Indian Chicken Curries (Murgh Kari)

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 cooking oil
• 1 1/2 C chopped onion
• 1 T minced garlic
• 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh ginger root
• 1 T curry powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 T water
• 1 (15-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 C plain yogurt
• 1 T chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 C water
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 T chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 T fresh lemon juice

Directions:

1. Heat oil and brown chicken.  Transfer chicken to another plate and set aside.
2. Reduce heat to med-high; add onion, garlic, and ginger to remaining oil and cook until onion turns translucent.
3. Stir in the curry powder, cumin, turmeric, coriander, cayenne and 1 T of water into the onion mixture.  Allow to heat together for about 1 minute while stirring.
4. Add the tomatoes, yogurt, cilantro and 1 tsp salt into mixture.
5. Return the chicken to the skillet.  Pour 1/2 C water into the mixture, simmer, turning the chicken to coat with the sauce.
6. Sprinkle the garam masala and 1 T cilantro over the chicken.
7. Cover and simmer until the chicken is no longer pink.
8. Sprinkle with lemon juice to serve.

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Ingredients:

• 3 T oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 T curry powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 tsp grated ginger root
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• salt to taste
• 2 skinless, boneless breast halves, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 T tomato paste
• 1 C plain yogurt
• 3/4 C coconut milk
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Heat oil in skillet and saute onion until lightly browned.  Stir in garlic, curry powder, cinnamon, paprika, bay leaf, ginger, sugar and salt.  Continue stirring for 2 minutes.
2. Add chicken, tomato paste, yogurt and coconut milk.
3. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes.
4. Remove bay leaf and stir in lemon juice and cayenne pepper.  Simmer 5 more minutes.
5. Serve with naan or rice.

Garam Masala Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

Marinade:

• 3 T cooking oil
• 1 medium red onion, finely chopped (yields 1 cup)
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 2 heaping T garam masala
• 1 C hot water

1 pound of bone-in, skinless chicken

2 T fresh ginger, grated

1/2 C yogurt

Directions:

1. Add the marinade ingredients in a bowl.  Mix to coat chicken with yogurt and grated ginger thoroughly.  Refrigerate overnight.  
2. Heat a medium saucepan on medium-high.  Add cooking oil.  Once oil is hot, add cumin seeds.  Wait till seeds sputter before adding onions.  Sprinkle salt and cook until onions are fragrant and translucent.
3. Once onions are lightly browned and fragrant, add turmeric and chili powder.  Stir to combine.
4. Add marinated chicken and bay leaves, and stir until everything is combined.  Fry for a few minutes.
5. Add garam masala and hot water.  Mix and cover to cook on medium heat for 40 minutes, until oil separates and chicken is fully cooked.
6. Serve hot with naan, rice or chapatis.  
   
    

Easy Chicken Masala

Ingredients:

• 1 C plain yogurt
• 1/4 C coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
• 3 T extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 T garam marsala
• 2 tsp coarse kosher salt
• 1 large garlic clove, pressed
• 1 four to four and a half pound roasting chicken, cut into 8 pieces, backbone removed
• Could also use bone-in or boneless chicken thighs, or boneless skinless chicken breasts.   
• 2 small onions, cut into 1/4" thick slices

Preparation:

• Mix yogurt, cilantro, olive oil, garam masala, salt, and garlic in 13 x 9 x 2 inch glass baking dish.  Add chicken to marinade, one piece at a time, coating all sides.  Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 2 hours.  Can be made 1 day ahead.
• Preheat oven to 400 deg. F.  Arrange onions in thin layer on large rimmed baking sheet to form bed for chicken.  Top with chicken pieces in single layer, spacing apart for even roasting (chicken will still be coated with marinade).
• Roast chicken until cooked through and juices run clear when thickest portion of thigh is pierced with knife, about 1 hour.  If using boneless chicken, may only need to cook 1/2 hour.  
• Serve chicken atop onion slices.  Spoon pan juices around.  

Peach Frozen Yogurt

Ingredients:
4 peaches, peeled, pitted and chopped (or 16 ounces frozen peaches, about 4 cups)
1/2 to 3/4 C vanilla-flavored yogurt
1/4 C honey
2 tsp lemon juice, if desired

Can also use mangoes, strawberries, or blueberries.

Instructions:

1. Combine the peaches, yogurt, and honey in a food processor or blender.  Process/puree until smooth.
2. Pour into a shallow container, cover and freeze for a minimum of four hours before serving. 
   

