cilantro chicken.

I love cilantro. However, I can't buy it too often as it doesn't keep very well for too long in the refrigerator. Before long, they get brown and soggy and I hate having to throw an entire unused bunch away. Anyway, Mr. Sachinky went to the Farmer's Market earlier this afternoon and returned with cilantro and other produce. I was determined to use most of it this weekend  before it could go bad on me. Something preferably with chicken. So after some research, I came up with this recipe, inspired from a Guy Fieri dish and it was, frankly, lip-smacking.

Pierce chicken pieces with a fork. 

Marinate chicken in a marinade of orange juice, soy sauce, honey, canola oil, salt, pepper, garlic, the juice of two limes, the zest of one lime, one fourth cup of cilantro and a hint of red chilli powder. The aroma is positively delicious and you will be tempted to lick the marinade off your fingers.

Let it sit for an hour.

Mr. Sachinky then heated up the grill and after three-four minutes in a pre-heated George Foreman, dinner was ready! Crunchy cilantro, ftw!

channa masala.

I wanted something spicy for a dreary afternoon lunch. So I looked around the pantry and found a can of garbanzo beans. I immediately thought of "channa masala." This stuff was so delicious and so quick to make that I just had to share it with you, lovely reader.

--Heat oil in a pan. Fry garlic, ginger, and onions till the onions turned translucent.

--Stir in the garbanzo beans and add chopped tomatoes and red chillies.

--Season with salt, pepper, a pinch of sugar, coriander powder and red chilly powder.

--I couldn't find the garam masala so I just threw in a spoon of chicken masala powder instead.

--Garnish with fresh cilantro. For an extra kick, squeeze lemon juice over the cooked beans. Serve with hot buttered paranthas.

tortellini in a basil pesto creamy sauce.

The delicious three-cheese tortellini in a creamy pesto sauce that we sampled at the Buffet at Bellagio left a lingering taste in both our mouths. So for dinner last night, we tried to recreate it with a few ingredients that we picked up on the way back from the grocery store. 

Follow the simple steps for a quick journey to a gourmet meal. Melt butter in a pan. Fry garlic, diced red onion, mushrooms and cubed bacon till cooked. I used several dollops of prepared basil pesto but you can always make your own. Mix in heavy cream till the sauce takes on green, creamy texture. Stir in cooked, drained tortellini. I know it looks weird but tastes out of this world. Even I, a non-lover-of-pasta, loved it. It wasn't quite the same as the one we had at the Bellagio which had a lot more sauce but it was still pretty damn good, nonetheless. 

the kitchen sink three-cheese quiche.

The last time I made a quiche was nearly three years ago in my college Gardens apartment. That time it came out sweet, like a pie, because I had used a graham-cracker crust by mistake. Lesson of the story: do not shop while hung over. 

For the last couple of days, I have been craving for a quiche ever since I saw one in the Sunflower Market aisle. Since we stopped at Walmart this afternoon for groceries I picked up a Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust. As with everything else I attempt in my kitchen, this is mad easy, mad delicious and used up several things that were just sitting around in my refrigerator.

Tada!

 I layered some slices of pepper-jack cheese on the bottom. You can use provolone or Swiss according to your preference.

Chop and dice mushrooms.

Arrange on top of the cheese.

I used some slices of baked ham and cut them into thin strips.

Add some chopped red onions.

Crumble goat cheese and sprinkle. Add half cup of chopped spinach.

In a bowl, beat together one cup of half-and-half, three eggs, two spoons of all-purpose flour, a pinch of salt, black pepper, parsley and red pepper flakes.

Pour mixture into the pie crust. 

Top generously with shredded cheese.

Bake for fifty minutes in a preheated (325F) oven.

 And enjoy the hot delicious cheesiness.

Happy Saturday!

kitchen sink potato au gratin.

This dish started out with two potatoes that had been languishing at the bottom of my refrigerator and some goat cheese that I had purchased on our last trip to Costco. 

So I decided to give potato au gratin a try. With a bunch of other things that I had at home. Layer the bottom of a greased pan with sliced potatoes, diced onions, ham, mushrooms. Seasoned with garlic salt and pepper.

In a sauce pan, melt a few table-spoons of butter and fry some flour in it. Pour in a cup of milk slowly and whisk till it begins to thicken. Stir in cheese. I used shredded colby jack, some provolone slices and goat cheese. Add salt and pepper. Mix the cream sauce into the potatoes and bake for an hour and a half at 400F.

