Chicken Tikka Masala

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe, via a recommendation from my sister Heather

Ingredients:
for the marinade:
1 cup plain yogurt (Heather said she's used sour cream, too, with good results)
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons black pepper
1 Tablespoons minced fresh ginger (I used 1 teaspoon ginger powder)
1 teaspoon salt
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips or chunks

for the masala:
1 Tablespoon butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces tomato sauce
1 cup cream (I used the 1/4 cup melted butter + 3/4 cup milk trick for this)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
For the marinade, combine all ingredients except chicken. Pour sauce over chicken and refrigerate for one hour or up to 8 hours (I had mine in the marinade for 2 hours). Grill or cook chicken in frying pan (I did the latter in a little bit of oil). Discard marinade.

For the masala, melt butter in large skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and jalapeno for one minute. Season with cumin, paprika and salt. Stir in tomato sauce and cream.  (I actually just melted half a stick of butter right at first and used it to saute the garlic and jalapeno, then when I added the milk it became the "cream".)  Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes (I only did about 10 minutes for the initial simmer). Add grilled chicken and simmer for 10 minutes (but then after I added the chicken it simmered for probably nearly 20 minutes while I waited for Gregg to get home). Garnish with fresh cilantro (this was a must - it really made it taste so fresh). Serve over hot rice.

Notes:
Heather had told me about (raved about, actually) this recipe multiple times and since we are officially out of the fun Indian spice packets we've received from Gregg's sister Heather over the years, I decided I'd try my had at a from scratch Indian recipe.   This really was quite easy and so awesomely delicious.  I'll be keeping this one in the rotation, for sure.  Oh, yum!

Creamy Lemon Oatmeal Bars

Source: here, and there's another version that differs just slightly here

Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt (next time I might decrease this to 1/4 teaspoon if I use salted butter)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold (I used salted and wish I would have decreased the salt as noted above)
1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed (I used slightly less - maybe closer to 3/4 cup)
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
2 Tablespoons grated lemon peel (about 2 large lemons)
1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 large lemons)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Spray 8x8 baking pan with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or using a handheld mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar until combined.

In a separate bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking powder, and oats.

Add dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix to combine. (Mine was really crumbly, so I had to use my hands to get everything combined . . . and then it was still rather crumbly.)

Press half of oatmeal cookie dough into bottom of prepared baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes.

While the cookie bottom is baking, stir condensed milk, lemon peel, and lemon juice into a small bowl. Spread lemon mixture over baked crust (while crust is hot). Crumble the remaining oatmeal cookie mixture over top. Bake about 25 minutes longer or until golden brown.

Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before cutting into 16 squares. Store covered in refrigerator for up to 1 week. Enjoy!

Notes:
I had really high hopes for these bars, and while they taste awesome, they look rather disappointing.  I'm not sure what I did wrong, but they are super duper crumbly and hard to get out of the pan.  Not very pretty, that's for sure.  But what they lack in photogenicity  (I just made up that word - ha!) they do make up for in taste.  They're not overly tart like some lemon bars can be, and the combination of oatmeal cookie crust with creamy lemon center is pretty dang divine.

Crockpot Jalapeno Popper Chili

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Ingredients:
1 cup chopped yellow or white onion
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed
1/2 cup red or yellow bell pepper, small diced (I just had a green one - not as much great color, but still tasted yummy)
1 pound chicken breasts, trimmed of fat (about 2 chicken breasts)
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
12 ounces dry white beans, rinsed and picked through to remove any stones or bad beans
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
8 ounces light cream cheese, cut into cubes
1 cup frozen corn kernels
6-8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled or chopped (Next time I think I'll just skip the bacon - it was flavorful enough on its own)

Directions:
Add all the ingredients except the cream cheese, corn and bacon to a 5-quart slow cooker. Cook on low for 7-9 hours.

Remove the chicken and chop into pieces or shred into bite-sized pieces.  You could blend part of the soup at this point to make it thicker/creamier, but I opted not to and it was fantastic anyway.  Return the chicken to the slow cooker.

Stir in the cubed cream cheese and the corn. Cover the slow cooker to let the cream cheese soften and the corn heat through, about 10-15 minutes.

Stir to combine. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve topped with the crumbled bacon (like I said, I think I'll just skip the bacon next time - I ate the leftovers without it and it was not missed) and tortilla chips.

