French-Style Goat Cheese & Mushroom Baguette

This is a fabulous, vegetarian party appetizer where you hardly miss the meat! The wholesome mushrooms cooked in the sherry and fresh parsley and garlic is a delicious, French way of cooking these mushrooms. Coupled with cheese and baguette, you are truly eating like a Parisian!

If you are not a big fan of the tanginess of goat cheese, feel free to substitute with brie cheese (also a lovely combination!) for a more mellow taste, or even thinly sliced swiss cheese.

Enjoy! 🙂

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound large cremini or button mushrooms, trimmed and sliced through the stem end
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/3 cup sherry (preferably dry sherry, but regular cooking sherry works)
1 teaspoon paprika (ideally use hot smoked Spanish paprika)
4 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
zest of 1 lemon
KosherSalt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Goat cheese, to taste
16 slices baguette (can be sourdough, whole-grain, etc.)

Directions

In a large saute pan, melt the butter with olive oil over medium-high heat, until frothing (but not smoking!). Add the mushrooms and cook while stirring frequently, until just cooked through and beginning to brown (approximately 3-5 minutes).

Now add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer, or until fragrant. Add the sherry, paprika, parsley, and lemon zest, and stir for 30 seconds, or until most of the liquid is absorbed into the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper. Note: Do a taste taste after you think it is done, and add more salt and pepper as desired.. Set aside.

Spread goat cheese on each slice of baguette and spoon about a tablespoon of the mushroom mixture on top of each slice.

Note: Another way to serve this is to lay out the baguette slices, goat cheese log, and bowl of mushroom mixture and allow your guests to assemble their own slices as they want (I prefer this method since many of my friends do not enjoy cheese, so they can omit that and still enjoy a mushroom baguette!). Whereas, if it was me assembling my own slice of baguette, I would lather on the goat cheese! 😉

Enjoy 🙂

Pair it: with a great glass of Chardonnay!

Basil & Goat Cheese Filled Cherry Tomatoes

I served these recently at a tapas party and they were a hit! Feel free to use red or yellow cherry tomatoes, both taste and look beautiful! This is a great, no-cook recipe that is sure to be a crowd pleaser. If I would give one piece of advice for this recipe, do not skip the FRESH basil (i.e. dry basil is not a good substitute!).

If you are familiar with piping, feel free to fill the cheese mixture into a piping bag with a pretty styling tip, and pipe the mixture into the cherry tomatoes for a more fancy look!

Enjoy! 🙂

Ingredients

1/2 cup goat cheese
1/4 cup minced fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon salt (be careful to not over-salt the cheese mixture since goat cheese is already tangy!)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
24 cherry tomatoes

Variation: Add grilled corn to the cheese mixture for an added sweet crunch! 🙂

Directions

Combine the cheese, basil, salt and pepper in a bowl with a fork, until well-incorporated. Taste test the cheese mixture and adjust seasoning as desired.

Cut the top off each cherry tomato and using a small knife and spoon (or clean hands!) carefully cut and scoop out the pulp to make a hollow, yet sturdy, shell. Note: Drain off any juice that may be in the tomato shells.

Using a small spoon (or your clean hands!), fill each tomato shell with the cheese mixture.

Arrange beautifully in a platter and serve! Can be refrigerated a few hours ahead.

Curried Chicken Tea Sandwich with Toasted Coconut & Almonds

This recipe is a new one in my repertoire and I put it together for a recent event I was hosting at my husband’s office. The food theme was ‘tapas’ and this fit the bill! I only had a few hours to put together a spread of tapas, and this was probably the easiest one for me to put together! The biggest reason is because this is pretty much a no-cook recipe – assembly only!

I bought a rotisserie chicken from the market, and after that it was all assembly! 🙂 I decided to do sandwich triangles, but I also like the thin, rectangular presentation for tea sandwiches (classic is always lovely!). If you are worried about the sandwiches coming apart, feel free to put a toothpick through each sandwich.

Even though this is great as a ‘tea’ sandwich, this sandwich is perfect for a quick lunch sandwich to switch things up a little.

If you don’t want the sweeter taste that comes from the marmalade and coconut, omit them and add white onions and avocado cubes to the chicken mixture (although, try it once – you might be surprised how much you like it!).

