Ginger Cake

Aside from gingersnaps and gingerbread (the real bread-type stuff, not gingerbread men. But those are good too), this might be my favorite ginger recipe...though I'm not sure what other dessert would have ginger as the main ingredient. This cake is simple and ridiculously easy. Just dump the ingredients in a bowl, slap the batter into a pan, and 30 minutes later, voila! Your house smells divine and the cake just has to wait to cool. That's actually the hardest part- the waiting. Once the cake is cool, it needs a bit of whipping cream to bring it to perfection. Or powdered sugar. I think next time I make this I'll sprinkle the top with some powdered sugar, meaning I won't have to keep it in the fridge, meaning I'll have easier access to sneaking pieces when no one's looking. Not that there's ever much left to sneak...

Ginger Cake
recipe slightly adapted from Cooking Light October 2006
Picture by Caroline

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 large egg
1/3 cup applesauce
1/4 cup molasses
1/3 cup apple juice
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream*
1-2 tablespoons white sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9-inch round cake pan with cooking spray or shortening. 
2. Combine flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl and stir with a whisk.
3. In a large bowl, beat brown sugar and butter until well blended. Add the egg and mix well. Add the applesauce and molasses (batter will look slightly curdled). Add the flour mixture and mix just until blended. Add the apple juice and stir just until combined. Pour into cake pan. 
4. Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes; remove from pan and cool completely. 
5. Meanwhile, beat whipping cream on medium speed in a small bowl until it begins to stiff. Gradually add sugar and continue beating and until soft peaks form. Top cooled cake with whipped cream and serve immediately.    

*I suppose you could use cool whip to top this cake. But since real whipped cream is so much better, why would you?

Curried Squash and Red Lentils

Today, for the first time possibly ever, my sister ate lentils and liked them. When I invited her over for dinner, she asked me what was on the menu...and I refused to tell her. I had this sneaky suspicion that if lentils were mentioned, she would howl in protest. And since I really wanted lentils, I refused to tell her. I made her stay in the living room while I cooked and hid the ingredients when she poked her head in the kitchen.

The smells, as usual, were tantalizing. She guessed that it was something Indian. But not until everything was in the pot and almost ready to be served did she discover the star of this vegetarian dish. Although apprehensive at first, after her first bite, she was hooked. She admitted that she could hardly tell there were lentils involved at all. The warm flavor of the curry combined with the earthy lentils and sweet squash was just too good of a combination to pass up.

Gingersnaps

There's one food-related thing that Caroline and I quite possibly disagree on: whether gingersnaps should be soft or crunchy. If you recall from a previous post, Caroline is likes her gingersnaps a bit more on the crunchy side; I happen to prefer the soft ones. And this recipe makes an excellent soft gingersnap.

Chinese Egg Rolls and Ginger Sauce

This recipe comes care of our friends K and P Lowe, who were generous enough to "invite" me over so they could make these fantastic egg rolls. I use the word "invite" loosely because I pretty much demanded them for dinner. I couldn't help it- a bit of cabbage and garlic was just what I was craving, and the Lowes make some of the best!

These aren't difficult to make, but they do require some assembly, which is pictured step-by-step below. My recommendation is to recruit an assistant to help with the rolling. Call it a date night and egg-roll it with your significant other!

And finally, although not pictured in this post, the Lowes have an excellent ginger sauce they serve with these egg rolls. I highly, highly recommend it. They usually dye it red for aesthetic purposes, but there's no real need for it. Bear in mind that the Lowes make their ginger sauce powerful enough to knock your socks off, so if you're new to the world of gingery foods, you may want to cut back by a tablespoon or so of the ginger in the sauce. Enjoy!


Chinese Egg Rolls
Recipe by K. and P. Lowe
Pictures by Kelly

1 pound sausage
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 cup purple cabbage, chopped
1/4 cup green onion, chopped
1 egg
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 package egg roll wraps
oil

1. In a large pan, cook sausage until well done, stirring frequently. Drain excess grease from pan. Add chili powder, oregano, ginger, cabbage, and green onions. Saute 1-2 minutes.
   
2. Push meat mixture to the side and add egg. Cook egg until mostly firm, then break and scramble. Stir into meat mixture.
3. Lay out several egg roll wraps flat on the counter. Add 1 heaping spoonful to each wrap. Fold up like a burrito and seal the sides by moistening the edges with a wet cloth.
   
4. Heat oil to medium heat in large fryer or large pan. Fry each egg roll until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Serve with ginger sauce.

