Monthly Archives: October 2015

Peruvian Chicken Curry

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I am bias and literally love all curries. I love sopping up bread or rice in them, they are typically super flavorful and filling too. I am very down to try any sort of curry. Even if it means ordering some of the ingredients from Amazon because I am too lazy to find out where Aji Amarillo paste is sold locally. I will say, building off of my general theme of sloth, I did not roast my own chicken for this recipe, like the original calls for. That’s right kids, grab a good old Rotisserie chicken from your supermarket and make sure you adequately de-bone, de-skin, and de-fat that before throwing into the curry. So yum and a lot quicker than roasting a bird yourself.

  • 1 slice whole wheat sandwich bread, crust removed, cut or torn into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 3/4 cup half-and-half
  •  2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 large or 2 small shallots, sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
  • 2 cups (6 ounces) crumbled queso fresco or mild feta cheese (that sounded like a lot so I did one cup but 2 is probably right).
  • 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, plus 1/3 cup toasted
  • 1 tablespoon Aji Amarillo paste (this was my Amazon order, shit is sooo good, I actually did 2 tbsp. because I like the kick)
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric (Again I wanted a brighter color so I did 1 tsp.)
  • 4 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley leaves (I used dried because I didn’t have fresh, whatever).

**Peruvians typically garnish with chopped olives (I did black and green to add pops of salty color) and boiled eggs. Also note the curry is best served over Latin Rice (rice boiled with saffron threads).

Place the bread and half-and-half in the bowl of food processor or a blender. Allow the bread to soak up the liquid, about 10 minutes. In a 10-inch nonstick skillet heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook about 30 seconds. Cool slightly and add to the food processor with the soaked bread. Add the broth, cheeses, 1/2 cup walnuts, Aji Amarillo paste, and turmeric. Blend until smooth. Pour the sauce back into the skillet and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt & add in the chicken to heat everything through together.

Happy Eating, XO.

PS that’s all that was left in the pot before I could even get to the stove to take a picture!

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Squash It!

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Squash Gratin, or as some may refer to as Squash Casserole, is a great way to utilize fall produce for a yummy side dish. There are many variations out there, but I gotta say this came out so tasty during the test run, I barely tweaked it. Also if you don’t have creme fraiche, sour cream will do just fine.

  • Pinch of cayenne pepper
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced (the seasoning has some garlic powder in it but I love the flavor of fresh too)
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • 1-2 tbsp. of veggie seasoning (herb & seasoning blend from McCormick’s)
  • 1 sleeve of ritz crackers, crushed
  • 2 yellow squash, sliced in rounds
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 3 zucchini, sliced in rounds
  • 3 eggs
  • 7.5 oz. Crème Fraiche (or sour cream)

Layer the sliced squash and zucchini rounds in a non stick baking dish. Pour over the cream, eggs, onion, and spices mixture, evenly coating all the veggies. Sprinkle with the crushed crackers and cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes (based on how deep your dish is) but then broil for 5 minutes to get the crust to crisp & the cheese to melt.

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PS I know I forgot to crop out my feet, but honestly, my toes look cute so whatever 😛 Obviously Jess is the true photog of this relationship, not I.

Happy Eating, XO.

Get Sauced – Slow Cooker Applesauce

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Apple butter is all the rage right now, right?! Apple butter is the new fall recipe. Pumpkin can suck it. (I mean, pumpkins have been coming up a little short. Ba da bum.) Jk, we still love you pumpkins.

Anyway, why are we talking about apple butter when the title says “applesauce”? Well, because in my haste to try to get together an apple butter recipe…I ended up making applesauce. Clearly, I missed the key step where you remove the top from the slow cooker to thicken the apple mush. But you know what this means? You now have two recipes in one! *Mic drop.

  • 6-8 gala apples (or whatever you have handy)
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 tbsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • Dash or two of all spice, or pumpkin pie spice

Core the apples and roughly chop. It’s ok if the skin is still on. Place the apples in the slow cooker and mix with the water, cinnamon, sugars, and spice (and everything nice). Once the apples are fully sugar coated, cook them on low for 4 hours, stirring occasionally throughout until the apples are soft.

For applesauce:

At this point, toss the soft apples in a blender until fairly smooth. Some chunks are ok. Refrigerate up to a week in a sealed container or freeze.

For apple butter:

After 4 hours, remove the slow cooker lid and cook for 1 more hour. You’ll notice the apples begin to thicken and become dark brown. Toss them into a food processor and blend until completely smooth and the consistency is like peanut butter.

Apple Sauce | damndelish

Happy Eating, XO.

Churros – The stuff dreams are made of

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My fondest memories of churros (if one could have fond memories of churros) is in my high school lunch room. I had never seen them before and fell in love at first bite. I mean, fried dough, rolled in a cinnamon-y sugar-y goodness? Shut up and take my money. Every day.

Recently, I went to a local restaurant Paloma where we got hot-out-of-the-oven churros, served with chocolate sauce for dessert. I can’t even describe to you how good they were. At that moment I knew I had to learn how to make them.  I NEED them in my life, (just like I need to sign up for that gym membership if this is going to keep happening…). Anyway, you know when we obsess over something that means we share it with you. Because you NEED these in your life too.

  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • ½ cup unsalted butter
  • 1 cup water
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 1 cup flour
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1/4 cup extra sugar to coat
  • 2 tsp cinnamon to coat

Combine 1 tbsp of sugar, water, and salt in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. While stirring, slowly add the flour until fully combined and a dough begins to form. Remove dough from the saucepan to a mixing bowl and let cool. (You’ll be handling the dough with your hands, so be careful not to burn yourself.) Fill a sauce pan with canola oil about 4 inches deep and heat on medium-high.

Once the dough is cooled, add the eggs and mix together. Slide the dough in to a pastry bag or cookie press with a large star tip (to get the ridged effect), or if you’re ready to just dive in these bites of heaven already, you can also use a sturdy ziplock bag, with a corner snipped off. (Be cautious with the ziplock bag, the first time I did this, the dough was so thick it split the bag.) Pipe the dough into 4 inch sections and drop in the oil. Fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Churros - damndelish

Happy Eating, XO.