Enjoy 🙂

Yields: 24-36 tea sandwiches or 12 entreé-size sandwiches
Ingredients

1/2 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup chopped or slivered almonds
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons orange-ginger marmalade (or you can use orange marmalade if orange-ginger is unavailable)
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 cups diced cooked chicken (I take meat off of a fresh rotisserie chicken from the supermarket)
12 slices of bread of your choice, crusts trimmed (pumpernickel adds a great taste variance, but I usually have buttermilk on hand and enjoy that)
3 tablespoons diced green onions

Preparation

Bake coconut and almonds in a shallow baking pan at 350°, stirring occasionally, 5 to 10 minutes or until toasted. (Note: if you want them to bake separately in case there are leftovers afterward, use different pans, otherwise to save time, I just put them in the same baking pan).

Stir together cream cheese and next 4 ingredients in a bowl; gently stir in chicken with a spatula until all ingredients are well-incorporated. This chicken salad filling can be made ahead and can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.

Spread evenly on bread slices and top with toasted coconut, toasted almond, and green onion, as desired. Cut each slice into 2-3 strips (optional) for tea sandwiches, or you can leave whole for an entreé portion.

Nobu’s Miso Black Cod

This is probably my all-time favorite preparation of fish. And many of you know how MUCH I love my baked/grilled fish, so this really means a lot!!! This recipe is definitely not my own, BUT it is one of those rare recipes that actually tastes EXACTLY like the dish I had in the restaurant.

The love affair between me and Miso Black Cod started many years ago (circa 2006) in Manhattan at the infamous Nobu restaurant. I ordered it as a fluke, and from that moment onward decided that any time I hit the Big Apple, I simply HAD to go to Nobu and order the miso cod! It was love at first bite.

Famous chef Nobu Matsuhisa has so generously shared his secret recipe online with Food & Wine, and who would have KNOWN that it was SO SO simple (yet so luscious and tasty!?) 🙂 I believe this recipe can also be found in his cookbook (I already ordered mine and it’s on it’s way! :)).

If you follow the recipe to the T, you are guaranteed to have a party in your mouth of amazing miso flavors with the most tender, delicious black cod fish you will ever have. (Yes, I am a bit biased, but I mean it!!).

Enjoy one of my favorite recipes of ALL TIME. 🙂 Woohoo! And Happy Friday 🙂

Yields: 2 servings (Note: I doubled this recipe when I made it for my family – just double all the ingredients!)

Ingredients

3 tablespoons mirin
3 tablespoons sake (I used good quality sake that I enjoy and get from Whole Foods, however you can also use ‘cooking sake’ that is available at your local Asian store – either way is fine!)
1/2 cup white miso paste (available fresh in the refrigerated section of most Asian and Japanese markets – make sure you get WHITE miso paste, not red! It will change the taste profile completely otherwise!)
1/3 cup sugar
2 (two) 6 or 7-ounce skinless black cod fillets, about 1 1/2 inches thick (you can substitute with other firm white fish varieties!)
Vegetable oil, for grilling

Optional Garnish: Chopped green onions, pickled ginger

Directions

In a small saucepan, bring the mirin and sake to a boil. Whisk in the miso paste until dissolved completely. Lower the heat to moderate heat, and add in the sugar until incorporated. (Feel free to taste the marinade at this point and decide whether you prefer more sugar, more miso, etc. Although, if you measure the ingredients per the above, it should be a stellar outcome!)

Transfer the marinade to a glass baking dish and let cool (you don’t want to put fresh fish in a HOT marinade – it will cook on the spot!)

Reserve about 1/2 cup of the marinade to serve with the final product. Add the fish into the remaining marinade and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 24-48 hours in an airtight container (trust me, you don’t want the fish smell to seep into your other food goodies in the fridge!).

Note: If you don’t have that much time, even a few hours will do wonders, although for the true depth of flavor, go the whole way and do the 1-2 day marination!

After your fish is done marinating…

Preheat the oven to 400°.

Meanwhile, heat a grill pan and oil it with the vegetable oil using a brush. Carefully scrape the marinade off the fish using a butter knife. Make sure the grill pan is very hot before adding the fish. Grill over high heat until browned/blackened a bit, about 2 minutes each side.

Move the fish onto a parchment-paper lined baking sheet and roast for 8-10 minutes in your pre-heated oven on the middle rack, until flaky.