Notes:
Easy peasy and super yummy!  This soup has a little bit of a kick, but I didn't think it was overly spicy, even with 2 jalapenos.  Callie loved the beans I cut in half and plopped on her tray and it wasn't too hot for her.  But if you go for really tame stuff, you could drop it down to just one, I bet.  I'm a big fan of this one.

Crockpot Orange Chicken

Source: here

Ingredients:
4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts, thawed (I just added them frozen and it worked perfectly)
3/4 cup orange marmalade
3/4 cup BBQ Sauce
2 Tablespoons soy sauce

Directions:
Cook chicken in crockpot on high for 3 hours.  After 3 hours, drain juices.  Mix together marmalade, BBQ sauce, and soy sauce in a small bowl.  Pour over chicken and cook on high for 30 more minutes.

Notes:
Couldn't be simpler!  Luckily it was awesomely tasty, too.  The chicken was so soft and moist and flavorful.  I did shred it slightly into big chunks when I added the sauce mixture, just so I could ensure that I upped the chicken-to-sauce ratio.  We ate this with some delicious rice pilaf, but plain rice would be fantastic, as well.

Cabbage Patch Stew

Source: my good friend Heather Hay texted me this picture after a conversation about cabbage soup at lunch one day

Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
2 celery ribs, chopped
11 cups coarsely chopped cabbage (about 2 lbs)
2 14.5 oz cans stewed tomatoes
1 15 oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 10 oz can diced tomatoes with green chiles (undrained) (I accidentally opened up a third can of stewed tomatoes, so I ended up using no diced tomatoes when I made this stew and it was totally fine and tasty)
1/2 cup ketchup
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon pepper (I always use a little less pepper than things call for, but that's just me)
1/4 teaspoon salt
optional: cheddar cheese and sour cream, for garnish

Directions:
In a large skillet, cook the beef, onion and celery over medium heat till the beef is no longer pink; drain.  Transfer to a 5-quart (or 7-quart if that's what you have, like me - just use a biggish one) slow cooker.  Stir in the cabbage, tomatoes, beans, ketchup, and spices.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours (my crock pot must be on the warm side because mine was ready in 5 hours on low) or until cabbage is tender.  Serve with cheese and sour cream if desired.

Notes:
As mentioned above, I got this recipe from my friend Heather after a lunchtime discussion (or almost debate) about cabbage soup.  I was one of the group who agreed that cabbage in soup was delicious, so after we got home, she texted me this recipe, knowing that I'd love it.  And she was right.  It kind of reminds me of non-spicy chili with cabbage added.  And Gregg was taken back to his Romanian days where sarmale (or cabbage rolls) were a special treat.  While this stew wasn't quite the same as what he had on his mission, it was kind of close, and he really liked it, especially with a dollop of sour cream.  Yum!  Soup Thursday for the win.

Penne with Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Source: my mom, who got it from a Quick Cooking Magazine (she thinks)

Ingredients:
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 medium onion, halved and sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced (I'm out of fresh garlic and my garlic press broke - sad day! - so I just used 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried sage leaves (I didn't have any sage so I subbed marjoram - don't ask me why I have marjoram but not sage!)
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 cups penne
2 Tablespoons butter
1 cup whipping cream (I used the 1/4 cup butter + 3/4 cups 1% milk substitution trick for the cream - and I also sprinkled in a bit of flour to help it thicken up, but I don't know that it actually helped so I'll probably just skip that next time)
1/2 cup chicken broth
shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:
Place sweet potatoes and onion in an ungreased baking pan. Combine the garlic, oil, salt, sage and pepper; drizzle over vegetables and toss to coat.

Bake uncovered at 400 for 20-25 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Cook penne according to package directions.

In a small saucepan melt butter; stir in cream and broth. Bring to a gentle boil; cook for 10-12 minutes or until slightly thickened.

Drain penne, add to vegetables. Add cream, toss to coat. Sprinkle with cheese.

Notes:
My mom served this for dinner while I was there visiting last week and Callie and I loved it.  It's a meal that's right up our alley with our love for sweet potatoes.  I decided I had to make it soon upon my return home, and Gregg loved it, too.  I was happy with how quickly it all came together and how delicious it smells while the potatoes are roasting.  This one will definitely be staying in our meal rotation. (I always call this and then search for "roasted sweet potato penne" and it never comes up in the search . . . so maybe it will now that I've made this random little note.)

