Indian Tandoori BBQ Chicken

After living without a grill (husband didn’t consider our party grill a real grill) for years, husband and I don’t often think of grilling our meals. While I was growing up my parents frequently grilled our dinners. Our backyard and picnic table became another dining room in the summer and I distinctly remember my dad standing outside during Montana winters to grill. We were a grilling family. Husband, on the other hand, did not grow up with an extension of his parent’s kitchen being manufactured by Weber. Husband received a grill as a gift this year so we have been slowly starting to use it more often. Husband is not yet the “King of the Grill” but he likes to hang out with my dad while he grills so he can pick up tips and he is quick to fire up the grill when I ask.

I have decided that while the weather is still comfortable I need to work on my chicken grilling skills. Kraft foods lured me to this recipe with a place name in the title. The ingredients come together quickly and even with the two hour marinade time this is still a great weekday meal. I didn’t use the fenugreek leaves because I couldn’t find them but I also didn’t look very hard. I picked up some garam masala at World Market. All the other spices I had on hand. After cooking the chicken I saw a note at the bottom of the recipe that said you could substitute curry powder for all the spices, I will try this in the future. Heavens knows I have enough curry powder in the house! I removed the brand names from this recipe since I don’t feel that those really make a difference. Husband cooked the chicken on low for 24 minutes and it turned out perfectly done.

I forgot to grab a picture. Enjoy this one of the
acorn squash that grew in my compost bin.
Yup, they are connected!

¼ c. barbecue sauce, original flavor
¼ c. Greek yogurt, plain
2 T. lemon juice
1 T. oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried fenugreek leaves
1 tsp. garam masala
1 tsp. minced gingerroot
¼  tsp. chili powder
1 ½ lb. chicken drumsticks, skin removed

Mix all ingredients except chicken. Reserve a ¼ cup of the sauce. Pour remaining over chicken in shallow dish; turn to coat both sides of each drumstick. Refrigerate 2 hours to marinate.

Heat grill to medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade; discard marinade. Grill chicken 24 min. or until done (165ºF), turning and brushing occasionally with reserved sauce.

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/indian-tandoori-bbq-chicken-126206.aspx

Zuppa Toscana

Husband and I enjoying going out to eat. Our dining expenses are more entertainment than food. We frequent local eateries much more often than chain restaurants when it’s just the two of us. Our town has some fantastic restaurants and we definitely have our favorites. When we go out with friends it is sometimes easier to go to a chain restaurant since their menus usually have a bit more variety to suit everyone’s taste buds. When we go to our local Olive Garden I find myself ordering the same thing every time. Zuppa Toscana. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. It’s soup after all!

I adore the simplicity of soup. I love that you can take a few simple ingredients and make a delicious meal that you can share with many people. Soup’s versatility makes it a perfect meal, at least in my eyes. Whenever I found myself enjoying Zuppa Toscana I would always think “I can make this.” I usually don’t look for recipes of foods that eat in restaurants but I finally decided to track this recipe down.

This recipe really is all simple ingredients, many of which I had on hand. There were several variations to this recipe so if you do a search you will find many with slightly different ingredients.  I found a recipe on cooks.com and adjusted it for our family. The kale I used was from the farm that I froze earlier this summer. I would be willing to put in half a bunch of kale the next time I make this recipe.

1 lb. ground hot Italian sausage
1 large onion, diced
4 T. bacon pieces
2 t. garlic, minced
5 c. water
5 c. chicken broth
1 c. whipping cream
1 lb. russet potatoes, cubed with skin
¼ of a bunch of kale

Sauté Italian sausage in a large pot over medium heat. Drain excess fat from sausage and set aside. In the same pot, sauté the bacon, onions and garlic over medium heat until the onions are soft, about 15 min. Add the water and chicken broth to the pot. Bring the liquid to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until soft, about 30 min. Add whipping cream and cook until thoroughly heated. Return sausage to the pot and cook until warmed through. Add kale just before serving.

Creole Seasoning

I had an epiphany one day in my kitchen. Nothing ground breaking but definitely a thought that changed the way I look at my spice cabinet. I am proud to have beautiful jars of spices in my spice cabinet. When husband and I were first married I would pick up one spice/herb/seasoning with every shopping trip. I love the square bottles that Target carries under the Archer Farms brand. The bottles fit so nicely in my spice cabinet and actually hold quite a bit.

I do run out of some spices much more quickly than others: cumin, chili powder, oregano, creole, Herbs de Provence. Many times instead of buying a new bottle, which can be quite expensive, I started buying what I needed in the “ethnic” section of my grocery store or if I was in the right store I would visit the bulk food bins. I saved a few dollars here and there and I wasn’t feeling guilty for the amount of containers I was bringing home.

My epiphany came when I was looking at a recipe from Emeril Lagasse. Listed at the bottom of the recipe were all the ingredients for his creole seasoning AKA “Essence”. You know, the stuff he so famously threw into food while yelling BAM! I had every single one of the ingredients in my spice cabinet. They were all in different bottles but I had them. Then I started looking up other spice mixtures I used: Herbs de Provence, Italian seasoning, Montreal Steak seasoning. Why the heck was I wasting money buying these mixtures when I had everything I needed to make them myself already on hand (except for the lavender, I’m not that cool in the kitchen). From there on out I have been making my own spice mixtures. Recipes are all over the internet. They are quick, easy and since the ingredients are already found in most spice cabinets they are practically free!

