A Taste of India
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Here is a simple and delicious Indian recipe -- Chicken Masala. You will need to find garam masala seasoning (look under "G" in the spice section of the store...it's garam masala, not masala) or you can order it off the internet. You'll love the Naan-Style Flat Bread too...so easy and so yummy. I felt like I was back in Leamington-Spa eating Balti at our favorite Indian restaurant! Scoop up the yummy sauce with your naan bread--hmmm...hmmm...hmmm! Actually, you don't need the rice...just serve it in little bowls with the naan bread! But, it was really yummy with rice. Your choice!
Chicken Masala
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in thirds
1/3 cup flour
2 T. canola oil
1 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic (I buy the little jars and keep it in my fridge)
2 T. garam masala seasoning
1 (14.5-oz) can diced tomatoes
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can coconut milk (yummy...really gives the dish that Indian flavor)
salt and pepper
1 c. frozen peas
cooked white rice, to serve
Dredge the chicken breasts in the flour, shake off any excess flour and set aside. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken pieces and fry until golden brown on both sides. Remove chicken to a plate.
Lower the heat a little and add the onion and garlic to the pan (stirring constantly so the garlic doesn't burn) and cook until soft. Add the garam masala, tomatoes, soup, coconut milk, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and return the chicken to the pan. Simmer for 15 minutes, then add the frozen peas. Simmer for an additional 8-10 minutes.
Serve over hot white rice. (You might cook the rice in chicken stock for more flavor--just throw some chicken bouillon granules in the water)
Naan-Style Flat Bread
1 (14-oz) can refrigerated pizza crust
2 T. butter melted
1/2 tsp. cumin seed
1/2 tsp. poppy seeds
1/2 tsp. sesame seeds
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
Remove pizza crust from the can and unroll onto the baking sheet. Using your hands, press out the dough until it is approximately 1/4-inch thick. Brush the dough with the melted butter and sprinkle with seeds.
Bake until lightly golden...about 10 minutes. With scissors, cut in half the long way, then cut each half into 2-inch strips.
posted by Carolee at 9:00 AM
|
A Love Story
Thursday, August 18, 2005
A moving poem by Leslie Norris, a Welch poet and Poet Laureate of BYU...I like it:
Hudson's Geese
Hudson tells us of them,
the two migrating geese,
she hurt in the wing
indomitably walking
the length of a continent,
and he wheeling above
calling his distress.
They could not have lived.
Already I see her wing
scraped past the bone
as she drags it through rubble.
A fox, maybe, took her
in his snap jaws. And what
would he do, the point
of his circling gone?
The wilderness of his cry
falling through an air
turned instantly to winter
would warn the guns of him.
If a fowler dropped him,
let it have been quick,
pellets hitting brain
and heart so his weight
came down senseless,
and nothing but his body
to enter the dog's mouth.
posted by Carolee at 9:51 AM
|
Sister Okazaki's Whole Wheat Batter Bread
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
I was going through old recipe books and found this wonderful recipe. Chieko Okazaki and her husband had a group of folks over to their house one night, in Denver, and made this bread for us, to show us how easy it is to make delicious homemade wheat bread. It was so simple and quick, we were able to sample it before we left. It is heavy and moist and so good...especially when warm. Try it with some honey butter. You Stout kids may even remember having this as a child...minus the honey butter.
Whole Wheat Batter Bread
1 T. yeast and 1 T. sugar dissolved in 1/4 c. warm water until foamy-looking (about 10 minutes)
While yeast is dissolving, mix the following ingredients thoroughly in the mixer:
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1/3 c. honey or brown sugar
1 T. salt
2 1/2 c. warm water
4 c. whole wheat flour (could use 2 cups white flour to make it a little lighter)
Add the yeast mixture and 2 to 2 1/2 more cups of flour, just until bread pulls away from the side of the bowl -- this is a very soft dough (the less flour you add, the better). Mix for 10 minutes with your mixer. Spray two bread pans with non-stick spray and scrape batter into pans. With floured hands, shape into loaves. Let rise 25 minutes and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. (Freezes very nicely!)
Honey Butter
1 cup honey
1 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine honey, softened butter, and vanilla. Beat with electric mixer on high for about 3 minutes, or until thickened. Pour into jars and refrigerate.
posted by Carolee at 4:04 PM
|
What Was She Thinking?!
Saturday, August 06, 2005
I got such a kick out of Chris' "Sister Slide" video. What WAS she thinking? And then I thought...hmmmmm. What was I thinking when my best friend and I stole her sister's car and drove it around awhile. We were 14 years old and neither one of us had ever driven a car! What were we thinking? We just wanted to have a little fun, and I guess that is what that cute sister missionary wanted too, and she couldn't go put on a bathing suit, so... The good news is, the sister missionary wasn't going to kill anyone by sliding down the Slip and Slide...and my friend and I didn't kill anyone while driving around the neighborhood. Still, it is wise to ponder the possible outcome of our decisions, isn't it? I mean...yikes! Somethings just aren't worth the risk. Speeding away in a car when angry... sharing something given to us in confidence... lying... cheating... casting verbal stones. We would be wise to take 10 seconds and ponder the outcome before we leap into the unknown. I so admire people who manage to stay in control of their emotions and their actions. Do they count to ten before they leap? I think they must.
Anyway...may your spontaneous "fun" urges be like those of the Slip and Slide Sister, and not like those of the young car thieves! And may you think before you leap.
posted by Carolee at 9:29 AM
|
|
Archives