Cinnamon and Sugar Breadstick Twists

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe (seriously, where else would I get a new recipe?)

Ingredients:
for the breadstick dough:
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 Tablespoon instant yeast
2 Tablespoons sugar
3 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

for the filling and glaze:
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 Tablespoon milk, more or less
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Soften yeast in water and sugar in large bowl till yeast is bubbly, about 5 minutes.  Add salt.  Add flour one cup at a time and mix until the dough starts to form a ball.  Knead for three minutes. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.

Lightly grease a large 11X17-inch rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Roll or press the dough into about an 8X18-inch rectangle. Spread the melted butter evenly across the dough.

In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle this mixture across the dough and lightly press into the top of the dough.

Using a pizza cutter, cut the dough into about 1-inch or so widths.  Twist each breadstick a few times and place them on the baking sheet about 1/2-inch apart.

Cover the breadsticks lightly with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel and let them rest for 20-30 minutes until they are slightly puffy. Bake for 15 minutes until lightly golden on top.

Whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla until a pourable mixture forms, adding more or milk if needed.

Let the breadsticks rest out of the oven for about five minutes before drizzling with the glaze. Serve warm. (These reheat magically for a few seconds in the microwave.)

Notes:

I taught the young women the joy of yeast and how to make bread this week for our activity.  I knew I was going to use my tried and true breadstick recipe for the lesson because it's quick and easy and perfect for a first attempt in yeast dough, but then I remembered that I had seen this sweetened version, using the same base dough recipe, on Mel's site recently.  I decided to do both.  I split the girls (and leaders) into two groups, each armed with a breadstick recipe and ingredients, and we ended up filling the church (ssshh, don't tell anyone that we "prepared and cooked" something in the church kitchen/oven) with the magnificent scents of garlicy bread and cinnamon sugar.  I call any activity with smells like that a success.  And luckily the girls agreed.  These were fantastic!

Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe (holy cow, I love her!)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup honey
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
3/4 cup finely shredded carrots (about 2-3 medium carrots)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt.

Make a small well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the butter, honey, egg, vanilla, and applesauce.

Stir ingredients together until just combined and there are still some spots of flour remaining.

Fold in the shredded carrots just until combined (don't overmix or the muffins will be dense).

Distribute the batter evenly among the muffin liners (I used a heaping 2 Tablespoons per cup and ended up with 14 muffins). Bake for 18-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Remove to a wire rack to cool completely. These muffins freeze wonderfully and keep well if covered at room temperature for 2-3 days.

Notes:
I barely squeaked in my monthly muffin challenge on the 31st of March with these babies.  They're definitely on the healthier tasting muffin spectrum, but they don't taste like dog biscuits by any stretch of the imagination (that's what one commenter on Mel's site said - sheesh!).  I must admit, though, that I did slather a tiny bit of left over cream cheese frosting from my birthday cake (the best ever cream cheese frosting, in my opinion) on a few and called it dessert.  Just perfect!

Bourbon Chicken

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe, via my aunt Nikie Elwood

Ingredients:
for the chicken:
2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 Tablespoons oil (for pan-frying)
cornstarch (for dusting, optional)

for the sauce:
1 garlic clove (minced)
¼ teaspoon ginger (I used ground ginger)
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup apple juice (I had pear juice so that's what I used)
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 Tablespoons ketchup
1 Tablespoon cider vinegar
½ cup water
1/3 cup soy sauce

Directions:
Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces, and if you choose lightly dust with cornstarch. Heat oil in your wok and fry chicken bits in batches until lightly browned. Drain on paper towels and set aside.

In a bowl combine all sauce ingredients. Pour into wok and bring to a boil. Add chicken bits back to the pan, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.  Serve over warm rice.

Notes:
My aunt Nikie submitted this recipe to an Elwood Family Cookbook that was compiled a few years ago, saying that it's her son Cardon's favorite weekday meal.  I finally got around to making it a few weeks ago, and I wish I hadn't taken so long to try it.  Totally yum.  But make sure you don't forget the brown sugar!  I did (that's what happens when I try to make dinner with a cranky baby) and it was definitely less than yum at first, so we had to sprinkle some brown sugar over our individual portions and kind of stir it in.  Crude, but it worked.  And next time I won't forget it in the first place.  Also, next time I think I might do like Nikie suggests and just skip the frying - it was messy and my skills with the corn starch didn't produce my desired crispy chicken anyway.