Butter Chicken

Recipe from Damn Delicious, & my very modified garam masala is from All Recipes.

Ingredients: Garam Masala

1 Tbsp. Cumin
1 Tbsp. Black Pepper
1 Tsp. Fennel
1 Tsp. Mustard Powder
1/2 Tsp. Cloves
1 Tsp. Chili Peppers
1 Tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp. Nutmeg

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. Coconut Oil

8 Cloves Garlic, minced

2 Onions, diced

2 Cans (14 oz each) Coconut Milk

2 Cans (6 oz each) Tomato Paste

1/4 C. Flour

7 Tsp. Garam Masala

4 Tsp. Curry Powder

1 1/2 Tsp. Chili Powder
1/2 Tsp. Ginger Powder

Salt

Pepper

6 Pounds Chicken, cubed

Basmati Rice

Directions

~Cook rice according to package instructions

~Saute onion and garlic in oil until translucent.

~Stir in coconut milk, tomato paste, flour & spices.

~Stir until there are no lumps and sauce starts to thicken.

~Simmer sauce.

~Cook chicken in a separate frying pan.

~Once chicken is cooked, add into sauce and stir to coat.

~Serve chicken and sauce over rice.

Enjoy!

Apple Smokey Dry Rubbed BBQ Ribs

This was great, even though it surprised me with how little sugar it contained in comparison to most recipes like it. I did increase the sugar though from what the original recipe called for as I was sceptical about what they were asking for. And it turned out great, with a bit of a kick.

Dry rub recipe adapted from the Food Network.

Ingredients

Dry Rub ( I doubled this and had lots of leftovers (but I don't think a single batch would have been enough for how many ribs I had))

1 Tbsp. Cumin

1 Tbsp. Paprika

1 Tbsp. Garlic Salt

1 Tbsp. Onion Salt

1 Tbsp. Chili Powder

3 Tbsp. Brown Sugar

1/4 Tsp. Salt

1 Tsp. Cayenne Pepper

2 Tsp. Black Pepper

Ribs (I used pork back ribs x2 racks)

1/4 C. Apple Cider Vinegar

1 Tsp. Liquid Smoke

Directions

~Combine all rub ingredients and mix (I place everything into a small Ziplock baggie so it's easy to shake to mix, and easy storage too for the extras).

~Place rack of ribs on a sheet of tinfoil, remove membrane.

~Combine vinegar and liquid smoke and brush onto ribs

~Coat ribs generously with rub and pat into meat with hands

~Repeat on the other side

~Wrap up in the tinfoil and allow to sit in the fridge (for however long you have to wait)

~Place tinfoil wrapped meat on BBQ and cook until meat begins to pull away from the bone.

Enjoy!

Philly Cheese Steak Stuffed Peppers

These were a success. Like a really, really big success. Usually only some of the more unique things I make, pass the 'would I make this again test?'. This one passed with flying colours and everyone seemed kind of shocked that this slightly bizarre concept could taste so amazing.

Recipe from Quick & Easy Recipes.

Ingredients

8 oz. thinly sliced roast beef (or leftover steak)

8 Slices Provolone Cheese (I used a spicy Monterey Jack and it was amazing, don't use havarti it just melts away to nothing)

2 Green Bell Peppers

1 Onion, diced

1 C. Mushrooms, sliced

2 Tbsp. Butter

2-3 Cloves Garlic, minced

Salt 

Pepper

Directions

~Preheat oven to 400 F

~Slice peppers in half lengthwise and remove the seeds and stem.

~Place a slice of cheese in side each half of the pepper

~Combine onion, mushrooms, butter, salt & pepper in a heated skillet and saute until softened.

~Add in beef slices and stir long enough to heat.

~Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly.

~Scoop mixture into each pepper.

~Top with another slice of cheese.

~Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese on top is bubbly and golden.