There's something so very delectable about potatoes and cheese. I love the flavor the onions added to this dish, it mellowed out the goat-cheese taste which can get a little strong. 

green chile chicken enchiladas.

I have been off Mexican food for a while now but Mr. Sachinky craves it often. So I decided to make him a Saturday afternoon surprise. Green chile chicken enchiladas! Suzanne bought it to work for lunch once and having tasted it, I found that I quite liked it, to my immense surprise. I called her earlier this morning and got the low-down and as suspected, it was easy as one-two-three.

Ingredients: Corn tortillas, jar of green chile, cooked/shredded chicken, shredded cheese. 

Layer corn tortillas in a pan. pour green chile and smear the tortillas with it. Arrange the shredded chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Add another layer with tortillas, chile and chicken. Top generously with cheese. I used the colby-jack-monterey variety. Bake at 400F for ten-fifteen minutes. 

eye-candy.

Grilled pork and squid bulgogi at the Korean BBQ House.

Party-food.

Chocolate-chip and key lime muffin.

Deep fried peanut butter cups.

Lamb gyro.

Gyros and fries.

Spanakopita.

Baklava.

Nutella, banana crepes with strawberries and whipped cream.

Breakfast at IHOP.

Pancakes, eggs, and bacons.

Fresh salad.

Pork chops and potatoes.

Mutton biryani and chicken chaap.

Fresh mangoes.

Jalebis.

Aloo torkari and kochuri.

seafood-coriander-soup.

steamed-chicken-momos.

fried-chicken-wontons.

Coffee at CCD.

five ingredient chocolate pudding.

Now that Fall is almost here, this is the accompaniment to chilly evenings. Easiest thing in the world, delicious to boot. A handful of ingredients.

1/4 cup cornstarch.

1/2 cup sugar and a pinch of salt.

3 cups whole milk.

Chocolate chips. I used a mixture of dark and semi-sweet chocolate chips.

1 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Combine the cornstarch, sugar and salt in a heated saucepan.

Slowly whisk in the milk.

After 15 to 20 minutes, when the mixture begins to thicken, add the chocolate chips.

Continue stirring till the chocolate chips melts and the pudding is smooth and thickens.

Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

Pour into ramekins and set to chill in the refrigerator.

Recipe courtesy: www.smitten-kitchen.com

crab and shrimp noodles!

So, it's been a while since I've posted. Not that I have not been eating or cooking (less of the latter) but I've been internally debating between shutting this blog down and/or merging it with my regular everyday blog. However, all that changed when Rimi asked me for a recipe and I hastened to write this post, given that no one EVER asks me for a recipe -- actually that's not true at all, my apple crumble is a huge hit at all school events/ potlucks (thanks Mrs. Strock!) and Suzanne and Marcella did, in fact, ask for that particular recipes several times  -- but as it turns out that Rimi's comment was just the little push that this blog needed.

Any who, on to today's dish. Crab and shrimp noodles. It was inspired by a dish on Iron Chef America which is my favorite thing to watch on Sunday nights. Usually, the stuff they make on it is complicated and a tad too elaborate for my skill level but this one seemed doable in my kitchen and besides, it looked mad good.

So, let's start cooking! You will need boiled noodles, of course -- I had half a packet of glass noodles and half a packet of wide noodles languishing in my pantry so I did the sensible thing and boiled them together. Two eggs. Red and green peppers. I love red peppers but never buy them because they seem like an extravagant purchase but I found them at Talin for less than a dollar the other day and couldn't resist. Shrimp. Crab. Garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, chilli sauce, soy sauce, red onions, spring onions, mushrooms and jalapenos. The last item can be adjusted according to your taste buds.

Okay, now lightly grease wok with a few drops of oil. Break egg and scramble. The chef on television did it wonderfully with a pair of chopsticks but I used the last pair of chopsticks from Taste of Thai to scratch my back while watching The Nanny reruns so I just did it the old fashioned way with a fork.

Throw in some diced onions, red/green peppers, mushrooms, spring onions, jalapenos and let it cook. Season with salt, pepper. Add some garlic paste, sprinkle red pepper flakes.

Last stretch now. Add the shrimp, sautee for a couple of minutes -- you don't wanna overcook the shrimp. I used pre-cooked, frozen shrimp, same thing with the crab. Drop the drained, boiled noodles. To kick up the taste notch a bit, add chilli sauce and soy sauce. I used my favorite Chinese sauce in a bottle -- very unimaginatively named Chinese Hot and Spicy Sauce -- from Talin. Mix everything together, let simmer for a  few minutes while the noodles soak up the sauce. Like everything else, serve hot!