Ginger Sauce
Recipe by K. and P. Lowe

3-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup white sugar
1-2 tablespoons corn starch
1/2 tablespoon water
Red food coloring (optional)

1. In a small sauce pan, combine ginger, vinegar, and sugar. Heat until sugar is dissolved.
   
2. Add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to 1/2 tablespoon water and stir until smooth. Add to ginger mixture and stir until mixture has thickened. Add more cornstarch if a thicker sauce is desired.
   
3. Add food coloring and serve.
   

Green Lentils and Rice

I love lentils. I love rice. When I found this recipe, I was ecstatic- you mean I can combine two of my favorite sides to make one even better one?! Hurrah! And this dish is not your run-of-the-mill rice dish. It has just the right amount of spice combined with a nice warm hint of cinnamon. Sounds weird, I know (but after the sweet potatoes with black beans, no combination of spices can scare me), but it's really great.

Try serving with Chicken Saag or Chicken Curry Korma.

Green Lentils and Rice
Recipe adapted from India's 500 Best Recipes
Pictures by Caroline

1 3/4 cups rice (basmati recommended)
3/4 cups green lentils, rinsed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 inch piece of ginger root, peeled and grated
2 jalepeno peppers, chopped
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
3 1/2 cups water

1. Place lentils into a small bowl. Pour cold water over the top until lentils are covered. Soak about 20 minutes.
   
2. Pour lentils and water into a medium saucepan. Simmer 10 minutes. Drain.
   
3. Meanwhile, heat the oil on medium heat in a large pot. Saute the onion, garlic, ginger, peppers, cloves, cinnamon, turmeric and salt until the onion is soft (about 5 minutes).
4. Add the lentils and rice and saute 2-3 minutes. Add 3 cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook about 20-25 minutes, checking periodically to add more water if needed. Cook until all the water is absorbed and rice is tender.
   

Chicken Saag

Chicken Saag literally means "chicken spinach," and it's an ever popular Indian dish. And contrary to what the picture below might lead you to believe, it tastes absolutely fantastic. (Not that Caroline didn't do a great job with her photography; it's just that Indian food isn't the most...photogenic of the food genres out there). But you can't expect real beauty from pureed spinach.

Two bits of advice before you begin cooking: (1) you might notice our slightly-too-thin-sauce in the picture; we have adjusted the recipe so that yours will hopefully avoid such a mishap. But just be sure, wait til the very end to add more water to the sauce (we were a little over eager). (2) We recommend serving the chicken saag over or alongside of naan bread. But if you're crunched for time, rice will also suffice.

Chicken Saag
Recipe adapted from India's 500 Best Recipes
Pictures by Caroline

8 oz fresh spinach, washed, but not dried
1 1/2 inch piece ginger root, peeled and grated
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, roughly chopped
1/2 cup water, divided
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
3 tablespoons plain yogurt
4 large chicken breasts, cut in half

1. In a large skillet on medium heat, cook the spinach, covered, for about 5 minutes. Combine the cooked spinach, ginger, garlic, jalapeno peppers, and 1/4 cup water in a blender. Pulse until a thick puree. Set aside.
2. Using the same large skillet, heat the oil on medium heat. Add the bay leaves and black peppercorns and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the onion and saute until onion is soft (about 5 minutes).
3. Add the tomatoes (including juice) and simmer about 5 minutes. Stir in the curry powder, salt, and chili powder. Cook for 2 minutes over medium heat. Stir in the spinach puree. Add the yogurt and simmer 5 more minutes.
4. Add the chicken and stir to coat with sauce. Bring to a simmer. Cover and cook 20-25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Add more water if a thinner sauce is desired. Serve over naan bread or basmati rice.

Chicken Curry Korma

My sister has been asking me to find a good recipe for Chicken Korma for ages. It's a type of curry often served in Indian restaurants with chicken, cashews and raisins. For this dish, you will need two "unusual" spices you may not have on hand: turmeric and garam masala. They're spicy in the flavorful sense of the word, not hot, and are used in dozens of other Indian recipes, so they surely won't go to waste.

A note to the wise: you may want to take special care to be tidy when cooking with turmeric; it has a very bright neon yellow/green color and can be a pain to try to clean off counter tops, especially white ones (trust me, I know).

Chicken Curry Korma

Recipe by Kelly

Pictures by Kelly

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 inch ginger root, minced

1/3 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup coconut milk

2 teaspoons turmeric powder

2 teaspoons garam masala

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon allspice

2 teaspoons salt

2 chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks

1/3 cup roasted cashews

1/3 cup golden raisins

1. Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onions and saute until softened. Add garlic and ginger and cook about 2 minutes.
2. Add yogurt, coconut milk and spices. Bring to a boil and add chicken pieces. Reduce heat and simmer until chicken is cooked through.
3. Add cashews and raisins. Simmer 4-5 more minutes. Serve over rice or with naan bread.
   

