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Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Spicy and Fresh Pineapple Salsa

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Just thinking about this recipe makes my mouth water.  Once you start eating this raw pineapple salsa, you may not be able to stop eating it until the bowl is finished.  Well, that maybe just my sister and myself.  : )  It is fresh, sweet, spicy, tangy and salty all in one.   It is a very healthy and guilt-free treat that you can eat to your hearts content.  I know I did.  : )   This also works well as a topping to fish or chicken dishes.

Ingredients:

1/2 a ripe and juicy pineapple.
1 tsp of rice wine vinegar
1 tsp of red chili powder or to taste or cayenne pepper
salt to taste
pepper to taste

optional ingredients:
1-2 tsp  finely diced onion
 1-2 tsp finely diced serrano chili
Directions:
Skin the pineapple, cut out the core and cut it into small bite size pieces. Add all other ingredients to dish.  The final dish should have a nice balance with spicy, salty, sweet and sour so tweak it to your taste.


Mix all the ingredients together then marinate for 30 minutes. Serve at room temperature or chilled. Enjoy.


 Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Monday, April 29, 2013

Jalapeno Garlic Cheese Bread

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 My kids love spicy food.  Well, what can you expect when they have a spice loving mother like me around cooking curry all the time.  They really love pickled jalapenos.  They will request it on sandwiches, pizza... almost anything.  I was so excited when I saw a seriously large jar of jalapenos at Costco and I knew I had to come up with a fun dish to highlight all those jalapenos.  My kids were jumping up and down in the kitchen when they saw what I was making for them.  The jalapeno bread did not disappoint... they loved every bite of it and I loved how easy it was to put together.

 


 Ingredients:
1 loaf French bread
2 cups of cheese (cheddar, mozzarella or a mix)
sliced or diced pickled jalapenos (to taste)
1-2 sweet peppers or some bell pepper finely diced
1/3 cup softened butter or more as needed
1/2 tsp granulated garlic powder 


 
Directions:

 Cut bread in half lengthwise. Mix butter and garlic powder together and spread on the inside of the bread.
 


Top with jalapenos.  Note: You can put as much or as little as you like here.   

 
Top with cheese and diced sweet peppers.  Bake in a 400 degree oven until cheese is melted and bread is toasted. 



Cut into slices and serve.  Enjoy.






Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Curry and Comfort's Weekly Sunday Summary 4/22/13 thru 04/28/13

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   Hi Everyone,
 
We finally got the spring weather that I love so much.  I adore spring, but I know a lot of people that don't because they have allergies.  Two of those little people are my own kids.

Boy do they suffer when the pollen count is high.  We had a few bad days with high pollen and I had two very grumpy children.  The over the counter allergy medicine was not a match this week. Now all I'm hoping for is that Mother Nature hurries up and does her thing so the pollen count can go back down to normal. I miss my kid's happy little faces.


We celebrated my father's 83rd birthday this week too.   I made a few treats to take over for the celebration and a decadent German Chocolate Cake that my family really enjoyed.  I did not do it for the blog... but maybe I will make it again on a future date.

This week was a fun week of food... so let's go onto the the review...


 


Happy Grilled Cheese Month, introducing the Asparagus Grilled Cheese




Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Friday, April 26, 2013

Thai Green Papaya Salad

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 My son and I love to watch a show called "Chasing the Yum" with Chef Jet Tila.  The show is all about making Asian food and breaking down the fear of cooking it.  Recently, Chef Tila made a Thai Green Papaya Salad and I knew I had to try it his way.  Chef Tila believes in a concept called "yum" which represents the balance of spicy, salty, sweet and sour.  This salad is all about the balance of those flavors. 

 Ingredients:
1 green papaya (about 4 cups green papaya) julienned or grated (available in Asian markets)
1/3 cup tomatoes, cut into small chunks
3 tablespoons Fish sauce (to taste)
3 tablespoons Lime juice (to taste)
2 tablespoons Sugar (to taste)
2 cloves Garlic grated
2-3 green chilies chilies finely diced (seeded for less spice)
1 Tbs dried salted shrimp (available in Asian markets)
2 Tbs roasted peanuts and more for garnish   
Directions:


Peel papaya, then use grater or julienne tool to make thin strips.  Place papaya in bowl.  In a food processor or a mortar and pestle combine tomatoes, chilies, fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, garlic, chile and dried shrimp.  If using a food processor pulse 6-8 times until coarsely chopped and combined.  If using a mortar and pestle pound until coarsely mashed.

Pour processed ingredients over prepared papaya and toss well.   Taste for "yum".  Chill salad for 30 minutes or until ready to serve.  Garnish with more chopped peanuts, tomatoes and lime. Enjoy. peanuts

 

Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Chicken Kebab Gyro with Tzatziki Sauce (Throwback Thursdays)

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Picture from 2011
On 4-30-11 I wrote: If we ever order Mediterranean take-out, I always get the gyros.  I love the rich flavorful meat and the tzatziki sauce.  I decided to try my hand at making these on my own when I bought some pocket-less pita.   My husband and son really loved these Chicken Gyros and the entire family ate for what I pay for one gyro order.   The kebabs were spicy and flavorful while the tzatziki sauce was cool and refreshing.  Both recipes were easy to make and fun to eat.