Avocado Brownies

Ingredients

1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips

2 medium ripe avocados, mashed

1 cup sugar

4 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

¼ cup cocoa powder

½ cup flour

½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray an 8x8-inch baking pan with baking spray. Set aside.
2. Place chocolate chips in microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds, remove, and stir. Continue microwaving in 30 second intervals, stirring after, until completely smooth. Let cool slightly.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together the avocados and sugar until creamy. Beat in cooled chocolate. Beat in eggs, one at a time; beat in vanilla.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together cocoa powder, flour, and salt until no lumps remain. Slowly add the flour mixture to the chocolate mixture and beat until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
5. Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack before cutting.

Kolaches

Kolache Recipe

From the cookbook A Book of Favorite Recipes by Anna Kubacak.  Czech/German Catholic!

KOLACHE HINTS
Dough has to be soft to make light kolaches.  It's messy but it's worth the trouble.  Have fillings ready before starting to make the dough.  Use the flour ball  for easier depression making in the middle of the risen kolaches.  Canned pie filling (apple, blueberry, cherry, etc.) also make good kolache fillings. Or use cooked cooled dried little smokies, smoked weiners, smoked sausage.  If using sausages, for the kolache omit 1/2 to 1/3 of the margarine.

Sour cream kolache dough
Cookie sheet, greased.  375 degrees.  About 15 minutes
Heat to lukewarm one 8-ounce carton sour cream.

In small bowl, combine:
1/4 cup lukewarm water, 110 degrees
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon instant flour (not sure I'd bother with this)
1 package dry yeast
Let set until double in volume, about 7 minutes.

In mixing bowl, combine sour cream and:
1/3 cup softened margarine or butter
1/3 cup sugar
2 eggs yolks or 1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon butter flavor

Stir in yeast mixture and:
1 cup sifted flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt

Beat two minutes.  Stir in 1 1/4 cup sifted flour.  Knead with wooden spoon two minutes.  Let rise in warm place free from draft until doubled.  Knead down, drop by medium spoonful on well floured surface, with floured hands.  Shape into small ball, size of a large walnut.  Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet, mash down with fingers.  Wait 15 minutes for next cookie sheet to be filled.  Let rise 20 minutes.  With flour ball, make a depression in middle of each kolache 3/4 of the way deep, making 1/4" thick ridges to hold filling.  Put one rounded teaspoonful of filling in each depression (filling of your choice).  Sprinkle over filling 1 teaspoon posepka (streusel).  Let rise 20 - 25 minutes.  Bake one cookie sheet at a time on second oven rack from bottom.  Remove from oven, brush with evaporated milk or melted margarine.  Optional: ice with glaze.

Flour ball
This is used for making depressions in risen kolaches.  You will need a piece of white, thin, cloth cut from a flour sack 5 x 5", cut corners off.  Put 1/4 cup flour in the middle.  Bring cloth up all around.  Tie with a string to make a small ball.

Posepka (streusel
In small bowl, combine:
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Cut in with fingers 1/4 cup softened margarine.  Sprinkle one teaspoonful of mixture on each kolache (over filling) before baking.


Plain Kolache Dough
1/4 cup lukewarm water, 105 degrees
1 tablespoon instant flour (not sure I'd bother with this)
1 package dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar

Let rise until double in volume, about 5 minutes.  In mixing bowl, cream well:
1/2 cup margarine, softened
3 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon butter flavor
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Add yeast mixture and:
1 cup scalded milk, cooled to lukewarm
1 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cup flour

Beat two minutes.  Stir in 1 1/2 cup sifted flour.  Knead dough with wooden spoon two minutes.  Dough will be on the soft side.  Use same directions as for sour cream kolache.

Place on greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 375 degrees about 15 minutes.  Yield: 48.


From a recipe by Mollie Krizan in Generation to Generation

1/2 C whole milk
1 packet dry yeast
1/2 C warm water
1/4 C sugar
1/2 C melted Crisco
1 tsp salt
1 large egg
3 C flour
1/4 C butter for brushing pan and kolaches

Bring the milk just to the boil and then set it aside to cool.  In a small bowl, sprinkle 1 packet of dry yeast over 1/2 C of warm water and let proof.  (Can add 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of sugar to feed the yeast).  In a mixer bowl, combine the sugar, Crisco, and salt.