Enjoy

Currywurst and Fries with Special Sauce

This is a post I'm really excited to share. In Germany, one of their very popular fast food items is called Currywurst. It's really a simple concept. Slice your bratwurst, bathe it in curry ketchup and top with a side of fries (that you dip in the curry ketchup). If you are a big curry fan, don't think of this as a real curry dish, it's not. If you don't particularly like curry (like me), try this. It's really not very curry like. But it's still tasty.

So then in Belgium I had an order of fries. The dutch do fries really well, and Belgium is part Dutch. They eat mayonnaise on their fries over there. Sounds strange (and is strange if you think of it as North American Mayonnaise or worse Mayo or Miracle Whip) but it is a different mayonnaise. It has more tang to it. Which worked for me because I usually eat vinegar on my fries, not ketchup. But it did take a few tries for me to accept it. So they have these little fry stands and you can get all different toppings on your fries. Special sauce, cheese sauce, pickles, red and white sauce (mayonnaise and ketchup), etc. But in Belgium the place I went to their special sauce was mayonnaise, curry ketchup and onions. Very, very tasty.

I'm going to show you the curry ketchup recipe today and then you can make two good dishes out of it.  I will also show the special sauce mayonnaise recipe. It wasn't exactly the same as the ones I ate there, but it works. The curry ketchup though was pretty much identical.

Recipes from Saveur & All Recipes.

Serves 4 (1 1/2 C. Curry Ketchup & 3/4 C. Mayonnaise)

Curry Ketchup

Fry Sauce (Mayonnaise)

Ingredients

Curry Ketchup

2 Tbsp. Oil

1 Onion, finely chopped

2 Tbsp. Curry Powder

1 Tbsp. Paprika

2 C. Canned Tomatoes with Juice, diced or crushed

1/2 C. Sugar

1/4 C. Red Wine Vinegar

Salt

Pepper

Fry Sauce

1/2 C. Mayonnaise

Pinch of Salt

2 Tbsp. Red Wine Vinegar (I probably would just use white vinegar next time)

1/2 Onion, minced

1 Kg French Fries

4 Bratwursts

Directions

Curry Ketchup

~Heat oil in a large saucepan and cook onions until transparent.

~Add curry and paprika, stir and let cook for 1 minute.

~Add tomatoes, sugar and vinegar. Stir.

~Season with salt and pepper to taste.

~Bring mixture to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.

~Stir every so often while simmering for approximately 30 minutes until mixture thickens.

~Put mixture into food processor and puree.

~Run puree through a sieve (to make it authentic you only want the thin ketchup like mixture. I don't know if I'd put the work in though to run it through the sieve. It takes a lot of time and I don't mind chunks of tomato. But then it is more like a curry tomato sauce, not curry ketchup. So you decide).

Fry Sauce
~Combine all ingredients in a container and mix well with a fork to combine.
~Return to fridge until needed.

~Cook bratwurst
~Slice brats into bite size slices
~Bake or fry french fries
~Put brat pieces on plate, top with hot curry ketchup
~Top fries with fry sauce on one end, curry ketchup on the other and a generous topping of minced onion pieces.

Enjoy

Chicken Pot Pies (Dairy Free)

These were quite a bit of work because we had nothing prepared ahead of time and we made the pastry from scratch. You could buy some pre made pastry sheets or use some leftover chicken and veggies from the previous nights dinner to take out a few of these steps. But, the homemade pastry was so worth it. It may not have been pretty (I've only ever made pastry one other time and that was years ago) but it was so incredibly flakey and delicious. I've not ever been a pie lover, it's something I'll eat but it's typically not the first (or second) thing I'd pick for dessert, but I now know why. When the pastry tastes like this, pie is so worth eating.

Pastry recipe is the one off the Tenderflake box.