Transfer to plates and serve hot with reserved marinade! Enjoy! 🙂

Note: The marinade can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Slow-Cooked Rabbit Stew in a Red Wine Reduction

This recipe is definitely for the adventurous and not for the faint of heart! I only recently tried rabbit for the first time and quite frankly, fell in love with it! Being a vegetarian as recently as my teenage years (no longer, though!), the idea of eating a rabbit was a little frightening, which is why I think I waited so long. But a moment of courage converted me into a lover of all things rabbit! 🙂 I love rabbit meat when it is super juicy and tender (fall-off-the-bone-tender, that is), and this recipe does exactly that!

I don’t recommend this to be your first rabbit experience of your life – do what I did and go to a nice restaurant that is known for their meat dishes 🙂 If you like what you taste, then feel free to experiment at home! That is not to say this recipe isn’t delicious (it is!) :), but even starting with the chopping of the rabbit can be a bit gruesome for a first-timer.

Anyhow, for those of you brave enough to try it, I hope you enjoy and it and PLEASE do let me know if you find this recipe as tasty as I do! 🙂

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 domestic rabbit, cut
2 medium red or white onions, sliced
1 cup diced carrots
5 cloves chopped garlic
Kosher salt, to taste
1.5 teaspoon allspice powder (or 10 allspice berries)
1 cinnamon stick
4 bay leaves
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons tomato paste
4 large tomatoes, grated, or 1 14-ounce can of crushed tomatoes – (I used a food mill after grating to ensure the tomato skin did not go into the dish!)
1.5 cup red wine (preferably dry)
1/2 cup chicken (or rabbit) stock
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper

Cut up the rabbit and cut into serving pieces.

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a sauté pan and brown the rabbit well.

Once browned, move the rabbit pieces to a dutch oven (or heavy pot with lid).

With the remaining oil in the pan, sauté the onions and carrots for 4-5 minutes over medium-high heat, until they begin to brown. Add the garlic and saute for another minute (stirring constantly will stop the garlic from burning). Sprinkle with salt.

Now add all the vegetables to your dutch oven and arrange the bay leaves, oregano, allspice, and cinnamon stick over them.

In the pan you browned the rabbit and the onions, add the wine, sweet wine, vinegar, stock, tomato paste and grated tomatoes (make sure the tomatoes do not have their skin – you can use a food mill, if desired) Cook this down over high heat for 3-4 minutes.

Now, pour over everything in the pot.

Cover the pot and bring to a simmer. Cook on extremely low heat for 2 hours.

Serve hot and garnish with freshly cracked black pepper! Enjoy! 🙂

Fancy Asparagus & Tomato Party Pizza

UPDATE: 2/12/12: See one of my readers’ review on this recipe here!

Hey all! This is a simple recipe that I made the other day for a lunch and this was a HUGE hit! Change things up by baking this in a square pan instead of a round one – cut square pieces and enjoy as finger food or with a salad to complete a light meal! The fresh asparagus and tomato slices gives you a burst of fresh flavor and skipping the tomato sauce makes this dish a lot lighter than your regular, every-day pizza.

Remember you can make this dish look super fancy by arranging the asparagus spears and tomatoes in a beautiful arrangement – when you are entertaining, if your presentation is beautiful, people always seem to enjoy the food even more! 😉

Hope you enjoy this recipe :).

Yields: 4-6 appetizer servings or 3-4 entree

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour, for dusting
1 ball of store-bought pizza dough (both Whole Foods and Trader Joes sell it in the refrigerated section, and they are delicious!)
1/2 tablespoon Kosher salt
2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan (adds a bite to the pizza!)
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
3/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
[Note: you can use a cheese blend of your choice if you want]
one handful of asparagus spears, trimmed, washed, and dried (preferably thin asparagus, if available)
1 tomato, sliced
1/4 cup chopped green onion (green part)

AFTER BAKING PIZZA
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Prepare your rolling surface for the dough by sprinkling 1/2 of your all-purpose flour on the flat surface (this prevents your pizza dough from sticking). Using a rolling pin, roll out your pizza dough on your floured surface. Roll it so that you end up with a crispy, Italian-style pizza (if you prefer to roll it thicker, increase your baking time so that you don’t end up with raw pizza dough!).