Beat the egg and add to the yeast mixture, then add that to the Crisco mixture.  Then add the cooled milk to the mixer bowl.  Add the flour 1/2 cup at a time to the mixer.  When it's all combined, let the mixer knead the dough for 5 minutes.  Turn the dough out into a large buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and put in the refrigerator for overnight.

Take the dough out to rise at least two hours before you expect to make and fill the kolaches.  When risen, scoop out the dough by tablespoons to make 24 balls.  Arrange them in a 4 x 6 array on a buttered, rectangular pan with a lip.  Brush the dough balls with butter and let them rise again 20 to 30 minutes.  Use your two index fingers to mash or spread an indentation in the middle of each dough ball.  Fill with a heaping tablespoon of the filling of your choice.

I mash and fill one row of four kolaches at a time.  Brush the sides of the filled kolaches with butter.  Sprinkle with *posipka (if desired) and bake in a 325 to 350 degree oven until golden brown, about 15 to 25 minutes.  This depends on the hotness of your oven.  Brush the kolaches with butter once more after taking them out of the oven.
*posipka is a kolache topping (1/2 C sugar, 1/4 C flour, 1/3 C melted butter).  Mix together until crumbly and sprinkle on top of kolache before baking.

Kolache Recipe #2

Ingredients

• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1/4 warm water (100 deg. to 115 deg.)
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt

                 ****

• 3 3/4 to 4 1/4 cups flour
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

                 ****

• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel
• 1 recipe Prune or Apricot filling
• Sifted powdered sugar (optional) 

Step 1: In a bowl, add yeast to water, stirring to dissolve yeast.  In a saucepan, heat milk, butter or margarine, sugar and salt to just warm (115 deg. to 120 deg.) stirring till butter almost melts.

Step 2: In large mixing bowl, stir together two cups of the flour and the cinnamon; beat in the milk mixture.  Add softened yeast, eggs, and lemon peel; beat well.

Step 3: Stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can mix in with a spoon.  Turn out onto lightly floured surface.  Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a moderately soft dough.  Continue kneading till smooth and elastic, 5 minutes.  Shape into a ball.  Place dough into a lightly greased bowl; turn once to grease surface.

Step 4: Cover, let rise till double, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  Punch down; turn out onto lightly floured surface.  Divide dough into two portions.  Cover; let rest 10 minutes.

Step 5: Divide and shape each half into 9 balls.  Place 3 inches apart on greased baking sheets.

Step 6: Flatten each of the balls to a 3-inch circle.  Cover; let rise in warm place till double, about 45 minutes. 

Step 7: With your fingers, make a depression in center of each.

Step 8: Spoon a heaping tablespoon of the Prune or Apricot filling evenly into each depression.

Step 9: Bake in 375 deg. oven for 12 to 15 minutes or till golden brown.  Remove pastries to wire rack; cool completely.  Dust pastries lightly with sifted powdered sugar, if desired.  Makes 18 rolls.  

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Another Kolache Recipe.

KOLACHES

 

This makes a lot of dough, but you can make it the day/night before and can just remove the quantity you need to bake.

Ingredients

• 3 packages yeast (total of ¾ ounce).   You can use regular yeast or rapid rise
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2/3 cup warm water (NOT hot)

• 4 eggs
• 1 cup butter, melted

• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt

• 9 cups flour

 

Additional melted butter to brush dough.

 

Instructions

1. In a medium-sized bowl, place the yeast, sugar, and warm water.  Stir to mix, then set aside.  By the time you use it, the mixture should be foamy.  This is called “proofing” the yeast.  Recipes today sometimes leave out this step and just add the yeast to the flour.
2. Break the eggs into a large bowl.  Beat eggs and add 1 cup sugar slowly, beating well.  Add the evaporated and whole milks, melted butter and salt.  Mix well.
3. Add yeast mixture and mix together.
4. Add about half the flour and mix well with an electric mixer on low.
5. Continue adding the remaining flour 1 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition, until all the flour is used.  Toward the end, you will have to mix in the flour by hand.  You may also use a dough hook.
6. Scrape the dough into a large buttered, sealable container.  Lightly butter the top of the dough and the inside of the lid.  Let it rest and rise for a while (30 minutes to 1 hour) covered with a clean dishtowel.  DO NOT seal the dough while it is rising.  
7. Close the container and place it in the refrigerator overnight.  