Makes 5 individual ramekins and 1 regular sized pie

Ingredients

1/2 Recipe of Pastry
             5 1/2 C. Flour
             2 Tsp. Salt
             1 lb Tenderflake Lard
             1 Egg
             1 Tbsp. Vinegar
             Up to 1 C. Water

6 Chicken Breasts
Salt
Pepper
1/2 Tsp Poultry Seasoning

3 Carrots, peeled and diced
4 Medium Potatoes, peeled and diced
1 1/2 C. Frozen Peas

1 Tbsp. Butter

1 Large Onion, diced

4 Cloves Garlic, minced

5 C. Chicken Broth
5 Tbsp. Flour
1 Tsp. Salt
Pepper
1 Tsp. Poultry Seasoning

1 Egg

Directions

~Make pastry

        ~Stir together flour and salt

        ~Cut in the lard until you get pea sized pieces

        ~In a measuring cup whisk the egg, add in the vinegar and top up with cold water to a total of 1 C.

        ~Stir the water mixture into flour mixture, adding a bit at a time and only add enough to make the dough cling together

        ~Gather dough into balls.

        ~Dough can be refrigerated if not ready to be used right away (just pull out at least 30 min. before rolling) - don't roll dough until you are ready for it at the end as it won't come off of the counter once it is left for awhile and warms up

        ~You'll only need about half of this recipe, so reserve the rest in the fridge or freezer for later projects.

~Season chicken breasts with salt, pepper and seasoning and bake in oven until almost cooked entirely. 

~Allow chicken to cool slightly and cut into cubes.

~Cut carrots & potatoes. Place carrots and peas in one pot and potatoes in another and cook until tender. Drain.

~In a large saucepan melt the butter and saute the onions until golden on medium-high. Near the end, add in the garlic and cook.

~Add in 4 cups of the chicken broth, reserving the remaining 1 cup, stir and lower temperature to medium.

~Pour the 1 cup of broth into a mug and whisk in the flour 1 tbsp at a time until all lumps are gone. Add into the saucepan, whisking constantly.

~Season with poultry seasoning and continue to whisk until mixture thickens. Remove from heat.

~Preheat oven to 425 F

~Grease the dishes.

~In a large bowl combine chicken cubes, carrots, peas & potatoes. Pour in the sauce and mix to distribute.

~Scoop mixture into dishes.

~Coat top lip of dish with a bit of egg wash.

~Roll out pastry on a floured surface and lay over top of each mixture filled dish. Trim edges and press to seal around edges.

~Brush top of pasty with egg.

~Bake for 40-45 minutes or until pastry is golden.

Enjoy

Cheeseburger Sloppy Joe (Tomato-Free)

Forgive me for what I'm about to do. I'm going to share a Sloppy Joe Recipe that is a little bit different. It has no ketchup and no tomato paste. Gasp! You'll survive, and you'll like it trust me. After looking at a few different recipes I came to the conclusion that the ketchup in the recipes was used as an ingredient to make a sort of BBQ Sauce, as it is mixed with spices and mustard, etc. And the tomato paste appeared to be a thickener. So, I cut straight to the chase and just added BBQ Sauce, and thickened it with flour and it worked beautifully.

The reason for calling it Cheeseburger Sloppy Joe (even though we didn't actually put any cheese on it at all - but you could and I'm sure it would be amazing) is because as it was simmering it smelled just like the smells I associate with hamburgers. Red meat, BBQ sauce, onions, mustard & spices. I think it was mainly the BBQ sauce & mustard combo that did it though. But, when you tasted it, it actually tasted nothing like it smelled which for me was a good thing because we just had had hamburgers the night before and I wanted something different and it was. I'm sure we'll be making this again which excites me because up until this point I have never eaten a sloppy joe.

