About 
Hi there, I'm Rose. I love to cook food - and eat it. If you have any questions concerning any of my recipes, drop me a line at:
Contact:
rose [at] avocadobravado.net
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For most of my life, I refused to eat beef. Can you believe it? An American kid who hated hamburgers and hot dogs. I still don’t eat beef very often, but when I saw this recipe a few days ago, I knew I had to make it. This was an incredibly flavorful and delicious curry. I’m already looking forward to tomorrow’s leftovers. I made some slight changes to the original recipe, using ground spices instead of whole ones, using less meat and adding chickpeas, and going easy on the cayenne pepper. The original recipe called for two teaspoons of cayenne pepper, but the stuff I have is quite strong. So be careful to not go overboard with adding too much pepper.
Also, according to Google Analytics – I’ve had visitors from 90 countries this month alone. So for those who native languages is not English, I’ve added a widget on the left column that will translate my blog into several different languages. Food is, of course, a universal language.
Beef Curry with Potatoes and Chickpeas
(adapted from So I Married a Meat-a-holic)
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oil, butter, or ghee
1 lb beef cubes for stew
1 red onion, sliced
2″ piece ginger, finely chopped
4-7 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 Thai chilis, slit
3 roma tomatoes, chopped
salt & pepper, to taste
cayenne pepper, to taste
1 tsp ground coriander
1 t turmeric
1/2 t ground cinnamon
1/4 t ground cardamom
2 potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces
1 15-oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/2 c coconut milk
handful of chopped cilantro, plus extra for garnish
Heat butter, oil, or ghee in a large stockpot. When hot, add onions and cook on high heat until the onions begin to brown. Add ginger, garlic, and chilis and stir until fragrant, or about a minute. Add the chopped tomatoes, salt & pepper, and spices. cook until the tomatoes begin to fall apart.
Now, add the beef and to the pot and pour just enough water into the saucepan to cover the meat. Cover and simmer for about 35 minutes. Add the potatoes to the pot and simmer for another half hour, or until the potatoes are done.
Add the coconut milk and chickpeas to the pot. Cook for another 10 minutes or so, to help blend the dish together. In the last few minutes of cooking, stir in the chopped cilantro. Season to taste. Serve with rice and/or flat bread Garnish with more cilantro.
Serves 4
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Chicken is boring. It’s also probably the meat I eat the most, so perhaps that means I’m a boring eater. I do think the inherent blandness of chicken makes it a good base, so I’m often trying to come up with ways to make chicken interesting. Cardamom is a warm and aromatic spice used heavily in Indian cooking. Cardamom is also strong, so I thought it would pair nicely with chicken. It is, however, pretty expensive. If you live in the US, it’s not unusual to find 4 oz containers of cardamom at your local grocery selling for about $15. If possible, buy cardamom from bulk food sections at co-ops, Middle Eastern, or Indian groceries. I buy most of my spices from San Francisco Herb Company.
Cardamom and Yogurt Chicken
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For marinade:
1.5 c full fat plain yogurt
2 T coconut milk (optional)
1 t salt
cayenne pepper, to taste
1 t turmeric
1 t ground cardamom
1 lb bone-in chicken thighs (with skins)
For cooking:
ghee, butter, or oil
1 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1″ ginger, minced
salt & pepper
cayenne pepper, to taste
1/2 t ground cardamom
1/2 t ground cinnamon
cilantro (for garnish)
yogurt (for garnish)
In a large bowl, mix together yogurt, coconut milk, salt, cayenne pepper, turmeric, and cardamom. Add chicken and coat with yogurt. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for at least an hour.
Heat ghee, butter, or oil in a large stockpot. When hot, add onions and cook for 5-7, or until onions are translucent. Add garlic, ginger, salt, pepper, cayenne, cardamom and cinnamon and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add chicken and the marinade. Partially cover the pot and reduce heat to low. Flip the chicken occasionally. Cook for about 50 minutes. If too much liquid evaporates, add a little more yogurt or some vegetable or chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper and serve. Garnish with a dollop of yogurt and cilantro or parsley. Serve with naan and rice.
