Kinder Surprise

I've told you how much I love Joe Caputo's grocery store. Let me tell you how much. I dunno if you've read between the lines here, but Chris and I were seriously considering a move to Portland, which is just a wonderful place (now we'll find out if Chris' mom is really reading this blog.) We have 80-85% decided against it, and for Chris the big reasons are because his family and his sports teams are here. For me, the reasons to stay are the theatre scene and the extra-work I've been doing here, the fact that I am a true cold-weather jogger, the job that I love, and Joe Caputo's. Not necessarily in that order. I also just know that my cat wouldn't go poo for the entire three days it might take to get out there, and then he would detonate. He's a nervous poo-er.

So I got to take Ma into Caputo's when she was here, and she loved it, too. In the checkout line, which is always long, I freaked when I noticed this:



Ma has a degree in French, and she's always loved all things French. When Dave and I were kids, she had Asterix and Obelix hardcover books around the house, which she would generally have to read to us (as they were in French, and I think the Romans spoke in Latin.) The names translate to Asterisk (because he is the small one), and Obelisk (because he is the large one.) Anyway, later on, cartoons of the two appeared on the Disney Channel, if memory serves... And they were hilarious. The cartoon is based on Gaul's resistance to Roman occupation. The Gaul's drink a potion that makes them stronger, all except for Obelix -- who fell in a vat of it as a baby.

Caputo's has a wide selection of not only Italian stuff, but lots of imported food. So I had to grab one of the egg toys, for old times sake. They were little chocolate eggs with a prize inside of "Asterix and the Vikings."



When you open it, there is a little egg capsule inside the chocolate:



And inside the egg capsule is a figure and a comic! I was hoping to get Obelix, but I got a Viking. Still neat.



Le Gaulois en vie long!

Fish Tacos

Chris and I both love fish tacos, so I tried making them at home for the first time. I had some frozen cod, courtesy of Market Day, and I decided to use that.

First I thawed out the fish. The Market Day cod kind of comes in these little log shapes, so while they were defrosted and still wet, I rolled them in seasoned flour. Then I browned them in just a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, not messing with them at all until they were ready to turn. I browned them on four sides. They fell apart a little bit even with the minimal turning, but that was part of my master plan: to just scoop out the crunchy bits and the fish all together and drain them on paper towels. My plan worked.



I had asked Chris to try and get the cole slaw mix to use in place of the traditional shredded cabbage, but he came home with a head of cabbage saying he couldn't find any mix. So I shredded it in my food processor, but the shredding blade I used was the one that chops very fine. I decided to mix in the lowfat, spicy ranch sauce I was going to put on the tacos and just have a sort of coleslaw. Not traditional, really, but at least we could eat the leftovers as cole slaw the next day (I mean, it's easier to use than leftover shredded cabbage). And they were both going on the tacos, anyway.



I used some buttermilk, some ranch and mexican seasoning , and some lowfat mayo, salt, and sugar. It took quite a bit of sugar to taste the way I wanted it, which to be honest, was something like KFC's cole slaw with some spiciness to it.

We used corn tortillas, and topped the fish with salsa, some cheddar, and the cabbage/cole slaw. We doused them in fresh lime juice, too. They were crunchy, spicy, cool, hearty and refreshing. (That's lots of things for one dish to be, but they were!)

Butterscotch Sauce

Hello again, everyone! I am going to do a brief "comeback" post tonight, as a prelude to more in the coming week. I have been gone for a couple of weeks, here and there as I said, and in the last two days we have had a price negotiation, followed by an acceptance of an offer on our place. I am so excited. Chris, of course, has found a January move to be a new source of things to get nervous about and dread. But that's just his brand of anticipation.

I'm on a bit of a health kick at the moment, brought on by a feast of a Thanksgiving... But more on that later. For now, let me show you one of the sinful indulgences that brought on my currently healthy diet: butterscotch sauce. Oh, and pie. And ice cream.



