Kerry

Feta Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

May 082012

If you like feta cheese and sweet potatoes anywhere near as much as I do, you’ll love these! I got the idea from this Twice Baked Sweet Potato recipe from Kalyn’s Kitchen, but decided the original recipe didn’t have nearly enough cheese. It was just a little tricky to squeeze the potato out of the skins while a) keeping the skin in one piece and b) not burning my hands, but I was successful with 2 out of 3 skins which isn’t too bad. And the potatoes were just as good the second day, reheated in the microwave. I may have to try some other cheese/spice combinations soon!

Feta Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

3 sweet potatoes
1 c. fat free feta
1/4 t coriander
Dash cayenne pepper
2 t Garlic Gold in oil
Smoked paprika

Scrub sweet potatoes, and bake at 350F for 60 minutes, or until very soft. Meanwhile, mix feta, coriander, cayenne pepper, and Garlic Gold in a bowl, and refrigerate.

When potatoes are ready, remove from oven. Slice potatoes open lengthwise, and using an oven mitt, squeeze potato flesh into a bowl, reserving the skin in one piece. Add feta mixture to potato and mix well. Stuff mixture into potato skins. Bake at 350F for 10 minutes, and garnish with smoked paprika before serving.

-Lightly adapted from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Chicken Tikka Masala

Main Dishes 1 Response »

May 072012

I’ve wanted to make Chicken Tikka Masala for a while now since it’s one of my favorite Indian dishes. The version you get in restaurants is usually good but often very heavy. So I started with this lighter recipe from Skinnytaste, and made just a few changes. I kept the overall combination of spices which created a flavor that seemed authentic to me, and not too spicy. The combination of tomatoes and spices also gave the dish a rich color.

I really wanted to see if I could prevent the yogurt from curdling, so I let the masala cool for about 5-10 minutes before stirring it in. The yogurt still curdled a bit, probably from the acidic tomatoes. It didn’t matter one bit though, I really liked this dish and am happy to enjoy it right at home!

Chicken Tikka Masala

1 T canola oil
1 large Vidalia onion, peeled and diced
1 T garlic ginger paste
1 T cumin
1 T garam masala
1 t turmeric
2 t chili powder
1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes in juice
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. skim milk
5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite sized pieces
6 oz. plain nonfat Greek yogurt

Heat oil in a large frying pan. Saute onion on medium-low heat until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. Add garlic ginger paste and stir for 1 minute. Add spices and stir for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, water, and milk, and simmer for 5-10 minutes. Add chicken pieces, cover, and simmer until chicken is cooked through. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes. Stir in yogurt and serve.

-Lightly adapted from Skinnytaste

Vegetable Egg Rolls

appetizers 1 Response »

May 022012

The last time I posted about egg rolls was over 2 years ago, when I made Hungry Girl’s Sassy Veggie Egg Rolls. I’ve surely indulged in plenty of egg rolls since then, including some from the Chinese takeout place down the street. But, I have been meaning to make these Vegetable Egg Rolls from Budget Bytes for ages. The recipe promises that you can bake the egg rolls right away, or freeze them to bake later.

If you don’t have garlic ginger paste, feel free to substitute freshly minced garlic and ginger. I found a jar of garlic ginger paste at an ethnic grocery store a while back, and it’s come in handy quite a few times. I took one other shortcut and bought pre shredded carrots but as someone pointed out, a food processor could do all the dicing and shredding very easily. After that, you just spend some time at the stove cooking the mixture. If you’re intimidated by working with the egg roll wrappers, check out Budget Byte’s post with step by step instructions. She also has some suggestions for turning the egg rolls in the oven to make sure they brown evenly but I threw caution to the wind and mine turned out fine.

I baked about half the egg rolls right away, and froze the other half in small batches to bake later. Of course, I tried the filling before I made the rolls, so I knew I was going to like them a lot! The rolls are crispy but not hard to chew, and the filling is quite tasty. I can’t wait to bake some of the frozen ones to see how they turn out.

Vegetable Egg Rolls

1 T oil
1 T garlic ginger paste
1 bunch scallions, white and light green parts only, sliced
1 (8 oz.) package mushrooms, diced
1 (8 oz.) package shredded carrot
1 small head cabbage, shredded
2 t cornstarch
1/4 c. soy sauce
20 egg roll wrappers

Heat oil in a large frying pan. Add garlic ginger paste and scallions. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add mushrooms, and cook for 5 minutes. Add carrots and cabbage. Cook until mixture is fairly soft, about 20-30 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk cornstarch into soy sauce. Pour into frying pan and stir well. Remove pan from heat and allow filling to cool.

Place about 2-3 T of mixture in each wrapper, and roll. Seal the edges with water. Place on a cookie sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400F for 10-12 minutes, until lightly brown.

-Lightly adapted from Budget Bytes

Dal Nirvana

Main Dishes 2 Responses »

May 012012

I was really craving some Chana Masala, but I was out of chickpeas. However, I had a big bag of lentils and I found this recipe for Dal Nirvana. I made a few changes in an attempt to reduce the amount of saturated fat without compromising the taste. I replaced the butter and cream in the original recipe with nonfat Greek yogurt, which helped make the dish creamy. There was just one aesthetic problem - I added the yogurt when the dal was very hot, and it separated. This didn’t affect the taste of the dish, but the photo is so horrible I can’t even post it. I also cut back the cayenne pepper so that it wouldn’t be too spicy, and added a dash of curry powder for a little more Indian flavor.

In the end, I liked this dal but it probably won’t make it into my rotation of Indian dishes. There are just too many recipes that I like even more, like Chana Masala, Chicken Saagwala, and Red Bean Curry. Plus, there’s plenty more Indian recipes I’d like to try. I think Chicken Tikka Masala might be next on the list…..

Dal Nirvana

1 c. lentils
1″ piece of ginger, peeled and minced
1 t minced garlic
1/4 t cayenne pepper
Dash salt
Dash curry
1 (14.5 oz.) can petite diced tomatoes
1 (6 oz.) container nonfat plain Greek yogurt
Fresh cilantro

Place lentils in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Simmer covered for 10-15 minutes, until lentils are tender. Drain lentils, and return to pan. Add ginger, garlic, pepper, salt, and curry powder and stir well. Add tomatoes and 1 cup of water. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Remove cover, and continue to simmer until the mixture is thick. Remove from heat and allow to cool briefly. Stir in yogurt and cilantro. Serve with brown rice or naan.

-Adapted from Budget Bytes

Roasted Green Beans and Mushrooms

sides No Responses »

Apr 302012

This recipe for Roasted Green Beans and Mushroms from Picklee is really simple, but a great way to prepare vegetables. You take fresh green beans and sliced mushrooms, toss them with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and put them in the oven. When they’re done, add some freshly grated Parmesan and serve. This could be a side dish, but they are so good you might be tempted to make them your main dish!