Spray your pizza pan with cooking spray and pick up the rolled pizza dough from your surface and move it to the greased pan. Don’t worry if your pizza dough looks too small for the pan at this point, or is an odd shape! The great thing about pizza dough is that it stretches! Now stretch the dough to fit the pizza pan (your pan can be circular or rectangular, your choice!). Using two fingers (index and middle), work around the edge of the pizza pan and dough and compact the edges so they sit perfectly on the edge of the pan (your dough should not be spilling over the sides of the pan, but rather contained on the pan).

Drizzle the olive oil on the pizza dough and spread evenly. Sprinkle on the kosher salt.

Now bake the pizza in your preheated oven for 3-5 minutes (depends on your oven strength). This allows the crust to cook a little for extra crispiness in your end product.

Now add the cheese, asparagus, tomato slices & green onion. Bake for an additional 3-5 minutes until the cheese is melted and the bottom of the pizza is done to your desired crispiness.

VARIATIONS ON THIS RECIPE: Use a pesto sauce or Alfredo sauce if you don’t like your pizza sans-sauce. Or try adding roasted corn AFTER you have pulled the pizza out of the oven before serving. YUMMO!!!

Enjoy!

Baked Tofu Parmigiana

I love my tofu – believe it or not in one day in age I used to be vegetarian! I used to eat a lot more of it than I do now, but I miss it and thus come up with crazy recipes like this one 😉 I also LOVE cooking for my family, and both of my parents are vegetarian. Thus, I am always trying to think up new, vegetarian recipes to serve them. This idea came about after I made traditional Chicken Parmigiana for my husband one day. I realized that firm tofu would probably provide the same, meaty texture that chicken gives in the dish, and it really does! My husband actually loves this tofu version and was surprised at how similar the tofu feels to chicken.

My suggestions in preparing the dish are the following:
-Don’t skimp on the tomato/marinara sauce – the baked tofu ends up being a little on the dry side and the sauce is SO necessary to get that creaminess that most people enjoy.
-Watch your tofu as it bakes in the oven – depending on how you slice it, the cooking time can vary based on thickness of your slices
-This does not work very well with anything softer than firm tofu, so don’t experiment with that!
-Ricotta cheese can be substituted instead of the mascarpone for an equally delicious dish
-If you are a vegetable monkey :), feel free to add things like baby spinach, carrots, zucchini to the tomato sauce for an even healthier dish! Since baking time is only 20 minutes, feel free to give them a quick saute in olive oil before you add them to the baking dish.

I am sure you and your family will love it as much as mine does. Try it out!

Enjoy 🙂

PS – for the first time ever, I have taken lots of pictures of the cooking process to hopefully make things easier for you. Please do let me know in the comments section if you prefer photo-heavy recipes or what I have been doing earlier.

Yields: 2-3 servings (this is perfect for date night!)

Ingredients

For the baked tofu component:
1/2 cup bread crumbs
5 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon tarragon
1 tablespoon basil
2 tablespoons Kosher salt, divided
2 tablespoons black pepper, divided

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 cup of all purpose flour

For the rest of the recipe:
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce (you can use pasta sauce/marinara sauce)
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 clove garlic, minced
5-6 heaping tablespoons of mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated
Kosher salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Take tofu out of package and dry with paper towels. Place in ziploc bag and into freezer for half an hour (this allows it to firm up even more for even breading).

Meanwhile, prepare your breading station with three different plates with some depth.

Plate 1: all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon of Kosher salt, 1 tablespoon black pepper
Plate 2: 2 eggs lightly beaten
Plate 3: combine the following ingredients with a fork: bread crumbs, paprika, tarragon, basil, cheese, 1 tablespoon Kosher salt, 1 tablespoon pepper

Slice tofu block into 2 thick slices (if you prefer thinner slices and want to make 3 or 4 slices out of the block, that’s fine! Just remember they will get crispy in the oven quickly so adjust the baking time).

One at a time, press tofu slices into the flour, turning to coat all sides. Then press into the egg mixture, turning to coat all sides. Lastly, press into the crumb mixture, turning to coat all sides.

Arrange dredged tofu slices onto parchment paper-lined baking sheet (be sure to spray the parchment paper with cooking spray to avoid any sticking!). Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until browned. Remove and set aside.

Turn up heat on the oven to 400 degrees F.

Meanwhile, combine tomato sauce, basil, garlic.

Place a thin layer of this sauce in an 8 inch baking pan.

Top with mascarpone cheese.

Arrange tofu slices in the pan on top of sauce and mascarpone.

