I Love New Gadgets!

 Hello again!

My sister in-law got us this amazing Le Creuset Dutch Oven for our wedding, and I was so, so excited to use it, I just didn't know what for. I spent quite some time looking online for recipes specifically for my new gadget, but alas, I couldn't find anything that sounded tasty.

Then I started thinking about food we like to eat out, and stuff we haven't had in a while. A bell went off. Indian food!! There's a great place in Ft. Lauderdale called Royal India that we just love, but hate how far away it is. My wonderful husband loves their tandoori chicken and rice, while I am in love with their lamb curry and naan bread. On several occasions, I have literally licked the bowl of lamb curry clean with pieces of naan bread. It's that good.

My mouth is watering just thinking about it now.

While I know I'll never cook as well as the folks at Royal India do, I was craving their food nonetheless. I peeked into my cupboards and in my fridge, and then just started whipping things together. I'm actually kind of proud of the end result, and look forward to tweaking this recip in the future so that it's more authentic. Possibly incorporate different meats and add-ons.

Mehgan's Curried Chicken with Carrots and Potatoes -

Ingredients:

-2tsbp olive oil
-1lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
-2 to 4 potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
-1 small white onion, diced

-1/2 bag of baby carrots, cut into thirds

-1 can of chicken broth

-1 bay leaf

-3 to 4 cloves of garlic

-1/2 cup plain yogurt

-1tbsp tomato paste

-1tbsp curry powder

-1tsp chili powder

-1tsp ground cumin

-1tsp garam masala

-1tsp salt

-1/2tsp cinnamon

-1/4 tsp nutmeg

Instructions: In a blender, place the 1/2 can of the chicken broth (reserve the rest for later), bay leaf, garlic, yogurt, tomato paste, curry powder, chili powder, cumin, garam masala, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Pulse until blended well, then set aside. Warm a large skillet or dutch oven over low to medium heat, adding the olive oil, potatoes, onion, carrots and the other 1/2 can of chicken broth. Cook with the lid on until the potatoes and carrots begin to get soft. Once they're nearly fork-tender, add the chicken and blended curry sauce. Replace the lid, reduce heat to low and continue to cook for about a half hour. If it looks a little too watery, let cook down with the lid off for an additional twenty minutes or so. Serve over jasmine or basmati rice, with naan bread as an added bonus.

My thoughts: I was fresh out of jasmine rice, so I decided to make my curry with couscous. My husband calls it "ghetto rice" haha, but he still likes it, and probably prefers it over rice anyway. I love the different spices in this dish, and everything combines really well. I think next time, I'll add some peas, just to get in more veggies, and possibly double the recipe since the leftovers didn't last very long in our house!

~Mehgan

Not For The Lactose Intolerant!

Welcome to my 100th blog post! Wow, I can't believe it's been that many. When I started this sad little blog four years ago (almost exactly!) I had no idea the ups and downs I would go through. But, through it all, I've remained an avid fan of cooking and baking. It's still as therapeutic for me now as it was the day I decided to sign up for Blogger. I considered starting a new one after my divorce, but no...I'm too stubborn, and I didn't want to lose all those beautiful recipes. Maybe one day I'll get around to making a new one, but I like this little blog of mine. It somehow seems like home to me.

Now enough of all that sentimental crap! Let's get on to the recipe, shall we?

This recipe is something I just threw together one night I knew what ingredients I had, I just hoped they'd taste well together lol. Being that I'm lactose intolerant, I can't have many dairy things, but when I went to make this, I basically just said "F--- it, I'm hungry, and I want some cheese". It's not entirely from scratch, but that's ok. When you've had a long day, this recipe will be there for you.

