Indian Curry

I wanted to make Indian Curry, so I scoured the internet for recipes. There are a ton out there, and they vary widely. After getting the basic idea, and knowing what ingredients I prefer, I set out to make my own version. I thought it turned out great! Even my kids who initially turned their noses up at it, ended up liking it.

I served it with Naan bread made from "Artisan Bread In Five Minutes a Day" dough. (Totally in love with ABin5, I am.) See how to make it here. It requires a bit of work, and I didn't use ghee (clarified butter) so my kitchen got a bit smoky. But it was worth it! Yum!

What do you know? I finally took a photo
of something I made, and it's a terrible one.

Indian Curry (Chicken or Vegetarian)
adapted from all over the internet

I kind of just used what I had on hand, and I didn't measure anything, so these amounts are all approximate:

3 T. olive oil
1 c. carrots, chopped
4 green onions, chopped (I used the whole thing)
3 stalks of celery, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1-2 T. curry powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 T. sugar
1/2 tsp. coarse salt (to taste)
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
3 chicken breasts, cut into bite-size chunks* (OPTIONAL: You could sub in potatoes.)
1 c. greek yogurt (or sour cream)
1/2 can coconut milk (the can was 13.5 oz.)
1 T. lemon juice

Saute the veggies and garlic in the oil until almost tender; stir in the seasonings and sugar, and cook a minute or 2 longer. Add remaining ingredients and simmer about 5 minutes. Serve over rice or with naan bread. (I wrapped it in a piece of bread for my kids to make it easier for them to eat, but I just tear off a piece and use it to scoop.)

*I used chicken breasts that were already cooked and just cut them up. If you use raw, just saute the chunks after the veggies and then simmer a little longer until the chicken is cooked through.

Salmon For Supper

My brother-in-law went salmon fishing in Alaska and brought us some of his catch. I cooked it for dinner tonight and it was fabulous! Everyone raved and wanted seconds. It was moist and flavorful and delicious! I wish I had some photos to share, but I will tell you what I did.

I rinsed the filets (left them wet) and spread on some mustard (I just had plain old French's yellow mustard). Then I rolled them in a mixture of bread crumbs and a "garlic rosemary" seasoning blend (obviously garlic & rosemary, plus salt & pepper, dried onion, red bell pepper and lemon peel) that I had in my pantry. I drizzled each with some olive oil and baked at 450 degrees for about 8-10 minutes (I think).

I served it with homemade Rice-A-Roni (we love this....see recipe below) and steamed broccoli (a staple at our house) with butter and seasoned salt (good ol' Lawry's!). If I may say so myself, it was a perfect meal, and my family thought so too.

Rice-a-Roni
(adapted from my mother-in-law)
2 T. olive oil
3 cloves garlic
1-2 T. dehydrated chopped onion
1 c. rice
1/2 c. tiny pasta (I use either orzo, alphabets or stars)
2 T. chicken soup base granules*
1-2 tsp. ground ginger (depending on how much kick you want)
1 T. dry parsley
2 1/2 c. water

Heat oil over medium high heat; add garlic and onion and saute briefly; add rice and pasta and saute 1-2 minutes. Add seasonings and stir well. Add water and bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer, cover and cook about 25 minutes until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. Stir before serving.

* I have this awesome one from my MIL which I think totally makes the recipe. I'm sorry if you don't have a good one. :(

Building a Bike

 Jay knows a lot about bikes, because he built his own as a kid, by scavenging parts from old bikes his mom would bring home from garage sales.  He decided to teach Collin to build his own.  They started by buying an old junky bike off Craigslist that had a decent frame. 

 They stripped, sanded, sanded, sanded, sanded, primed, painted, painted and painted.....

 .... assembled, fixed, replaced, etc.

 It turned out quite nice.  All the neighbor boys are quite impressed, and Collin is very pleased with the result.

Jay is an awesome dad.  He can fix anything, and he loves to teach our boys how to "do stuff."