Chicken & Chickpea Stew

I got the original recipe for this from feast from the Mideast 250 Sun-Drenched Dishes from the Lands of the Bible by Faye Levy but the recipes can be quite time consuming and containing too many steps for my liking, so I tend to modify them quite a bit. I also like to use different vegetables than what is listed, and a bit more of the spices.

Ingredients:

• 2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 pounds chicken, chopped into 1-inch pieces
• salt & pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 14-ounce can chopped tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 3 cups cups chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 1 green pepper, chopped into 1-inch pieces
• 3 carrots, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled and diced into 1-inch pieces

Method:

Heat oil in a stew pan and add onion, frying until golden. Add in garlic and chicken, along with some salt and pepper. Fry until chicken turns white. Add in remaining ingredients and bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer on low until sweet potato's are tender. That's it!

I honestly give up on bloggers text sizing. Whatever I try to do, blogger will choose what size to make my text. I'm seriously thinking of switching to Wordpress but that feels like a lot of work :/ Anybody who has made the switch... does Wordpress import from blogger?

Blessed

Yesterday, while driving to the store, I saw this kid sitting on the side of the road with a sign. Before I could get close enough, I assumed the sign said "homeless." Instead, it said "Blessed." I had to turn around and go back. He told me he's 19, homeless, and trying to sell his artwork to make enough money for a train ticket to California. He had a lot to say about spirituality, God and life and I realized he had more sense than a lot of people I know who, on the outside, seem to have their lives together. He's not a beggar, he's not lazy, he's not stupid or uneducated or on drugs. He's simply taking an unconventional approach to life that, so far, seems to have worked on his character better than the conventional approach I see working in others.

Anu's Adraki "Aloo" Palak

Of course, I knew before I made this Adraki Aloo Palak that it was going to turn out perfect, I consider Mriganayani a no-fail recipe source :)

The only changes I made was to use turnips instead of potatoes and I simply fried them with the onions and ginger until softened.

I added the spinach mixture and as usual to my style, I added about 1/2 tsp. sugar at the end. It was sooooooo good, really easy and everybody loved it :)

~"Told my family I never want to live in a vegetative state dependant on machines & fluids. They unplugged my computer & poured out all my coffee."~

Aloo Biryani w/ Raita

The biryani recipe is adapted from Betty Crocker's Indian Home Cooking, I change very few things here and there...

Ingredients for potato dumplings:

• 3 medium (1 pound) potatoes, peeled and cooked
• 1/2 cup besan
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• salt, to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• handfull fresh cilantro, chopped
• vegetable oil, to deep fry

Ingredients for rice:

• 1 1/2 cups basmati rice, rinsed till water runs clear
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup whole, raw cashews
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 6 inches of cinnamon stick
• 6 cardamom pods, split open
• 2 medium onions, halved and sliced
• 2 1/2 cups water
• salt to taste
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

To assemble potato dumplings:

Mash potatoes in medium bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients except the vegetable oil. Divide into approximately 10 - 12 pieces. Shape each into a ball and flatten slightly. Set aside.

Heat oil in medium frying pan and drop dumplings into hot oil, frying, turning once, until golden brown. Remove with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Set aside.

To make rice:

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add cashews, fry 10 - 20 seconds till golden. Remove with slotted spoon, drain and set aside. Add raisins to pan, fry 20 - 30 seconds until raisins plump up. Remove with slotted spoon, drain and set aside. Add cumin seed, cinnamon sticks and cardamom pods to hot oil and sizzle 15 - 30 seconds. Mix in onions; stir-fry 3 - 4 minutes or until onions are golden brown. Add rice, stir gently, and add 2 1/2 cups cold water and salt. Heat to boiling, stirring once; reduce heat to medium-high. Cook uncovered, 5 - 6 minutes, until almost all the water has evaporated. Remove from heat. Divide partially cooked rice in half. Mix paprika into one half and turmeric into another. Set aside.

To assemble:

Heat oven to 350ºF. Spray a large casserole with cooking spray. Spread turmeric rice evenly in casserole. Arrange dumplings as second layer. Top with paprika rice as third layer. Sprinkle in a bi of water, cover, and bake 40 - 45 minutes until rice has finished cooking. Serve with roasted cashews and raisins.

For raita I combined fat-free yogurt with a few grated radishes (my new favorite addition,) some spring onions, cilantro, tomatos, salt, pepper, and water for the right consistency. I fry a bit of mustard seeds in oil and add that to finish.

And no recipe for the vanilla jamun's... Just a picture ;)

Stupid STUPID Blogger!

So, for my past few blog posts, I've been unable to increase my font size... It publishes with the tiny print. I'm doing the same things I've done the past two years! Is anyone else having problems or know of a solution?