Serves 2
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I was born in the South, but I’m not a Southerner. My parents were carnies (they had all their teeth at the time, in case you were wondering) and I just so happened to be thought of, conceived, and born in the South. However, most of my life was spent in Michigan. When I think of traditional food of the American Midwest things like casseroles, Jell-O salad, meatloaf, and coney dogs come to mind. Those are all foods I have spent my life avoiding. Luckily, there are large populations of Greeks and Arabs in Michigan, who brought their food with them. If you serve me green bean casserole or a Cool Whip fruit salad, just don’t expect me to do anything but frown.
When it comes to traditional and comforting American food, I look to the South for inspiration. This recipe comes from Elise over at Simply Recipes, who I believe is a native of California, so I can’t vouch for the authenticity of this bread. If any of my Southern readers out there have any other cornbread recipes they’d like to share, then by all means! I poked around on the web a bit before deciding on a recipe, but the addition of the shredded cheese in this recipe was too hard to pass up. Cory and I both enjoyed this with last week’s turkey chili.
Southern-style cornbread
(adapted from Simply Recipes)
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1 c cornmeal
1 T baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1 c milk or buttermilk
3 T bacon fat
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 c sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 small onion, chopped
3/4 c frozen corn, defrosted
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Mix together cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir the milk, bacon fat, and beatened eggs into the mix. Fold in the cheese, onion, and corn.
- Pour the mix into a greased cast-iron skillet and bake for 45 minutes, or until golden.
Serves 6-8
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I love chili. This was a standby dish of mine while I was still in college. I’d make a large batch of chili on Mondays and would look forward to coming home to a bowl of this the rest of the week. I no longer make this as often as I used to, so it felt like a comforting treat to make this tonight. Serve this chili with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, avocado slices, or cornbread (I made this, too! Recipe to come tomorrow).
Turkey Chili
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1 onion, chopped
1 lb ground turkey
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1-3 chilies (or as many as you can handle)
1 T cumin
1 t oregano
1/4 t clove
1/4 t cinnamon
cayenne pepper, to taste
salt & pepper, to taste
2 15 oz cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
cheddar cheese, sour cream, avocado slices (optional, for serving)
Add oil to a large heavy saucepan. When hot, add onion and cook for 5 minutes, or until translucent. Add garlic and chilies, stir for about 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add ground turkey and cook until no longer pink.
Stir in cumin, oregano, clove, cinnamon, cayenne, salt, and pepper to the saucepan. Add tomatoes and beans. Bring to a simmer and gently cook on low heat for about an hour. Stir occasionally. If the chili is too thick, add a little bit of water or chicken stock. Season once more to taste and serve.
Serves 4
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While I was slaving over a hot stove stirring risotto a few nights ago, my mind drifted to thoughts of how arborio rice would make a great rice pudding. A couple months ago, I read in The Joy of Cooking that rice pudding made with arborio rice should be avoided, since it’s so starchy. Pftt, whatever Joy of Cooking. I’m a Rice Pudding Rebel and there was no stopping me. Luckily, this turned out to be one of the best batches of rice pudding I’ve ever made. Really though, it’s hard to go wrong when you’re combining milk, sugar, and rice together.
Arborio Rice Pudding
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4 c whole milk
1 c arborio rice
pinch salt
3-4 T sugar
3 1″ cinnamon sticks
1 tsp vanilla extract
chopped pecans, for serving (optional)
Pour the milk, rice, salt, sugar, and cinnamon sticks into a large heavy saucepan. Stir often. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil and simmer on very low heat for 30-35 minutes, or until the rice has absorbed much of the milk. There’s no need to continuously stir the rice as you would risotto, but don’t leave the kitchen for long periods of time and stir the rice often so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. When the rice is done (it will be very soft), stir in the vanilla extract. Remove from heat and let cool a few minutes before serving. Discard cinnamon sticks. Garnish with chopped pecans and enjoy!
Serves 4
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