Tandoori Chicken
INGREDIENTS
1 Pound Boneless Chicken
2 Sliced Onions
2 Lemons
5 Whole Green Chilies
3 Tablespoons Onion Paste
½ Teaspoon Ginger Paste
½ Teaspoon Garlic Paste
1 Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
1 Teaspoon Red Chili Powder
1 Teaspoon Coriander Powder
1 Teaspoon Cumin Powder
½ Cup Plain Yogurt
¼ Teaspoon Salt
¼ Tablespoon Cinnamon Powder
¼ Tablespoon Clove Powder
2 Tablespoons Oil
Wash and pat dry the chicken pieces. Mix onion paste, ginger, garlic, turmeric, red chili powder, coriander, cumin, yogurt, salt, cinnamon, 1 tablespoon oil and clove powder into a medium sized bowl. Mix well. In a large bowl place all of the chicken pieces and pour the spice mixture over the chicken. I like to use the zip lock bags for marinating. Make certain that all of the chicken pieces are covered with the marinade. Chill in the refrigerator for 8 hours. When ready to cook preheat the oven to 450° F. Oil a large flat baking sheet. Place the chicken on prepared baking sheet one by one in a single layer. Bake for 45 minutes. Turn chicken pieces over and bake for another 5 minutes. Remove from oven and garnish with sliced onions and sliced lemons. Serves 4
Butter Chicken
INGREDIENTS
½ Cup Plain Yogurt
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
1 Teaspoon Turmeric
2 Teaspoon Garam Masala Powder
1 Teaspoon Chili Powder
1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
2 Teaspoons Grated Fresh Ginger
2 Crushed Garlic Cloves
4 Chopped Chicken Breasts
4 Ounces Roasted Cashews
2 Ounces Unsalted Butter
1 Tablespoon Sunflower Oil
1 Finely Chopped Medium Sized Onion
1 Teaspoon Ground Cardamom
1 Cinnamon Stick
1 Bay Leaf
2 Teaspoon Sweet Paprika
14 Ounces Canned Crushed Tomatoes
5 Ounces Chicken Stock
1 Cup Thickened Cream
Combine yogurt, lemon juice, turmeric, garam masala, chili, cumin, ginger and garlic in a medium sized bowl. Add chicken and stir well. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Reserve half of the roasted cashews and place remaining cashews in a food processor. Process until finely ground.
Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, cardamom, cinnamon and bay leaf. Cook for 2 minutes until the onion starts to soften. Reduce heat to low and then add chicken and marinade, paprika, tomato puree, cashew powder and chicken stock. Simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in cream and cook for another 10 minutes. Garnish with remaining cashews, chopped coriander and serve with rice. Serves 4
Lamb Kebabs
INGREDIENTS
2 Pounds Boneless Lamb
1 Cup Yogurt
¼ Cup Lemon Juice
¼ Teaspoon Salt
To Be Ground Into Paste:
1 Cup Coriander Leaves
1 Cup Mint Leaves
3 Green Chilies
1 ½ Inches Ginger Piece
2 Garlic Cloves
1 Cup Raw Papaya
Grind the coriander leave, mint leaves, chilies, ginger, garlic and papaya into a paste either in a food processor or blender. Combine paste, yogurt, lemon juice and salt. Coat the lamb pieces with the sauce and marinate overnight or at least five hours. I like to marinate in a large zip lock bag. When you are ready to cook the lamb, remove from marinade and skewer these pieces through a kebab rod and grill over a fire such that they are evenly reddish brown. Serve with onion pieces, lemon wedges and naan. Serves 4
Chicken Curry
INGREDIENTS
1 Pound Skinless & Boneless Chicken Breasts
3 Crushed Garlic Cloves
¼ Teaspoon Ginger
1 Cup Chicken Broth
1 Finely Chopped Onion
1 Teaspoon Olive Oil
1 Cup Water
½ Teaspoon Cumin Powder
½ Teaspoon Coriander Powder
¼ Teaspoon Garam Masala
¼ Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
1 Finely Chopped Green Chili
2 Tablespoons Coconut Milk
3 Tablespoon Finely Chopped Coriander Leaves
Heat olive oil in a medium size pan. Dice chicken breasts and sauté until golden brown. Remove and drain. Add the onion, ginger and garlic and sauté until golden brown as well. Add all of the spices and sauté for another minute. Add chicken broth and water and let it boil for 2 minutes. Add chicken pieces and cover the pan and let it cook for 30 minutes. At the end of 30 minutes add the coconut milk and cook for another 1 minute. Serve over basmati rice. Serves 4
Crème Caramel
INGREDIENTS
Custard:
1 Quart Whole Milk
1 ¼ Cups Plus 3 Tablespoons Sugar
5 Jumbo Eggs
3 Jumbo Egg Yolks
2 ¼ Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
Caramel:
½ Cup Plus 1 Tablespoon Sugar
3 Tablespoons Light Corn Syrup
3 Tablespoons Water
First arrange 8 (1 Cup) ramekins in a large roasting pan and set aside. To make the caramel: in a small saucepan, bring the sugar, water and corn syrup to a simmer over medium heat. Stir lightly to dissolve the sugar. Simmer for 25 minutes or until a rich, amber caramel amber caramel forms. Pour an equal amount of hot caramel into each ramekin. If the caramel gets too hard, gently reheat it. Preheat the oven to 300° F. To make the custard: In a large saucepan, bring the milk and sugar just to a simmer over medium heat. Stir for 5 minutes to dissolve the sugar. Let cool until warm. In a large bowl, whisk the whole eggs with the yolks. Slowly whisk in the warm milk mixture and then the vanilla. Strain the custard and pour into the prepared ramekins. Add enough hot water to the roasting pan to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover the pan with 2 layers of plastic wrap. Bake the custard for 1 hour or until they are set, but still slightly wiggle in the center. Remove the hot custards from the water bath and let them cool on a rack until they are room temperature. Cover and refrigerate the custards overnight. To serve pour 2 inches of extremely hot water into a small bowl. Dip the ramekin in the hot water for 10 seconds and then run a thin knife around the edge of the ramekin to loosen the custard. Invert the crème caramel onto a serving plate. Repeat with the remaining crème caramels and serve. Serves 8
Tilapia Ceviche
INGREDIENTS
2 Pounds Diced Tilapia Fillets
1 Cup Lime Juice
½ Cup Seeded Chopped Tomato
½ Peeled/Seeded & Finely Diced Cucumber
½ Cup Finely Chopped Onion
¼ Cup Chopped Fresh Cilantro Leaves
Salt & Freshly Ground Pepper
1 Tablespoon Hot Sauce
1 Serrano Chile
6 Grilled Tostadas
1 Halved/Pitted/Peeled & Thinly Sliced Avocado
1 Lime Cut Into Wedges
Put the tilapia in a medium sized bowl. Pour the lime juice (about 8 limes) over the fish and mix gently to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator until the fish is white throughout. This should take about 20 minutes.