Mehgan's Cheesy Mexican Casserole -

 Ingredients:
-1box of Zatarain's Black Beans & Rice mix (you'll need 2 3/4 cups water & 2tbsp butter or margarine for this)
-1lb boneless skinless chicken breast
-4oz. Velveeta
-1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles
-1/4 cup sour cream
-1tbsp lime juice
-1tbsp chili powder
-1tsp cumin
-1tsp paprika
-1tsp cayenne powder
-1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions: In a 2-quart saucepan, cook rice as directed on the box. While that's cooking, preheat oven to 350F. Cut chicken breasts into bite sized pieces, then cube the Velveeta. Place in bowl, along with the tomatoes, sour cream, lime juice and spices. Once the rice mix is done, mix into the chicken mixture and combine well. Place contents of bowl into baking dish (I used the lovely Le Creuset baking dish that my sister in-law got us for our wedding), top with the cheddar cheese, and then bake for 15-20 minutes. I like to broil mine the last couple minutes of cooking, so that the cheese gets all browned and bubbly, but be careful doing this - it burns fast. Let cool 5 minutes before serving. Top with cilantro if you want to be all fancy-like. :)

My thoughts: Another hit! And it's so, so easy. The ingredients are stuff that I almost always have on-hand that go great in other dishes as well, but just so happen to work amazingly in this meal. I'm sure it's not the healthiest thing on the planet, but it could be worse. Just make sure to take your Lactaid if you're lactose intolerant like me!

~Mehgan

My Southern Food Journey - Part 1

Hello ladies and gentlemen! I know it's been a while, but it's just been too stinkin' hot outside lately to be stuck in a stuffy kitchen, stirring pots and pans of steaming food. I did have a cooking kick last night, though, so back to the kitchen it was for me.

Living in South Florida, I've got TONS of options for new foods to try out. I've been trying to steer clear of comfort food since I'm still in the throes of wedding planning and live in fear of not being able to fit into my wedding dress in October.

After a particularly sweltering weekend (it got up to about 99F with a heat index of 104F - bleh), all I wanted was some good, southern, home cooking. I had some frozen crawfish tails that I picked up at the market hanging out in my freezer, just waiting to be used. Having never cooked with crawfish, I was stumped. So, off to Google I went.

While searching online for a killer crawfish recipe, I brewed a big pot of sweet tea, which is one of my weaknesses. I foolishly drank two large glasses of it with dinner, and sat up half the night like a hoot owl, but that's not the point.

I will admit, I love the luxury of having this crawfish tail meat already prepared for me. When my fiance and I went out to dinner at Joe's Crab Shack, he got the New Orleans steam pot that included crawfish, and let me tell you...that was a struggle! I actually remember him saying to me "These sure are a lot of work for little to no meat!". I felt bad for the poor guy, so I handed him one of my crab legs for his efforts.

Before I go on, let's take a little trip down memory lane with Mehgan, shall we?

Imagine me, about four years old, bright blonde hair and blue eyes, living in Sumas, WA with my dad. My dad is a self-proclaimed red-neck who loved farming and living in the sticks and saying stuff like, "Hoo boy! Didja see that? That was a good-un'". So, one day, my dad decides to take me fishing in the creek behind his mother's house. (And when I say "creek", it doesn't rhyme with "peek", it rhymes with "nick". Just so you know.) I'm standing on the bank of the creek with my little Barbie fishing pole, hoping for a bite from a trout or whatever kind of fish we had in there. My dad, up to his thighs in the freezing cold water (he was wearing waders) is slowing moving his arms back and forth in the water. I specifically remember thinking that it was the same way he used to look for his glasses in the morning. Anyway, he shoots up like a jack-in-the-box, hooting and hollering "It pinched me! Yeeoowww!" and flailing his arms about (this was quite hilarious, since he's a 6'4" tall redneck in overalls and waders). Dangling from his right pinky was, what looked to me like a giant insect, but was in fact a crawfish (or crawdad or crayfish or mud bug, whatever you prefer).

This continued for another or hour or so, me trying to stifle my laughter while still patiently waiting for a bite that would never come. My grandmother did manage to cut a steak into the shape of a fish, so that I could say that I had fish for dinner that night.

Now, on to the incredible way my dad ate these crawfish: once they were boiled up, he would bite their little heads, sucking out all the juices, and then pinch the tails so that he could get all the meat out. I'm a girl. I don't do these things. I sat in wonder as my did finished off a good 20-30 crawfish in one sitting. Ahhh...my father....gotta love him.