*If you like your sauce thicker, add less coconut milk and more yogurt. If you like it thinner, add more coconut milk (or some water). You may also increase/decrease the amount of cashews and raisins according to your preference.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Tikka Masala is an Indian dish jokingly considered to be the UK's national favorite (due to the growing Indian population in Britain). You can find it at almost any Indian restaurant with varying degrees of spice. I like it with a little bit of kick served over rice, though naan bread (if I could only make a good batch of it!) would also be a good option.

Tikka Masala paste is the most important ingredient in this recipe and is actually a type of curry. You can find it at most grocery stores in the ethnic food section. Our closest grocery store carries Patak’s brand “Taste of India” and makes all types of curries. The recipe calls for 6 tablespoons of paste, but if you want a stronger flavor, add an extra spoonful or two. I recommend trying the sauce before making any additions to it. If you do find it too spicy, add a few extra spoonfuls of yogurt to temper the heat.*

*Your tikka masala sauce should be a darker shade of orange than ours; I ran out of tikka paste mid-recipe so the color and flavor was a little weak.

Chicken Tikka Masala
Recipe from India's 500 Best Recipes
Pictures by Caroline

4 chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
6 tablespoons tikka masala paste
1 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 green chili, seeded and chopped
1 inch piece fresh root ginger, grated
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup water
1 tablespoon lemon juice

1. In a large bowl, mix 3 tablespoons tikka paste and 4 tablespoons yogurt. Add the chicken and leave to marinate 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Preheat the oven to low broil.
2. Heat the oil in a heavy pan and sauté the onion, garlic, chili and ginger for 5 minutes. Add the remaining tikka paste and fry for 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and water; bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, pour the chicken onto a large, lightly greased pan.* Broil on low for 10-15 minutes, stirring often, until the chicken is done through.
4. Put the tikka sauce into a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Return to the pan.
5. Add the remaining yogurt and the lemon juice. Add the chicken and simmer for 5 more minutes. Serve over rice or naan bread.

*You may want to line your pan foil or you could end up with a pan that is very very difficult to clean.

Chicken Dhansak

This dish is a delicious combination of Indian and Iranian flavors. Dhansak is a type of curry that traditionally includes lentils. I love the flavor, slight spice of the dish, and the texture of the lentils.

Like many Indian dishes, it's fairly easy to throw together, but contains several ingredients or spices you may not have on hand. I would recommend just biting the bullet and buying all the spices you'll need for this recipe; once you've collected all of them, you'll be able to make almost any Indian dish.



Chicken Dhansak
from India's 500 Best Recipes
Picture by Caroline

1/3 cup green lentils*
2 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 curry leaves
1 onion, finely chopped
1 inch piece fresh root ginger, chopped
1 fresh green chili, chopped (optional)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 14 oz can chopped tomatoes
4 chicken breasts
6 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon garam masala

1. Rinse the lentils under cold running water. Put into a pan with the stock. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes.
   
2. Heat the oil in a large, heavy pan and fry the cumin seeds and curry leaves for 2 minutes. Add the onion, ginger, and chili and fry for about 5 minutes. Stir in the cumin, coriander, salt and chili powder with 2 tablespoons water.
3. Add the tomatoes and the chicken pieces to the spices. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes.
4. Add the lentils and the stock, half the chopped cilantro and the garam masala. Cook for a further 10 mintues r until the chicken is tender. Garnish with the remaining fresh cilantro and serve over rice.

*Before cooking the lentils, be sure to pick them over and remove any small twigs that may have hidden themselves amongst the lentils.

Chicken Stir-Fry Wraps

We made these together the other night and they were tasty. This recipe calls for fresh ginger, and I insist, okay I recommend that you do not use anything but fresh ginger - it really adds a great flavor to this recipe. If you have a micro-planer use it to grate the ginger, if not, grate it another way or just chop it up as best you can. Also, Kelly and I decided while making this, that we wanted more veggies, so we added a green bell in addition to the red (as you can see from the pictures). And one last note, next time I make this recipe I will chop everything, rather than slicing for two reasons. One, the flavor of this is excellent, so the smaller the pieces the more they absorb; and two, this is messy to eat, and I think the wrapping part would go more smoothly if everything was chopped into smaller pieces; those are my recommendations. I hope that you will like this as much as I did. Oh! Also, we served rice on the side (which I don't have pictured) to make it a bit more substantial.

