Aloo Channa Chat

this is street food inspired dish, found often on the bustling streets of india, tiny stands with rolled up newspapers transformed into eating vessels, scooped high with this salad. it is vibrant, flavorful, colorful in texture and taste. not to mention good for you! this is an eye ball recipe-meaning there aren't exactly perfectly measured ingredients, as long as you have the goods, toss them together and snack away! tweak it to your own personal taste! enjoy.

you'll need:

2 cans of chickpeas, drained and dried
salt to taste
1 large potato, peeled, boiled, and chopped into 
bite size pieces 
turmeric
garam masala 
red chili pepper 
cumin
ground ginger 
ground mustard 
1/2 cup chopped fresh coriander 
1/2 red onion, finely chopped 
1-2 roma tomatoes, finely chopped 
freshly squeezed lime 

in a large pan, over medium high heat, 
saute chickpeas in a pat of butter. 
i added olive oil as well as i saw the pan getting a bit dry

add spices. continue to coat and cook the chickpeas till toasty, yet still a hint of soft. 

[if you haven't already, boil and chop the potato.]

once chickpeas are finished, toss in a large mixing bowl, throw in chopped boiled potatoes, as well as fresh ingredients [tomatoes, onions, and coriander]. 

mix it all together. 

squeeze lime juice over top. 

season with salt or any extra added spice to your taste preference. 

either eat immediately or chill for a bit and then eat later. both cold and freshly made is great!!

if you want to get the full experience, find some newspaper and roll it into a cone shape. 
serve channa inside with a spoon and sprinkled with sev. 

enjoy!!

Creamy Baked Masala

Last night we headed over to Matt and Amy's house-they're a great older (yet STILL young) couple that we've gotten to know, full of laughter and wisecracks, we have a great time together. Amy is one of those supermoms that makes her own jam-pulls her kids slivers out with her teeth-busts a cap in Insanity (with her rockin' bod)-is a Jill of a million trades-teach Sunday school kind of lady, if you know what I mean. And then there's Matt, quiet, but charming, unassuming and quick to laugh-they are a blessing to us both. Shaina and Phil were there too (read my post about Shaina if you haven't already..)

Matt heads down once a year to LA to purchase large mounts of shrimp, straight from the Gulf. I am definitely not a shrimp eater-I've probably only eaten it twice in my life, but I am never one to turn down highly recommended food..the way he prepared it was absolutely delicious!! Coconut oil, butter, Cajun seasonings, dipped in some crazy remaloude, and grilled on wooden skewers-I never ate so many shrimp in my whole life. He said there was plenty because it gets thawed in 5lb blocks!!

Anyways, Amy asked me to bring a little Bengali something, so with having the main dish taken care of, I just thought a side dishy/appatEASER would be appropriate. So this is where baked masala was born.

My cousin had served a baked dip that I had tried with a delicious marinara sauce and goat cheese and I was surprised at how much Indian hints it had to it. She said it wasn't meant to taste like that, but it urged me on to take it a step further and create it specifically with a Bengali flavored intent.

This wasn't anything crazy. Very simple actually, two humble ingredients and a lot of spices. I wasn't trying to impress. Just satisfy.
Turns out I did both. Everyone really loved it and were very kind in telling me so. I served it with mission flour tortillas (I didn't have time to pick up naan or roti) but that is what I will serve next time, but no one seemed to notice. In fact, Amy ran in to get some more of her own tortillas bc I ran out, and everyone was still dipping!

You'll need:
1/2 jar of Dave's Gourmet (DG) Masala Marinara (I picked mine up at D&W)
2 (8oz each) goat cheese
1 tbsp garam masala
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp coriander
1/8 tsp nutmeg
Juice of 1/2 lime (about 1-2 tsp)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a baking dish (I used my banana loaf pan, but you could use any medium size casserole dish) pour goat cheese in. Add spices one by one, making sure to fold it all in with the goat cheese.

Add marinara sauce and continue mixing everything.

Pop in oven covered in tin foil for about 25 minutes.

Serve with naan, roti, plain soft tortillas, fresh veggies, or over rice..

Cholay ~curried Chickpeas~

This is another one of my curry infused dishes. Cholay is a northern India recipe, but we're over here, in Northern America, and we're gonna eat it my way..:) it is flavor packed with sassy bengali/indian flavors, and full of protein and fiber. Oh, and did I mention it is gluten free AND vegan? It can be enjoyed by many. You can eat it alone, or how I suggest it, topped with pico de gallo. I just think it only adds another depth of flavor and fills you up good.

2 cans chickpeas, drained
2 tablespoons fresh chopped garlic
1" freshly grated ginger
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tsp cinnoman
1 tsp coriander
the juice of one lime
1 tbs crushed red pepper
fresh pico de gallo (see post for complete recipe)

Saute garlic and ginger in a large pan saute chickpeas in a little sesame oil until a rich golden color.

Incorporate spices, starting with curry, garam masala, and allow fragrance to be released. Pour chickpeas in, and roast and toast! They will be a beautiful sunshiny yellow color.

continue to add rest of spices, cinnoman, coriander, and squeee in the lime juice. add red pepper and remove from heat once everything is coated and toasted.

top with fresh pico de galo or just cilantro leaves and you are good to go!