At Chris' parents' house, I didn't have something to put on my ice cream (besides the raspberries, but you know, I mean something bad.) So I stuck some butterscotch morsels and a spoonful of milk in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds, and stirred them until they melted. Oh Katie, bar the door. Anyway, I came home and by happy chance, I had some butterscotch chips in the fridge, too! And I made myself a petite sundae each night with Slow Churned Light Praline until all the morsels were gone.



Hoo boy. I am going to be very, very good for awhile. Until David gets here at Christmas.

Chicken Tikka Masala

I find it is a bit intimidating to use new spices, but my curiosity about food tends to drive me over that fear. And I'm always pleasantly surprised to find that most dishes, the world over, contain plenty of familiar ingredients. The "base" for this dish could be the same as any number of Mexican or Italian dishes you may have made before. The only thing that may be new to you about it is the garam masala spice, which is available in most grocery stores now.

Give it a shot -- if you like warm, medium-heat dishes like chili with seasoning that is a bit more complex in flavor, you'll like tikka masala. I've changed and simplified a few things from the recipe I have, and the following recipe reflects my changes.

Marinade

• 1 cup plain yogurt


• 2 T. lemon juice


• 2 tsp. mediterranean seasoning, or just 2 tsp. cumin, and 2 tsp. cinnamon


• 1 tsp. red pepper flakes


• 1 tsp. salt


• 1 tsp. ginger


• 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into strips or large cubes

Sauce

• 1 T. butter


• 2 T. flour


• 2 cloves garlic, minced


• 1 jalapeño chili, minced


• 2 tsp. ground coriander


• 1 tsp. each: ground cumin, paprika, garam masala spice


• ½ tsp. salt


• 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce


• 1 ½ cups fat-free half-and-half


• ½ cups chopped cilantro

Combine everything on the "marinade" list, including the chicken. Marinate in a plastic Ziploc gallon bag in the fridge for at least 2 hours (overnight is better.)

If you have a grill pan like I do, you can just grill the chicken on it directly. If you have a charcoal grill, thread the chicken onto skewers first (tastes better is you got the coals). My recommendation, either way, is to only partially cook the chicken. It goes into the sauce and will cook the rest of the way. If you thoroughly cook the chicken first, you will probably find it a bit dry after it goes in the sauce. I know it is a little creepy purposefully undercooking chicken, but trust me, it will fully cook in about a minute in the sauce.

Set the lightly grilled chicken aside on a plate (don't re-use the plate, just wash it later), and make the sauce. Melt the butter and flour in a large deep skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and jalapeño, and stir for a minute. Stir in the seasonings, and salt. Combine the tomato sauce, and stir for one minute. Add the fat-free half-and-half, and simmer until the sauce thickens.

Add the chicken to the sauce (remove it from the skewers if you did this) and let simmer for a couple of moments. If you want to be sure that it is cooked, just take one of the thicker pieces out and cut into it. Don't overcook it.

I like to serve this over egg noodles with the cilantro over the top, but I think it would also be good with potatoes and peas. With the fat-free half-and-half instead of cream, it is really a healthy dish, and if you do the marinade the night before, it is also pretty quick. I served it with avocado slices with lemon, salt and pepper once -- and now I consider this to be a must-have accompaniment!

Apologies

I've been gone so long!

Chris and I went back to Portland, this time together. We both loved it. I got back on the train the day after we flew back here, to go to my mom's. And that was lots of fun, too. I'm really blessed to have the type of family that likes to sit around and laugh (on both sides). I only have two first cousins in the whole world (how un-Italian-like, and they're on the non-Italian side of my family), and they are funny, funny people. I feel very fortunate.

Anyway, I have pics of Portland (again), and I don't know what-all, since I haven't been able to face the prospect of unloading my camera and phone of all they contain. Tomorrow and Tuesday I work two long days (that's okay considering I have taken so much vacation -- the practice has been slow, anyway), and then off to Bourbonnais for Thanksgiving. My boss is giving us each a turkey for our families, so I will be hauling that down in a cooler for Wilma and I to cook!

Anyway, I will post today, and my apologies again if I am in and out all week (or out, mostly.) The funny thing is, I am up to a record number of hits-per-day and growing, so it doesn't seem to matter so much whether I am here of not. :)

Talk to you soon!

Gina