2 1/2 T. paprika

2 T. salt
2 T. garlic powder
1 T. black pepper
1 T. onion powder
1 T. cayenne pepper
1 T. dried leaf oregano
1 T. dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/emerils-creole-seasoning-essence-recipe/index.html

Peach Butter

I don’t live in peach country which is a shame because peaches are delicious. Stone fruit is very popular in our house. Husband can eat a large bowl of Italian plums faster than a bag of chips. One of the hardware stores in town gets big boxes of peaches in at the end of summer every year. I think the boxes hold at least 20lbs of peaches, way too much for our little family. My mom brought up the idea of splitting a box of peaches and I was thrilled. We’ve been sharing produce from the farm all year so why not a box of peaches.

So earlier this week I had 10 pounds of peaches sitting on my kitchen counter. While it may seem like a lot of peaches, it’s really not. I starting looking for clever ways to use my peaches since I knew that we couldn’t eat so many before they went bad. I set a couple aside for munching, sliced a few for freezing and decided to turn the rest into peach butter.

I looked for peach jam recipes but I was quickly stopped by the amount of sugar I found in every recipe. I realized that I am not ready for full blown jam making. Thankfully, an email from smittenkitchen.com arrived in my inbox with a recipe for peach butter. This recipe has very little sugar but it’s full of spreadable goodness.  While I did follow the recipe I did find that it needed more cooking time once I added the sugar and lemon juice. I ended up simmering the butter for an hour.  Also, I don’t own a food mill so I did boil my peaches – so so so easy! I didn’t take the canning route, instead I froze several jars for use later. If you plan on canning your peaches please visit smittenkitchen.com for details on how to can this deliciousness!

4 pounds peaches
1 cup water
2 cups granulated sugar
Juice of one lemon

Without a food mill: Cut a small “x” in the bottom of each peach. Dip each into a pot of boiling water for 30 seconds, and then into a bowl of cold water for a minute. The peels should slide right off. [If you have a food mill, skip the peeling step and I'll tell you where to use it in a moment.]

Halve your peaches and remove the pits, then cut each half into quarters (i.e. 8 chunks from each peach). Place peach chunks and water in a large pot and bring to a boil. Simmer until peaches are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to ensure they cook evenly. If you have a food mill, run them through it to puree them and remove the skins. If you don’t have a food mill — i.e. you already peeled your peaches — you can puree in a food processor, blender or with an immersion blender. I like my peach butter very smooth, but feel free to leave any amount of texture you prefer.

Return the peaches to the large pot, add the sugar and lemon juice and bring the mixture to a good strong simmer/gentle boil, cooking them at this level for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally in the beginning and more often near the end, as it thickens up and the fruit masses risk scorching on the bottom of the pot.

There are several methods to test for doneness: You can drizzle a ribbon of sauce across the surface; when that ribbon holds its shape before dissolve into the pot, it is done. Some people use cold or frozen plates; dollop a spoonful in the middle of one and if no water forms a ring around it in a couple minutes, it is done. Others use a spoon; if the butter remains rounded on a spoon for two minutes, it is done. You can also check the pot itself; the butter is usually done when a wooden spoon leaves a clear train when scraped across the bottom.

Let peach butter cool. If you’re not canning it, keep it in an airtight container in the fridge. It should be good for at least two weeks.

http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/09/peach-butter/

Spicy Chicken Lettuce Wraps

One of my favorite restaurants in town has chicken lettuce wraps on their appetizer menu. They also have killer nachos (bacon and crème fresh anyone!) but when I’m looking for something lighter or for an appetizer that could be a small meal I like to order the lettuce wraps. Even though lettuce wraps can be messy, I have no problem gobbling them up before we head to whatever fancy (mostly non fancy) thing we have planned for the night.

I found these wraps somewhere online but I’ve made so many changes that it no longer looks like the original recipe and I am happy to call it my own. The first time I saw this recipe I was a little overwhelmed by the amount of ingredients. As with any recipe, however, you are allowed to make changes and I took out what didn’t work for my pallet. In the future I may experiment by adding cellophane noodles and maybe mushrooms. The cook time on the chicken mixture is surprisingly quick. You can easily use a skillet but since I have a wok I like to use it.

Currently I serve the lettuce wraps as a meal for husband and myself. I like to load up a plate with lettuce and fill a bowl with the filling and we just sit at the table and chat while making our own wraps. With the holiday season coming up I would consider serving this as appetizers. It would be very easy to load up lettuce leaves ahead of time so that my guests could help themselves.

1 ½ lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in to ½ in dice

1 T. corn starch
3 T. toasted sesame oil

2 T. peanut oil
¾ cup finely sliced scallions
3 T. freshly peeled ginger, minced
2 T. jalapeno, minced
1 T. garlic, minced
8 oz. water chestnuts, rinsed, drained, and cut into ¼ in dice
2 T. soy sauce
¼ cup teriyaki sauce
1 T. fish sauce
3 T. thinly sliced fresh cilantro
2 heads Boston lettuce

Toss chicken with cornstarch. Heat 1 T. of sesame oil and 1 T. of peanut oil in a wok over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring frequently until it is cooked through. Using a slotted spoon, transfer chicken to bowl and set aside, leaving pan juices in the wok.

Add the remaining sesame and peanut oil to the wok. Add the scallions, ginger, jalapeno and garlic. Cook over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Add the water chestnuts, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, mirin and fish sauce to the wok. Bring sauce to a simmer. Return the chicken to the wok along with any juices in the bowl. Cook until the chicken has warmed through, about 5 minutes.

Plate chicken mixture in the center of a large platter. Sprinkle cilantro over the chicken mixture. Arrange lettuce leaves around the chicken mixture and serve.

To eat – have each guest spoon desired amounts of chicken mixture into lettuce “cups.”