Note:  Throwback Thursday is a new series where I take some of my original posts here on  Curry and Comfort and redo them so I can take better photos.



To Make the Kebab:
Ingredients:

2lbs of ground chicken:
1 large handful of fresh parsley finely chopped
1 large handful of fresh mint finely chopped
1/2 medium onion grated
1 serrano chili seeded and minced
1 Tbs of grated ginger
1 Tbs of grated garlic
1 Tbs of garam masala
1 Tbs of paprika
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:


Form large size (oblong) kebabs on skewers or into patties (like hamburgers).  If you are planning to eat them in a pita make it more oval shaped.  I did stick two skewers into each kebab because they were big and it made it easier to flip them. 


Fry both sides on a oiled griddle until fully cooked. Remove skewers and serve inside a grilled pita as a Gyro Sandwich with Tzatziki sauce and other gyro condiments.   Enjoy. 



Tzatziki Sauce Recipe:
 You will need:
  • 8oz of Greek style plain yogurt or regular plain yogurt that you have strained with a paper towel in a colander to allow all the liquid to drip out.  
  • 1/2 a English Cucumber diced finely
  • 1 Tbs of olive oil
  • 1 Tbs of fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tsp of fresh dill minced
  • 1 tsp of fresh mint mince
  • 1-2 garlic cloves grated
  • salt to taste.
Mix well and allow to chill in fridge for 1-2 hours before serving.   Enjoy.

Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited. 

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Happy Grilled Cheese Month, introducing the Asparagus Grilled Cheese

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  April is National Grilled Cheese Month!!  I love a good ooey gooey grilled cheese sandwich. When I'm running late and I want to make a quick lunch or dinner the grilled cheese sandwich is my "go to".  If you have a little extra time these fun grilled cheese sandwiches that I have done on the blog before are also a great choice.  Today,  I am introducing the Asparagus Grilled Cheese sandwich today that I made recently.  It's basically steam fresh asparagus tips mixed with a Spicy Grilled Cheese  sandwich.

PS... Please check out my Burning Down the Kitchen Interview with Kim at Cravings of a Lunatic.





Ingredients:
1 cup of American Cheddar Cheese (See Note)
2 Tbs of butter or margarine
2-3 green chilies seeded and finely diced (See Note)
 salt and pepper to taste
steam asparagus tips

Bread (white, whole wheat, etc...)

Notes:  You can use shredded Cheddar cheese or Slices of American Cheddar cheese.You can use any kind of chili you like. I recommend jalapeno, serrano or larger green chilies.  You will want to make sure you don't pick a very spicy pepper and you clean the seeds and membrane out so it tones down the spice level. 


Directions:  Spread the cheese and chili mixture over over two slices of bread.  Place steamed asparagus across one slice of bread and top with the other slice of bread.  Butter both outer sides of the sandwich and grill in a skillet on medium heat until bread is golden brown and cheese is melted.  Enjoy. 



Here are some more grilled cheese sandwiches to enjoy....









Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Confetti Fried Rice (Vegetarian)

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 I usually cook a large pot of brown rice when I make a rice and curry meal.  Sometimes the curries get finished, but we have a lot of left over rice.  Fried rice is perfect dish to make with leftover rice.   This is a wonderful savory fried rice that I make with the vegetables I always have on hand at home. Of course, you can add any vegetable or frozen bag of mix veggies that you have in your fridge/freezer.  That means this dish can be made in so many different ways by what you add to it.  I love getting a brand new dish out of leftovers.  After eating this rice, you will purposely make extra rice just so you can have this the next day. 


Ingredients:
4 cups cooked and cooled rice (brown or white)
1 Tbs canola oil
1Tbs butter or margarine
1 (small piece) cinnamon stick
12-15 curry leaves
2-3 green cardamom pods
2-3 cloves
1 onion finely diced
2 large carrots grated
1 red bell pepper finely diced
1-2 green chile finely diced
1 tbs grated ginger
1 tbs grated garlic
red chili flakes (to taste)
1 cup frozen peas

Note:
Always remember that you can remove cardamom, cloves or cinnamon sticks before serving dish.  They are not fun to eat directly.  Curry leaves are fine to eat.

Directions:
Cook rice and have it waiting.  I do recommend the basmati variety because of it's nutty flavor. Heat oil and butter in large frying pan and add cinnamon stick, curry leaves, cardamom pods and cloves for 30-45 seconds.




 
 Next add onion, garlic and ginger (season with a little salt).  Saute for 2-3 minutes until onions start to soften.  Then add the peppers, chilies and carrots and season with a little salt.  Saute for another 4-5 minutes. 

 




Next add the red chili flakes and the frozen peas.  Mix all ingredients together well.  Finally add the cooked rice and incorporate well. Check for salt and season as needed. Serve with salad.  Enjoy.

Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.