Chicken Stir-Fry Wraps
Recipe from Everyday Foods: Great Food Fast
Pictures by Caroline
Serves 4

1 ½ lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts; thinly sliced
Coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ tsp grated peeled fresh ginger
¼ to ½ tsp red pepper flakes
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp rice vinegar
1 ½ tsp cornstarch mixed with 1 tbsp water
12 to 16 Boston lettuce leaves (about 2 heads)

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over high heat. Add half the chicken; cook, stirring constantly, until opaque throughout, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining chicken.
2. Add the remaining tablespoon oil to the pan, along with the onion and bell pepper. Cook; stirring constantly, until the onion is tender and golden, about 4 minutes (reduce the heat if browning too quickly).
3. Reduce the heat to medium; add the garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes to the pan; cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds.
4. Stir in the soy sauce, vinegar, and cornstarch mixture; remove from the heat. Add the chicken and any accumulated juices; toss to coat. Serve in the lettuce cups.

Zucchini Eggplant Curry

Feeling vegetarian tonight? This recipe is healthy, easy and versatile. And if you're not a fan of eggplant, simply omit and increase the amount of zucchini. I would highly recommend serving this dish with some basmati or jasmine rice, rather than regular rice. But just for clarification, let me explain the differences.

Basmati and jasmine rice each have a slightly different flavor and texture. Basmati is a long grain rice that is native to the Himalaya region. It also smells delightfully nutty when cooking. Jasmine is also a long grain, but has a slight jasmine scent and taste (no surprise there) and is a bit stickier than Basmati. Usually jasmine is used in Thai recipes and basmati in Indian, but I usually use whichever one I happen to have on hand. I promise it will taste better than regular rice.

Zucchini Eggplant Curry
adapted from www.epicurious.com
Pictures by Caroline

1 garlic clove, chopped
2 teaspoons finely grated peeled fresh ginger
1 to 2 teaspoons chopped fresh jalapeño chile including seeds (optional)
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon curry powder*
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
3 medium green zucchini, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch thick slices
1 small eggplant, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch thick slices
1 (13 1/2- to 14-oz) can unsweetened coconut milk, well stirred
1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds

1. Pound garlic, ginger and chile pepper to a paste with 1 teaspoon salt (using the back of a spoon). Then stir in curry powder, coriander, and mustard and cumin seeds.
   
2. Heat oil in a large pan over medium high heat until hot. Then sauté onion, stirring, until golden, about 8 minutes. Add curry paste and cook, about 2 minutes.
   
3. Add zucchini and eggplant and cook, stirring, until it begins to appear moist, 3 to 5 minutes. Add coconut milk and remaining teaspoon salt and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until zucchini is just tender, 5 to 10 minutes.
   
4. Serve over rice and sprinkle with almonds.

*In this dish, using a good quality curry powder makes a big difference. I suggest a medium hot variety. You might also want to check and make sure your curry powder hasn't been sitting in the cupboard for years. It starts to lose its flavor after a while.

-Kelly

Old Fashion Ginger Snaps

I have been in search for a good, crispy, ginger snap cookie recipe; a cookie that actually snaps (as opposed to being soft) and a cookie that has the right combination of molasses and spice.

The nice thing about these cookies is that you don't have to roll them out. You just roll them into ping-pong sized balls and flatten them our with your fingers (or you can use a fork or the back of a spoon if you want to keep your fingers clean).
These cookies flatten quite a bit in the oven, so watch them closely so that they don't over-brown.

Old-Fashioned Ginger Snaps
From Janienne Jennrich found on the website www.suite101.com
Pictures by Caroline

3/4 cup shortening
1-cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt
4 Tbsp molasses
2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cloves (I used 1 tsp to make the cookie a bit more spicy)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger

Directions:

1. Cream together shortening and brown sugar until well mixed, light, and fluffy.
2. Mix the egg, salt, and molasses together and then mix these into the sugar mixture.
3. Sift together flour, baking soda, ground cloves, cinnamon and ginger.
4. Add dry ingredients to other ingredients and combine well.
5. Chill in the refrigerator a few hours or overnight. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit.
6. After chilled, shape dough into ping-pong sized balls and place balls on a greased cookie sheet, allowing room for expansion. Flatten balls with a fork (I just used my fingers).
7. Bake in 350-degree oven 12 to 15 min. Do not let get too brown. I baked mine for 12 minutes and they were just perfect.