Spoon remaining sauce over tofu. Top with shredded mozzarella and remaining 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan.

Once oven has reached 400 degrees F (205 degrees C), bake for 20-25 minutes until cheese is bubbling. If you want a little browning on your cheese topping, at the end broil for 5-7 minutes!

Cut square servings of this ‘tofu parmesan pie’ and enjoy hot!

Homemade Pasta Dough

Fresh pasta is such a luxury that I know that I seek it out specifically when I crave it and know exactly which Italian restaurants in the area make fresh pasta daily. You can really taste the difference in the taste when you compare dried, packaged pasta to fresh pasta. My husband and I went on our honeymoon to Italy a few years ago, and man oh man was I rapidly spoiled by the beautiful, perfect pasta in both Florence and Rome!

Pasta dough is not easy to make (it takes practice to perfect it), but if you don’t mind the few steps it takes, I promise you it is WELL worth it! The results will astonish you. Believe it or not, fresh pasta takes only a few minutes to cook in boiling water (as opposed to 8-12 minutes for packaged pasta!). I have made so many different pasta forms from this dough recipe and enjoyed them all: tagliatelle, raviolis with different fillings, spaghetti, macaroni, rigatoni, you name it! However, for today’s recipe, I will keep it simple and provide only the pasta dough recipe. This will become the base for many pasta recipes that I will share in the near future (hint hint 😉 ).

I really do hope many of you try this pasta recipe out. It is only one way out of MANY ways to make pasta dough (e.g. there is a 7-egg pasta dough recipe out there on the internet, and many chefs differ on the flour-to-egg-ratio that they like for their dough). However, this recipe has worked well for me.

I have provided two different methods to produce this dough: 1. using an electric mixer and 2. my favorite, using your hands! 🙂

Enjoy! And please do continue to share your recipes/ideas/feedback to me via the comments section – it really helps me! THANK YOU THANK YOU! 🙂

Ingredients

2.5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
4 eggs
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Directions

Using an electric mixer:

In an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flour and salt. Add the eggs, 1 at a time (this allows the dough to incorporate the moisture from the eggs evenly and also avoids making it lumpy). Once all the eggs are well-incorporated, drizzle in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil (make sure it’s extra-virgin!) and continue to incorporate all the flour until it forms a ball. Sprinkle some flour on work surface, knead and fold the dough until smooth.

Brush the surface with the remaining olive oil and wrap the dough in plastic wrap; let rest for about 30 minutes to allow the gluten to relax. Roll/ form as desired.

Using your hands:

Wash your hands! 🙂 Now, mound the flour in the center of a large wooden cutting board (or on a large countertop that you don’t mind getting a bit messy ;-)). Make a well in the middle of the flour, add the eggs, salt, and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil into the well (see pic above).

Using a fork, beat together the eggs and begin to incorporate the flour starting with the inner rim of the well. As you incorporate the eggs, keep pushing the flour up to retain the well shape. Note: don’t worry if it starts to get a little messy!

Start kneading the dough with both hands. If you feel like the dough is too sticky and too wet, add more flour, in 1/2-cup increments, until you have a firm, smooth ball of dough. The dough should be elastic and a little sticky. Continue to knead for another 3 minutes (and remember to dust your board with flour, otherwise your dough will stick!). Remember, practice makes perfect so don’t worry if it’s not perfect your first few times.

Brush your dough with the remaining olive oil and wrap the dough in plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes at room temperature to let the glutens rest. Roll/ form as desired.

Here are two pictures of: a) rolling pasta out for ravioli with my pasta roller attachment and b) making fresh bucatini with my pasta attachment!

Pri’s Indian Butter Chicken

Many of you must have been wondering – Priyanka is of Indian background, so where the heck are all the Indian recipes??? Sorry for the delay on this guys, but fret not! Here is my first (and definitely not my last) Indian recipe to be on the blog, and what better way to share one of my interpretations of the traditional butter chicken!

I add in blanched spinach into this recipe which gives it the beautiful green color, and also makes this dish a LITTLE healthier than the traditional dish ;-). Traditional butter chicken also calls for boneless chicken pieces, but I prefer whole pieces of bone-in thigh pieces for added flavor. I also think it is easier to serve when you are entertaining – how easy is it to serve one thigh per person (to start, of course), rather than a curry with small, chopped pieces of chicken breast or chopped boneless thigh?