Creamy Baked Spinach and Artichoke Dip

New Year's Eve is tonite. With 2 kids under 3, I won't be getting very far. That's ok, though. We will be spending a lovely evening with close friends, playing games and grazing on comfort food-which is exactly what this recipe is..I was super excited that all of these ingredients were lying around my kitchen anyways, so I saved money by not having to go out and pick something up. It's very creamy and rich, savory and hot, try it out and be comforted. Heaven knows we won't be eating like this for awhile come 2012..;-)

You'll need:
A half pack (8oz)  packages fresh baby spinach
1 tablespoon butter
1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese
1/2 tsp minced garlic (1 garlic clove)
1 (14-oz.) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1/2 cup  sour cream
1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided

Method:
1. Microwave spinach in a large, microwave-safe bowl at HIGH 3 minutes or until wilted. Drain spinach well, pressing between paper towels. Chop spinach.

2. Melt butter in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add cream cheese and garlic; cook 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly, until cream cheese melts. Fold in spinach, artichokes, sour cream, and 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese; stir until cheese melts.

3. Transfer mixture to a 1-qt. shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese.

4. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Serve immediately with fresh pita wedges or baked pita chips.

Baked Brie w/ Multiberry Jam, rosemary, and toasted almonds

This is something I usually make around the holidays, because it is rich in flavor and seems very festive and worth sharing, but I wanted to make it sooner. I LOVE when brie melts, taking on a creamy salty form and practically spills out of the pastry. Combined with the sweet multi berry jam, and toasted almonds, you get a very robust, full flavored appetizer.

I usually pair it with crackers and let everyone go to town.

you'll need:

1 large package of croissant rolls (I know, I know, I might as well call myself Mrs. Pillsbury)
1 med size wheel of Brie (8 oz)
1/4 cup toasted almonds (just toast them in small sauce pan with a little butter until fragrant)
3 tablespoons of mixed berry jam (you can choose whichever you like)
1 tablespoon of rosemary (I crushed into smaller shards)
egg yolk for shining it up

On a large baking sheet, lay out crescent rolls. Pinch edges to seal. Place brie in center. Spoon jam on top, along with rosemary, and toasted almonds. If you'd like, I added some dried cranberries as well.
Take edges of dough and fold over cheese, until it is completely sealed.
Take brush, dip in egg yolk and brush the entire pastry.

Pop in oven at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes.

Flowered Strawberries w/ Rosey Cream Cheese Filling

Look at these baby beauts!

My dad had a birthday recently and the tradition always is we all pack up our families and head to the beach. We stop along the way for a huge bucket of KFC, and tote along a couple sides. My dad loves certain fruit, so we pass around watermelon, Michigan Cherries, and strawberries!

It's a favorite highlight of the summer for me-and it's not even my birthday! Also because it's so hot in July, the fruit is a good substitute for a cake and doesn't melt.:)

I wanted to create something tasty AND pretty (that's just me) so these little flower buds were born. I just wanted to spruce up your average strawberry without too much maintenance. These held up well in the sweltering weather-well, maybe because they were gone so fast!

I'm sure they would also be fun for a shower or a ladies luncheon..Fun finger food!

you'll need:

a carton of fresh strawberries
1/2 brick of cream cheese
2 tablespoons of sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1-2 drops of red food coloring
slivered chocolate for garnish (you could use cocoa powder too)

With each strawberry, cut off green end so fruit can lay flat, pointy side up. Cut a cross through top, taking care not to reach the bottom completely. Fan out corners gently. Repeat with rest of strawberries.

In small mixing bowl, whip cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until fluffy. Add red coloring and give another blend till filling is a pretty pink color. Put in a zip lock bag and cut off corner. Pipe into strawberries and garnish with chocolate shavings.
Enjoy.

Hey Mambo Pesto Cracker Dip

I love a good dip.

I love crackers and dip. They are easy to share and easy for parties or get togethers, and there is plenty of room for creativity. Just start with a dairy, (cream cheese, yogurt, mayo..) and mix in your add ins and WHA LA, you've got a tasty dip or spread.

This one here is a fun one, it reminds me of Italy or well, at least pretending to be in Italy. It is chock full of flavor and it was extra fun to use some of what I have in my garden, which in this case, I used freshly chopped parsley from out back.

This spread was used for a party we were invited to with all our worship leading friends/bands from the lovely family at Crossroads. It was a fun time to had by all. Go ahead, give it a dip!!

You will need:

1 8 oz bar of cream cheese
1/8 tsp garlic salt

3 tablespoons of butter, melted
1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley
1 tablespoon of ginger
1/8 tsp mustard

2 tablespoons of pesto
3 tablespoons of olive oil
kosher salt and pepper to taste

In large bowl, mix cream cheese and garlic salt with blender till fluffy. Set aside.
In small bowl, mix butter, parsley, ginger, and mustard. Pour wet mixture in with cream cheese mixture.
Add pesto, Olive oil, and salt and pepper. Give it another blend until everything is thoroughly mixed.
Place in serving bowl and serve with wheat thins and pita chips.
Enjoy.