Recipe adapted from Kayotic Kitchen.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

2 lb ground meat

Salt

Pepper

1 Large Onion, diced

1 Green Pepper, diced

3 Cloves Garlic, minced

1 Can Sliced Mushrooms, drained

1/4 C. Yellow Mustard

1/3 C. BBQ Sauce

1 Tbsp. Brown Sugar

Dash or Two Tabasco

1 1/2 Tsp. Worcestershire Sauce

1 Tsp. Oregano

1/2 Tsp. Cumin

1/2 Tsp. Paprika

1/4 Tsp. Chili Powder

1 C. Water

1-2 Tbsp. Flour

Buns

Butter

Directions

~In a large skillet season meat with salt and pepper to taste and brown

~Add in the onions & peppers and cook until veggies have softened and meat is cooked

~Add in the garlic and stir just until cooked.

~Add in the mushrooms. Stir

~Reduce heat to a simmer and add in mustard, BBQ sauce, sugar, tabasco, worcestershire and spices. Stir to mix.

~Add about half of the water. Stir. If sauce is looking watered down, whisk flour into remaining water and add mixture to skillet. Stir. (Really just play it by ear. The moisture content is really going to depend on your cut / type of meat so if it's too runny add less water / more flour, and if it's not saucy enough add some more mustard / BBQ sauce / water. Find your happy medium.)

~Simmer for 15-20 minutes.

~Butter the buns and warm them in the oven until butter has melted (don't let the buns go crispy, just want them warmed)

~Scoop meat mixture onto buns

Enjoy!

Sweet & Peach Chicken

For awhile now I've been on this sort of quest to find a good sweet and sour recipe. As fake and artificial tasting as the chinese food restaurant variety is, I still love it. So what I was looking for was never going to replace my take out sweet and sour, it just had to be good for a 'real' meal at home. Most recipes utilize ketchup in their sauces, which I was trying to avoid so I've never actually tried that variation of the recipe. I have made one with Kraft Catalina dressing which was good, but really not what I was going for as it was pretty watered down.

Then I stumble upon this recipe that I put on my 'to-make list' ages ago and just finally got around to doing so. The funny thing is, I had no idea that I was going to be making sweet and sour chicken. I thought it was going to be more fruity salsa like. Well, I was oh so deliciously wrong. This recipe turned out amazingly. Next time I might make one substitution though. Instead of using canned peaches, I might just substitute in an equivalent amount of pineapple. It would add a bit more of a kick to this sauce, and cut through a bit of the sweetness I think. Or I could just might omit the 1/2 Tbsp of sugar. Even though I was sceptical about adding it in because I thought the sauce would be sweet enough, I still did, but at a significantly reduced amount. I probably should have just gone with my gut instinct though.

Just as a warning again, I do cook / bake in huge quantities. These measurements that I include make enough to fill my wok right up to the brim. Mmm, yummy lunch leftovers for several days. But if you are aiming for just a one night meal for a family, try check out the quantities used over at  Kayotic Kitchen where I got this recipe from. For the most part I followed that recipe, but with a few slight changes.

Ingredients

1 Onion, chopped

2 Bell Peppers, chopped

1 Extra Large Can of Peaches (mine was 791 mLs I think), in juice (or syrup by I'm going healthy here)

1 Tbsp. Oil

2 lb Chicken, cubed

3 Garlic Cloves, minces

1 Tsp. Chili Peppers

6 Tbsp. Soy Sauce

2-5.5 oz Can Tomato Paste

1/2 Tbsp Sugar (optional)

1 Tbsp White Vinegar

Directions

~Chop your onion and pepper into chunks. 

~Cut the peaches into chunks, but reserving the liquid.

~Heat a large frying pan and then add you oil. When oil is hot, add your chicken and cook until it is no longer pink.

~Add in your onion and cook until onions start to soften. Then add in the bell peppers.

~When chicken is cooked through, mince garlic and add it in. Stir until garlic cooks but make sure not to burn it.

~Sprinkle in the chilli, stir to evenly coat the mixture.

~Pour in the soy sauce, and add the tomato paste and peaches with the juice. Stir.

~Sprinkle in the sugar and vinegar and give it a good stir.

~Place a lid on the pan and simmer until mixture is heated through.

Enjoy