The dark thigh meat is the perfect combination with the tomatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, spinach, and cream. By the end of your cooking time, your kitchen will be filled with aromas that will make your entire family hungry instantly!

For those of you that are looking for a more traditional butter chicken, omit the spinach, increase the amount of butter by about 2x, and you will have an amazing traditional butter chicken in your pot. 🙂 Served best with hot naan and rice!

Enjoy! 🙂

Ingredients

2/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 lemon, juiced
3 tablespoons tandoori masala powder
Approximately 2 pounds skinless chicken thighs (7-8 thighs)
1 tablespoon ginger, minced (or ginger powder)

1 medium white or yellow onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon canola oil

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 teaspoons garam masala
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup tomato sauce (or 1 cup of fresh blended tomatoes)
1 cup baby spinach, rinsed and blanched
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons butter
Kosher salt, to taste

Garnish: toasted, sliced almonds & chopped cilantro (if desired)

Directions

Stir the buttermilk, tandoori masala powder, lemon juice, and ginger together in a large bowl until thoroughly combined; add the chicken and toss to coat evenly. Marinate in refrigerator for 1 hour. Drain and discard any excess marinade.

Puree the onion and garlic with the water and 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a blender until it forms a smooth paste; set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the chicken in the hot oil until lightly browned on all sides, about 7 minutes. Remove from skillet and set aside.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons in the skillet. Fry the onion paste in the hot oil until the moisture is mostly evaporated, about 3 minutes. Now add the garam masala and chili powder over the mixture; cook 1 minute more until fragrant.

Blend fresh tomatoes (or tomato sauce) and blanched spinach in blender and pour the mixture into the skillet to cook. Reduce heat to medium-low, and cook another 5 minutes. Return the chicken to the pan; bring to a boil. Add the butter, heavy whipping cream, and salt; reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered until the chicken pieces are no longer pink in the middle and cooked through, 30-40 minutes.

Taste before serving, and add additional lemon juice or salt, to your taste. Garnish with sliced almonds and chopped cilantro. Serve hot!

Moroccan-Spiced Shrimp

This recipe is very quick, very easy, and VERY tasty. This is the perfect weeknight dish – as long as you have all of the ingredients at home, it takes less than 15 minutes to make. In this recipe, you cook the spices and garlic in extra-virgin olive oil to liven up the aroma and taste of the ingredients, and then flash-sautee the shrimp in the spicy oil you have created.

I know that some of the spices used are harder to find, but if you can get your hands on them and add them to your spice closet, you will be so thankful you did! The flavors brought about by the harissa and berbere (see below for a quick run down of what ‘berbere’ actually is) are really hard to replicate with other spices.

Berbere is a fantastic and unique spice that typically is found in the cuisines of Ethiopia and Eritrea. It is a spice mixture that typically includes ingredients such as: chili peppers, garlic, ginger, dried basil, korarima (ethiopian cardamom), rue, white and black pepper, fenugreek.

Enjoy!

Yields: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 lb large, peeled deveined shrimp
5 finely chopped garlic cloves
2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon paprika
1/2 tablespoon ground coriander
1/2 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 tablespoon ground ginger (TIP: I keep peeled ginger in the freezer for freshness and grate it whenever I need it!)
1 tablespoon dry harissa
1 tablespoon berbere
1 lemon, juiced
Kosher salt, to taste

Directions

Salt the shrimp well and set aside.

Heat the extra-virgin olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes, then add the garlic. Turn the heat down to low-medium and saute the garlic for 1-3 minutes – don’t let it burn! To help avoid burning, move it around in the pan often. This process is allowing the oil to absorb the garlic flavor.

Now all of the ground spices and stir well to combine, stirring often. Cook for 2 minutes.

Turn the heat up to high and add the shrimp. Stir to combine and cook, stirring constantly, until the shrimp turn pink. This should take between 3-5 minutes (try not to overcook the shrimp – they can dry out very quickly!).

Turn off the heat, add the lemon juice and toss to combine. Taste one shrimp for seasonings, and add salt if required.

Serve over some steamed rice or vegetables or by themselves. Enjoy!

Note: I even use the leftover shrimp from this recipe and mix it into pastas and salads – believe it or not, this dish is EVEN BETTER the next day because the flavors have marinated even further into the shrimp over night! This can also be served as an appetizer / finger food!