Fast-forward about 20 or so years, and you have me thanking the Lord almighty for not having to endure the process of getting together 3/4 of a pound of crawfish meat in order to make my crawfish etouffee for dinner!

Mehgan's Crawfish Etouffee

Ingredients:

-1 to 2 tbsp olive oil

-3/4 to 1 lb crawfish meat

-3 cloves of garlic, minced (I like mine on the garlicky side)
-2 to 3 stalks of celery, chopped
-1 bell pepper, chopped
-1 large onion, chopped
-2 bunches of green onion, chopped
-1/2 to 1 cup chicken stock
-2 tbsp canned tomato sauce or tomato paste
-1 to 2 tbsp Cajun seasoning
-1/2 tsp corn starch
-2 cups cooked white rice

Directions: In a large skillet over medium heat, combine the olive oil, onion, garlic, bell pepper, celery and green onion until the onion becomes transparent. Add the chicken stock, tomato paste/sauce, crawfish meat and Cajun seasoning, stirring until the meat is thoroughly cooked (about 10 minutes. Add the corn starch, a little at a time, to thicken it. Side note: I know most people make their own roux with butter and flour, but seeing as how I had neither the time (I was hungry) or patience (side effect of being hungry) I opted for corn starch. Once it's good and thick, serve over the whtie rice. Enjoy!

My thoughts: DELICIOUS! I'm sorry I wasn't able to get a good photo before I mixed it all together, but in my rush to feed my face, I didn't even think to take one. As I was bringing the spoon to my mouth, I was like "Crap! I need to take pics!" Haha! But yeah, it was amazing, and really hit the spot. I ate a heaping helping of this while watching "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood" and drinking a big ol' glass of sweet tea.

Since my wonderful fiance is currently deployed, I have a ton of leftovers, but that's ok, because I'm in love with this dish. Just look at that delicious broth!! I could drink that by itself!...but I won't.

~Mehgan

From The Archives

Well, I know I had promised that since September is my month that I'd be posting a lot more, which is why it hurts to say that I am without a camera for much of this month. See, my husband had to go out of town on business and won't be returning for three weeks, and managed to make off to Yorktown, VA with our digital camera!! Luckily, though, I managed to find some old recipes that I had saved to my compter before our move to Alaska, so I'm able to at the very least, post those.

When we lived in the Seattle area, we had a Trader Joe's (my FAVORITE store, I could spend hours in there, which is pretty amazing because it was on the small side as far as grocery stores go) within walking distance of our house, and I became really used to having such luxury at my fingertips. One of my favorite meals was a variety of the basic Indian dishes they sold there. Our favorite by far is their Punjab Choley: garbanzo beans in a spicy tomato-y sauce. I'd serve it with some curried chicken, jasmine rice and a piece of Trader Joe's naan bread (we LOVE naan, and I can make it on my own using my George Forman grill -haha, I'm crafty!- but if I was in a hurry I'd pick up a bag of naan for like $2.50).

So, if you're in a pinch and you're fortunate enough to have a Trader Joe's nearby, I highly suggest picking up one of their Indian Fare side dishes. You won't be disappointed. They cook up really fast (we're talking 2 minutes in some boiling water and there's your side dish) and are a nice complement to curry dishes.

Mehgan's Chicken Curry:

Ingredients:

-1 can of coconut milk (if you want to cut down on calories, you can use 1/2 can coconut milk and 1/2 can 1% or fat free milk)
-1 to 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, thawed if frozen
-1 packet of curry seasoning (believe it or not, I find my curry packets by the Mexican seasonings at the grocery store)
-pinch of salt and pepper

Instructions: Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and allow to marinade covered in the fridge for about an hour. In a medium sauce pan, over low-medium heat, cook the chicken until the chicken is done. Don't worry about the sauce getting thick, because you can use it on your rice, but do make sure that the sauce is bubbling so you know it's hot enough. Serve over jasmine rice, with naan and your choice of sides.

I love this dish, it's just so easy, but it tastes like it took forever in the kitchen. Judging from the photos, you can probably tell that I made this either when I first started food blogging, or during the winter months. Anyway, I hope you try incorporating more ethnic dishes into your meal routine, you'll love it!!

Enjoy!

~Mehgan