Garlic and Pepper Chicken

I've rediscovered a cookbook that was sitting on my shelf untouched for several years. I'm now into Healthy South Indian Cooking by Alamelu Vairavan and Patricia Marquardt.  This chicken recipe lists many ingredients.  Don't be put off-include what you have.  If you get into Indian cooking you will buy the basic spices and have them on hand. I made a few minor changes in the recipe.

The chicken is beautifully tender and tasty. It would go perfectly with a simple rice dish and almost any type of vegetable.  The cookbook authors recommend Green Beans Poriyal. I will include that recipe in another post.

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs
3 tbl. canola or corn oil
4-5 small pieces cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf, crumbled
2 dried red chili peppers
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
1 tsp. urand dal
1/2 c. chopped onion
10 garlic cloves, cut in half
1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
1 tbl. minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 tsps. ground black pepper
salt to taste
1 tsp. curry powder, more if desired
3/4 tsp. cayenne powder
1/4 c. chopped fresh coriander

Cut the chicken into medium size pieces.  Rinse, drain and set aside.

Heat oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat.  When oil is hot add cinnamon sticks, bay leaf and red chili peppers.  Add cumin, fennel seeds and urad dal.  Add onion and garlic and saute for a few minutes.  Stir in turmeric powder.

Add chicken and ginger to skillet.  Cook, covered, over low heat until the chicken is partially cooked.  Add black pepper, salt, curry powder and cayenne powder together with the coriander.  Stir well to coat the chicken with the spices.  Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of warm water, adding 1/4 cup at as time.  Stir and cook chicken, covered, over medium heat for 12 to 15 minutes.

French Yogurt Cake

Over the years I have seen recipes for French yogurt cake that sounded very appealing and easy to prepare. When yet another recipe appeared on Epicurious.com this month and won rave reviews, I decided to give it a try. I loved this simple cake.  It is similar to pound cake but much less dense-kind of airy. It is perfect served with fruit-sliced strawberries from the farmer's market worked beautifully.

Vegetable oil spray
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup sugar
1 tbl. finely grated lemon zest
3/4 cup whole milk Greek yogurt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Coat a standard (8 1/2x4 1/4 inches) loaf pan with non-stick vegetable oil spray.  Dust with flour, tap out excess.  Whisk 1 1/2 cups flour, 2 tsps. baking powder and 3/4 tsp. kosher salt in a medium bowl.  In a large bowl, using your fingers, rub 1 cup sugar with 1 tbl. finely grated lemon zest until the sugar is moist.  Add 3/4 cup whole milk Greek yogurt, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 2 large eggs and 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract. Blend ingredients.  Fold in dry ingredients, just to blend.

Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth top.  Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into center comes out clean (50-55 minutes).  Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert onto rack and let cool completely.

Can be made 3 days ahead and stored airtight at room temperature.

NOTES: I used butter instead of oil spray and  used the zest of a whole lemon and. to me, that was the perfect amount.  I used non-fat Greek yogurt since that was the only kind I had.  The cake was very good. It would probably be fabulous with the richer yogurt.

Fish Wrapped in Vine Leaves with Yogurt Sauce

About 10 years ago a vine appeared in my garden and wound around the fence, looking beautiful.  It disappeared when the weather turned cold but reappeared each spring.  I finally took a good look at the leaves last year and realized the visitor was a grape vine. When I saw a recipe for cooking fish wrapped in vine leaves I was determined to give it a try using my very local grape vine.  If you don't have your own grape vine, buy a jar of preserved leaves.  I do not remember the source of this recipe but I got it from a Mediterranean cookbook.  This is my first try at steaming fish.  Shmooshed yukon gold potatoes and roasted asparagus complete the meal.

Be sure to make the yogurt sauce.  It is delicious.

12 large vine leaves, fresh or preserved

4 skinless turbot fillets (7 oz. each, checked for bones)

Salt and pepper, to taste

4 sprigs fresh dill

grated zest of 1 lemon

Cook leaves in boiling water ( 30 seconds for preserved, 5 minutes for fresh leaves).  Drain, pat dry with paper towels.  

Prepare steamer saucepan partially filled with water and bring to a simmer.

Place vine leaf, shiny side down, on work surface.  Slightly overlap another leaf, shiny side down.  Finally, place a third leaf in the center.  Place a turbot fillet in middle of leaves, season with salt and pepper and top with a dill sprig and a quarter of the lemon zest.  Wrap one fish fillet in leaves and turn edges in.  Repeat with 3 other fish fillets.  Arrange the 4 parcels in a steamer.  Cover and steam gently for 10 minutes or until the fish feels firm when pressed.

Yogurt Sauce

3/4 cup yogurt

3/4 cup ground walnuts

2 tsp. finely chopped dill

1 garlic clove, minced

While the fish is steaming, combine all of the sauce ingredients in a bowl.  Serve the sauce alongside the steamed fish parcels.

Serves 4 

NOTES: I couldn't find turbot so I used flounder fillets. 

The sauce is delicious on any plain fish and many different vegetable dishes  This recipe makes more than is needed for one meal and is extremely easy to prepare.