Remove from the refrigerator and drain off the lime juice. Gently squeeze the fish with your hands and discard the lime juice. Add the tomato, cucumber, onion and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the hot sauce and chile.
To grill the tortillas heat a grill or grill pan over medium heat. Put the tortillas on the grill or grill pan and let them dry out until they are crunchy. If you would rather used readymade tostadas you can do that as well.
Top the tostadas generously with the ceviche. Arrange the avocado slices on top of the ceviche and serve immediately with the lime wedges alongside. Serves 6
Beef Sliders
These mini-burgers are so very tasty. What meat eater can resist?!
INGREDIENTS
2 Pounds Ground Sirloin
½ Cup Dried Onion Flakes
¼ Teaspoon Fresh Ground Pepper
Cheddar Cheese (optional)
24 Mini Buns
Red Onion Slices (optional)
Lettuce (optional)
Condiments of Choice
Preheat the oven to 400° F. Evenly spread dried onion on the bottom of a 9×13 glass baking dish. Gently pat the ground sirloin on top of the onion flakes to form one large patty. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with cheese if desired. Return to the oven for 5 more minutes. Let stand for at least 5 minutes. Drain grease by tipping pan and pouring most of the grease out from one of the corners of the pan. Cut burgers into 24 portions (6” x 4”). Place mini-burgers on mini-buns and top with condiments of your choice. If you would rather make individual mini-burgers you can do that as well. Makes 24
Chicken Pot Pie
I remember eating the TV dinner chicken pot pies growing up. Even as a kid I thought that the frozen ones were horrible. Homemade chicken pot pie is so much better. If you don’t feel like making your own crust purchase a prepared one.
INGREDIENTS
1 Pound Cubed Skinless/Boneless Chicken Breasts
1 Cup Sliced Carrots
1 Cup Green Peas
½ Cup Sliced Celery
1/3 Cup Butter
1/3 Cup Chopped Red Onion
1/3 Cup Unbleached Flour
½ Teaspoon Salt
¼ Teaspoon Black Pepper
1 ¾ Cups Chicken Broth
2/3 Cup Milk
1 (9inch) Unbaked Pie Crusts
Preheat the oven to 425° F. In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside. In a separate saucepan cook onions in the butter until soft and translucent over medium heat. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over low heat until thick. Remove from the heat and set aside. Place the chicken mixture in the bottom of the pie crust. Pour the hot liquid mixture over the chicken mixture. Cover with the top crust and seal the edges. Cut away any excess dough. Make several small slits in the top crust to allow steam to escape. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving. Serves 8
Julia’s Popovers
INGREDIENTS
¼ Teaspoon Salt
1 Cup Sifted Flour
1 Cup Milk
2 Eggs
1 Tablespoon Melted Butter
Extra Butter For Muffin Wells
Put 1/3 teaspoon butter in each muffin well. Heat the muffin tin in the oven for 5 minutes while you are mixing the batter. Sift the flour and salt into a medium sized bowl. In a separate medium sized bowl beat the eggs with a rotary beater. Now add the milk, butter and flour while beating on low. Mix only enough to make a smooth batter. Do not over mix. Fill the hot muffin wells 1/3rd full of the mixture. Bake in a preheated 450° F oven for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes turn the oven down to 350° F and bake for another 30 minutes or until brown and popped. Makes 12
Pasta Primavara
INGREDIENTS
8 Ounces Uncooked Linguine
1 Thinly Sliced Medium Carrot
½ Cup Chopped Onion
½ Cup Julienned Sweet Red Pepper
½ Cup Julienned Yellow Bell Pepper
1 Thinly Sliced Medium Zucchini
1 Thinly Sliced Medium Yellow Squash
1 Cup Broccoli Florets
1 Pound (Cut Into 3” Pieces) Thin Fresh Asparagus
½ Cup Diced Mushrooms (Optional)
1/3 Cup Unbleached Flour
2 Cups Cold Water
½ Cup White Wine
¼ Teaspoon Salt
¼ Cup Minced Fresh Basil
6 Tablespoons Grated Parmesan Cheese
Cook linguine according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a skillet coated with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, combine the carrots, onion, peppers, zucchini, summer squash and broccoli. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Add the asparagus and mushrooms and cook 5 more minutes. In a saucepan, combine flour and water until smooth. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes – stir constantly. Add the wine and salt. Stir well and pour over the cooked vegetables. Drain the linguine and add to the vegetable mixture. Add basil and toss to coat. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serves 6