This dough keeps well in the refrigerator for a few days.  As you need the dough, remove a portion, leaving the remainder in the frig.  

 

Kolache Fillings:

There are a bunch of other kolache fillings.  These three are my favorites.  My husband, Gerald, likes poppy seed kolaches.  His mom used to grow poppy seeds.

 

Apple Kolache filling
Fills 36.  In skillet, combine:

• 4 large apples, peeled, diced
• 3 T margarine or butter, melted
• 2 T brown sugar
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 C sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Saute until partly soft.  Cool to lukewarm.  

 

Apricot Kolache Filling

Fills 36.  In saucepan, cover an 8-ounce package of dry apricots with water.  Boil slowly until soft, about 30 minutes.  Beat well, then add to apricot mixture:

• 1 1/4 C sugar
• 1 1/2 T margarine or butter
• 3 T coconut, chopped fine (Coconut is optional)

Add hot water if needed to make thin fluffy consistency.  Cool.

 

Cottage Cheese Filling

Fills 40.  In stainless steel skillet, combine, blend well:

• 1/2 C instant flour
• 2/3 C sugar

Add, stir, cook until thick over medium heat.

• One 24-oz carton cottage cheese, small curd
• 3 egg yolks
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 T margarine or butter

Remove from heat, stir in:

• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/8 tsp yellow food color (I don't use this)

Cool.  Variation: stir in 1 C well-drained crushed pineapple.

 

KOLACHE HINTS
Dough has to be soft to make light kolaches.  It's messy but it's worth the trouble.  Have fillings ready before starting to make the dough.  Canned pie filling (apple, blueberry, cherry, etc.) also make good kolache fillings. Or use cooked cooled dried little smokies, smoked weiners, smoked sausage.  If using sausages, for the kolache, omit 1/2 to 1/3 of the margarine.

From the Czech Catholic cookbook.  The author, Anna Kubačák, says, "If you make kolaches half-way right, they still will taste good.  Don't give up.  Try again!!"

 

 

 

Okinawan Shoyu Pork

Okinawan Pork Roast No. Four
4 pounds boneless pork butt
Brown garlic cloves in oil.  Remove.  Brown pork roast.  Place in slow cooker.
Combine remaining ingredients.  Pour over pork roast.  Cook for 8 to 10 hours in slow cooker.
Remove roast.  Let cool.  Slice.  Thicken sauce in pot with flour and water paste.  Pour thickened sauce over slices.  Cover and seal pan with foil.  Bake at 350 deg. for 1 to 1/2 hours.

Ingredients
4 pounds boneless pork butt
1 1/2 C shoyu
3 C water I used two pork loins.  This was a lot of water but I used the sauce to make a gravy.
1 C sugar
3/4 C brown sugar
3 T mirin
Sliced and chopped ginger
1 clove garlic or more
Sake?
Tomato sauce?
I tweaked recipe and added Chinese five-spice powder, sesame oil and green onions.  You can also add shiitake mushrooms.

Okinawan Pork Roast No. Two

3-5 pounds of pork butt, chopped into 2- to 3-inch pieces
1 c. shoyu
1 c. brown sugar
1-2 c. water
1/2 c. mirin (sweet rice wine)
1/4 c. cooking sake
4-6 cloves of garlic, minced
1-2 T. ginger, minced or grated
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a small bowl combine the shoyu, mirin, sake, garlic, ginger, brown sugar and water. Stir until the sugar is dissolved and set aside.

Butcher down your pork into pieces and place them into the crock pot. Pour the sauce over them. Set the slow cooker on low, cooking for about six to seven hours. (The pork will turn a very dark brown, but the pieces should be fork tender.

Okinawan Pork Roast No. 3

Rafute

1-1/2 pounds belly pork
1/2 cup awamori, sake or whiskey
1/2 cup soy sauce
1-inch piece ginger, crushed
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup mirin

Cover pork with water in a large pot. Bring to a rolling boil, then simmer 10 minutes to remove excess fat. Drain and rinse pork; cut into 1/2-inch slices.

Combine liquor, soy sauce and ginger in pot; bring to boil. Add pork slices in a single layer. Cover and simmer 1 hour, turning occasionally so both sides are evenly glazed with sauce.

Combine sugar and mirin; stir into pot. Cook, uncovered, 45 minutes or more, until pork is glazed and soft. Serves 8.