Butter Chicken, from Amber

Butter chicken is chicken in a tomato-based sauce with spices. It is served in Indian food restaurants. I get a pre-made spice kit from the local Indian market. This is what I did:

Mix together 1/2 c. water, spices and 4 table spoons lemon juice.
Marinate 1 lb of chicken breasts (cut into cubes) in the mixture of an hour.
Boil 2 lbs of tomatoes until soft and then separate the skins and seeds.
Cook chicken in the marinade and tomato puree for 20 minutes.
When it is cooked through turn off the heat and add a 1/2 cup milk and a stick of butter.

It is so yummy!

Cheap Asshole Chili, from Michelle

Turkey chili can stretch like a mo fo.

I use ground turkey. If you use two pounds, you can add one or two cans each of black beans and red kidney beans, a 28-oz can of diced tomatoes, chili powder to taste, cumin to taste, and a small can (4oz? 5oz?) of tomato sauce. Throw some chicken stock (or water if it's really cheap asshole time) in it if it's too thick. I've been eating plain old chili all week (over tortillas or a handful of Fritos with a dollop of fat free sour cream).

You can turn leftovers into burrito filling by mixing about 2 c of the chili w/ some shredded cheese (and sneak more cheap veggies in if you want--a cup of succotash (corn and baby lima beans), then put the filling in some flour tortillas, cover w/ more shredded cheese, bake at 400 for about 30 mins (if the chili was previously refrigerated). I like to mix prepared chili sauce w/ sour cream and serve hot.

Suggested by Alison - Ratatouille

Ratatouille at Cooking for Engineers

Fresh Broccoli How-To, from Kris

Broccoli

- Broccoli
- water
- butter
- salt

Steam until done (about 3 minutes). Drain, add butter and salt and quickly saute over high heat for about 1 - 2 minutes.

Lemon-Garlic Pasta, from Kris

Lemon-Garlic Pasta

- 1 package spaghetti pasta
- 7 cloves garlic minced
- 2 TBSP butter
- 1 TBSP olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (or thereabouts)

Cook pasta according to package directions, add 1/2 of the minced garlic to the pasta cooking water to enhance garlic flavor. Drain pasta, set aside. In pasta pan, melt butter and olive oil together over medium heat. Add minced garlic, allow to cook (but not burn!) for about 1 - 2 minutes to extract garlic flavor into oil. Add pasta back into pan, add lemon juice, salt and pepper. Toss well. I like to also add parmesan cheese and sometimes some fresh dill to the pasta as well.

Lemon-Dill Salmon with Cucumber-Dill Sauce, from Kris

Lemon-Dill Salmon:

-1 boneless, skinless salmon fillet (we get the big ones at Costco)
- 2 lemons sliced thinly
- 1/4 stick butter sliced in thin slices
- 1/4 cup fresh dill
- aluminum foil to wrap salmon for the grill
- salt and pepper to taste

Lightly spray aluminum foil with cooking spray. Arrange half of the butter slices and lemon directly on the foil. Salt and pepper the salmon, place on top of lemon/butter slices and top with fresh dill. Wrap in aluminum foil and place on grill.

Cucumber-Dill sauce:
- 4 oz sour cream
- 2 TBSP mayo
- 1/2 cup finely diced English cucumber with skin
- 1/4 cup fresh dill chopped
- 1 TBSP fresh squeezed lemon juice
- salt and pepper

Combine above ingredients in bowl and refrigerate.

Stuffed Shells, an idea from Rachael

I use half a box of jumbo pasta shells. I stuff those with half a package of JD Italian sausage, half a container of Ricotta cheese, lots of parm, lots of asiago, lots of Romano, basil, oregano, garlic, fresh whole milk Mozzarella, fresh ground pepper, one egg and some sea salt. Cover with a jar of sauce and some more fresh Mozzarella. Bake about 30 mins. This is obviously not helping me get fit, but it is such a comfort food.

Semi-Mexican Feast, an idea from Carrie

Chicken breasts, diced, seasoned with fajita seasoning (McCorrmik) then sauteed in a little oil. Served with a can of pinto beans that have been seasoned with a packet of Goya con azafran and simmered until soft. Cole Slaw.

Chicken and Gnocchi, an idea from Carrie

Oven baked chicken breasts seasoned with Italian seasoning. Served on the side is gnocchi (boiled and then pan simmered in a can of petite diced tomatoes, garlic and olive oil).

Suggested by Betsy - Prairie Land Pot Roast

If you don't get the mag, this is the pot roast that dh was in ecstasies over:


Prairie Land Pot Roast (Kraft Food and Family, Winter 2008, pg. 17)

Prep: 20 min. Total: 2 hours 40 min.

1 boneless beef shoulder pot roast (2 lb.)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 bottle (8 oz.) Catalina dressing, divided
2 large onions, sliced
2 lb. Yukon gold or all-purpose potatoes, peeled, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 lb. carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
Water
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Season both sides of roast with salt and pepper. Brown meat in large heavy pot or Dutch oven on high heat in 1/4 cut of the dressing, turning to brown all sides. Add onions; stir to brown.

Add remaining dressing potatoes, carrots, and enough water to come three-fourths of the way up meat (about 1 1/2 to 2 cups). Bring to boil; cover. Reduce heat to low. Simmer 2 hours or until meat and vegetables are tender.

Remove meat from pan; slice meat thinly against the grain. Serve meat and vegetables topped with pan gravy. Sprinkle with chopped parsley just before serving.

Makes 8 servings.

Suggested by Michelle - Wonton Soup

The Food Network's Wonton Soup from Robin Miller.

Michelle says:
Here's the verdict on the soup: Stuffing and sealing the wontons took about 3x longer than I expected; I needed 8 cups of stock (not 6 per the recipe); and DH said it tasted like "sexed up chicken noodle soup." I don't mind that description b/c it's kinda right (except it was pork, not chicken).

Fake Mexican Rice, from Dani

Last night I made a fake mexican rice to have with our tacos, because we were out of refried beans, and I'm trying to use up some of the stuff in my cabinets before I go shopping again.

1.5c instant brown rice
1.25c water
About 1tsp of hot sauce (I used valentina's, it's in the mexican food aisle)
About 1/4c tomato sauce
2tsp paprika

Just cook the rice like the package directions say, only with a little less water, and then add the paprika, hot sauce and tomato sauce, and cook a little longer (I did mine in the microwave) and then fluff with a fork. Mine tasted almost just like real mexican rice.

Beefaroniesque, an idea from Karli

Last night I tried something that turned yummy. I had some leftover mac & cheese and mixed it with a pound of browned ground beef, a can of diced tomatoes with onions, and seasonings (oregano, basil, garlic, etc.). I put it in a pie plate, covered with mozzarella and cheddar cheese and baked at 350° until the cheese was melted.

Cincinnati Chili, from Betsy

Cincinnati Chili

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 14.5-oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 16-oz. can tomato sauce
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
1 cup water
2 cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 lb. spaghetti
shredded Cheddar cheese for topping

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat and saute the onion until golden. Add garlic and saute a minute longer.

Stir in Tomatoes with juice, tomato sauce, tomato paste, water, kidney beans, chili powder, sugar, and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside, keeping warm.

Serve chili over spaghetti; sprinkle with Cheddar cheese.

(adapted from Saving Dinner, by Leanne Ely. The original recipe also calls for diced green bell pepper, which I omit.)