a fan of Bittman's app--it is super easy and I think I'm going to love trying his recipes. I also made his Rice Pilaf, Seven Ways which was delicious.

Back to the chicken, I subbed chicken thighs for a whole chicken and used more chicken than the recipe called for, so it wasn't quite as saucy as I would have liked.  But the flavor was still excellent.  It is spicy but the adventurous eight year old twins who live next door gobbled it down, so if you have kids give it a try.  Perfect meal for a cold night in front of the fireplace (below 50 degrees here in AZ!) waiting for Downton Abbey.

Makes: 4 servings

Time: About 45 minutes

1/4 cup peanut or neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn

1 whole chicken, 3 to 4 pounds, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 8 pieces, or any combination of parts

1 large or 2 medium onions, sliced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1 tablespoon chopped or grated fresh ginger or

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 cups yogurt

Chopped fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

1. Put the oil in a deep skillet with a lid or a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When hot, add the chicken, skin side down, and brown it well, rotating and turning the pieces as necessary; the process will take 10 to 15 minutes. (You can skip this step if you like; heat a tablespoon of oil and go directly to cooking the onions.)

2. When the chicken is nicely browned, remove it from the skillet and turn the heat down to medium. Pour or spoon off all but a tablespoon of the oil. Stir in the onions, along with some salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the onions soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and spices, along with 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Cook with the onions, stirring, until very aromatic, 2 or 3 minutes. Stir in the yogurt, then return the chicken pieces to the pan.

3. Cover and cook over medium-low heat so that the mixture doesn’t boil, turning the pieces every 5 minutes or so, until the chicken is cooked through,10 to 20 minutes (longer if you skipped the browning step); it’s okay if the mixture curdles a bit. The bird is done when an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 155–165°F. Taste and adjust the seasoning, garnish with cilantro, and serve.

Rice Pilaf, Seven Ways

Makes 4 servings

Time: About 30 minutes, plus a little time to rest

Easy, fast, and reliable, pilaf has another bonus: Cooking it in advance (slightly) is not just possible but desirable.

2 to 4 tablespoons butter or extra virgin olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 1/2 cups rice, preferably basmati

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 1/2 cups stock

Chopped fresh parsley leaves for garnish

  

1. Put 2 tablespoons of the butter or oil in a large, deep skillet with a lid over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted or the oil is hot, add the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the rice all at once, turn the heat down to medium, and stir until the rice is glossy, completely coated with butter or oil, and starting to color lightly, about 5 minutes. Season well with salt and pepper, then turn the heat down to low and add the stock all at once. Stir once or twice, then cover the pan.

3. Cook until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Turn the heat to the absolute minimum (if you have an electric stove, turn the heat off and let the pan sit on the burner) and let rest for another 15 to 30 minutes. Add the remaining butter or oil if you like and fluff with a fork. Taste and adjust the seasoning, fluff again, garnish, and serve.

SPICY PULLED PORK - Pioneer Woman Cooks PARMESAN-ROASTED BROCCOLI - Barefoot Contessa

Another yummy shredded pork dish.  Not too saucy but I think that's because I should have doubled the ingredients since I practically doubled the amount of pork used.  But, it was delicious and not too spicy.

Spicy Pulled Pork - Pioneer Woman Cooks

Ingredients

• 4 pounds (up To 7 Pounds) Pork Shoulder (I used a 12 pound Pork Shoulder, had tons of leftovers)
• 1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
• 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
• 1 Tablespoon (to 2 Tablespoons) Salt
• Pepper To Taste
• 3 cloves (to 4 Cloves) Garlic
• 1 Tablespoon (to 2 Tablespoons) Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons (to 3 Tablespoons) White Wine Vinegar
• 1/4 cup Brown Sugar
• 1 whole Onion
• Lime Wedges

Preparation Instructions

Rinse and pat dry the pork shoulder.

Add dried oregano, cumin, chili powder, salt, black pepper, garlic, olive oil, white wine vinegar and brown sugar into a food processor or blender. 

Cut one onion into quarters and put it in the food processor with the spices. Blend mixture until totally combined and then pour it over the pork shoulder.

Rub it into every nook and cranny of the meat, tucking it under folds an in crevices.

Place the pork into a roasting pan or Dutch oven and add a couple of cups of water. Cover tightly and roast pork at 300º for several hours, turning once every hour.

When it is fork tender, crank up the heat, remove the lid, and roast it, skin side up for another 15 to 20 minutes to get the skin crispy. When it’s done, let it rest for 15 minutes before shredding.

Shred the pork shoulder (two forks work well). When it’s all shredded be sure to pour the juices all over the meat.

The broccoli wasn't quite the hit I had hoped for.  It was waaaay too lemony.  Next time I would skip the lemons altogether.  Garlic, parmesan cheese, pine nuts, and basil were enough of a pick me up to the broccoli and the lemon was just too tart.  If I make it again without the lemon, I'll let you know.

PARMESAN-ROASTED BROCCOLI - Barefoot Contessa

Ingredients 4 to 5 pounds broccoli  4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced  olive oil 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper  2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (too much lemon zest for my family) 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (too much lemon juice for my family) 3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted  1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese  2 tablespoons julienned fresh basil leaves (about 12 leaves)   Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.   Cut the broccoli florets from the thick stalks, leaving an inch or two of stalk attached to the florets, discarding the rest of the stalks.  Cut the larger pieces through the base of the head with a small knife, pulling the florets apart. You should have about 8 cups of florets.  Place the broccoli florets on a sheet pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Toss the garlic on the broccoli and drizzle with  5 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper.  Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until crisp-tender and the tips of some of the florets are browned.Remove the broccoli from the oven and  immediately toss with 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, the lemon zest, lemon juice, pine nuts, Parmesan, and basil. Serve hot.

SPICY CAMPANELLE WITH MUSHROOMS AND ONIONS

Don't you love it when ingredients come together in your head and then actually tastes as good as what you imagined?  This dish did just that.  Even the little kiddos next door loved it.

(Forgive the boring name for this recipe--I am terrible about coming up with clever names for people, recipes, etc.)

1 lb Campanelle pasta
Garlic olive oil
1 small sweet onion, chopped
1/2 pound mushrooms, chopped
1 teaspoon (or more) crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup pasta water
Freshly shaved Parmesan

Heat oil in sautee pan.  Add onions, cook for 5-7 minutes until soft.  Add mushrooms, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.  Cook for 8-10 minutes until vegetables almost caramelized.

Boil pasta according to instructions. After pasta is finished cooking, remove 1/2 cup pasta water and add to mushroom onion mixture, stir.  Drain pasta (do not rinse).  Add pasta to mushroom onion mixture and stir.  Add Parmesan to dish, let melt.  Serve with extra Parmesan.