Tandoori Chicken Pizza

They say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and I agree. 

We have a gem of a pizza place here in Lakewood called, Laventina's Pizza. They make the most amazing Tandoori Chicken Pizza. It's loaded with beautiful Indian spices, not only in their chicken, but in a delicious Tandoori paste that replaces the usual pizza sauce. It's then topped with cheese, Tandoori chicken, fresh tomatoes, red onions, cilantro, and thinly sliced jalapenos that lend just the right amount of heat. 
It is absolutely superb! So when I taste something this delicious, I want to try to recreate it here at home. So , if you aren't local to Lakewood and can't pick up the original, here is my humble attempt to recreate Laventina's Tandoori Chicken Pizza. Enjoy!

Note: Plan to marinate the chicken overnight for best flavor. Also I used naan flatbread instead of making my own pizza dough and used Serrano chilies instead of jalapenos. 

Tandoori Chicken Pizza

Tandoori Masala Spice Mix (recipe from Pepperscale)
3 T paprika
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp ground fenugreek seeds
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp black pepper

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. Before use, heat powder in a large skillet for 30 seconds to 1 minute stirring until fragrant. Do not heat longer than a minute you do not want the oils to burn.

Tandoori Chicken
1 1/2 lbs chicken thighs, boneless, skinless
salt and pepper
1 cup Greek yogurt
2-3 T  Tandoori Spice mix

Marinate Chicken Thighs- Salt and pepper boneless, skinless chicken thighs and place in a plastic ziploc bag. In a small bowl, combine 1 cup of  Greek yogurt and about half of the prepared tandoori masala spice mix (2-3T) Add yogurt mixture to the chicken in the ziplock bag and squsih around to coat chicken. Refrigerate 2 hours or over night. Grill chicken and then chop into bite-sized pieces.

Tandoori Paste Pizza Sauce
2 T Tandoori Spice mix
2 T olive oil
2-3 T ketchup*
salt (to taste)

Heat spice mix with olive oil in a skillet until fragrant. 20-30 seconds. Add ketchup until mixture resembles a paste. Add salt to taste and set aside. 
*secret ingredient 😉

Tandoori Chicken Pizza
6 Naan Bread
Tandoori Paste Pizza Sauce (above)Tandoori Chicken, grilled and diced (above)
3-4 cups Mozzarella cheese, grated
2 small tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/2 small red onion, sliced
1-2 small serrano pepper, thinly sliced, seeds removed
cilantro leaves
red pepper flakes (to taste)

Assemble pizzas: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Brush Naan flatbread generously with Tandoori paste. Add mozzarella cheese, chicken, onions, tomatoes and serrano pepper slices. Place in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. Garnish with cilantro leaves and red pepper flakes to taste for more heat.

Other recipes to try:

Thai Chicken Enchiladas

Spicy Pork Wonton Tacos

Vegetable Ceviche

Short Rib and Bok Choy Soup

I've seen the words 'lazy day' and 'Cozy Sunday' a lot in blogs and magazine articles lately. It is fall afterall, and I can honestly say I'm in desperate need of a lazy cozy weekend!  I feel like there's always something that has to be done, people to see, events to attend. Since weekends are our only time to spend together as a family, I'm feeling the pinch, along with my family, because I'm taking a 13 week Pro Chef Series which meets every Saturday and Sunday from 8:30am-12:30 but usually I don't get home until after 1pm. I get home and I'm hot, tired, and smelling of each week's culinary ingredient. Last Sunday, was pork class. I got home and my oldest son said, "What sinks like horrible food?" 

Yes...he's been a real shit lately. He not happy that I'm gone every weekend until the afternoon. I get it. And it is true, I do smell like chicken, beef, garlic, onions, grilling, oil, pork...you name it! Just wait until Fish and Shellfish class. But seriously after 4 hours of cooking, my clothes, my hair, skin, and even my bra stinks like food and dare I admit, a hint of sweat. It's a ton of work and A LOT of fun and most importantly, I LOVE IT! I'm learning so much and the food has been out-of-this-world delicious! Don't worry, I'll blog some of Chef Teri's amazing recipes and share some cool techniques I've learned along the way. :)

But that brings me back to Lazy. Cozy. Sunday. I need one and my family needs one. I have no class the weekend after Thanksgiving so I'm scheduling my Lazy Cozy Weekend with my family. Just me, my husband and my boys. Nothing to do. Nowhere to be. 

I'll turn off my phone, wear PJ's all day, make a big pot of soup, watch old movies, nerf guns, and play twister with the kids. Hey...who knows, maybe we'll go for a long walk or a bike ride...or maybe not...we're supposed to be LAZY right? Of course, the cozy part is completely dependent on SoCal weather. :)

Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving!

Here's a delicious soup for your next lazy weekend!

Short Rib and Bok Choy Soup

Recipe slightly adapted from Three Beans on a String

Serves 8

2 pound short ribs, with or without bones

6 cloves garlic, sliced
1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
1 Roma tomato, quartered
1 t. Chinese Five Spice
1 Habanero chile, halved and seeded
1/2 cup rice wine or sherry
1/2 cup soy sauce
12 cups chicken broth
1 lb. baby bok choy, sliced in 1-inch strips
10 baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup bean sprouts
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup green onions, chopped

In a large stockpot, cover the short ribs with water and bring to a boil. Immediately turn off the heat and remove the beef and set aside. Discard water and wash the stock pot. This helps make a clearer broth. Return the par-boiled short ribs to the clean stockpot and add garlic, ginger, onion, tomato, five spice, Habanero chile, rice wine, soy sauce and chicken broth. Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 3 hours or until meat is tender. Remove from heat and allow the soup to sit for an additional hour. Next, remove the beef from the pot and pour the broth through a sieve to strain out the vegetables while collecting the broth in another clean stock pot. Add beef back to the strained broth.
Skim any fat from the surface of the broth. (I refrigerated the soup overnight and removed the hardened fat from the surface)

Bring the soup back up to a boil and then add the mushrooms and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the Bok Choy and blanch for another 2 minutes.
Ladle into bowls and top soup with bean sprouts, green onions and cilantro.

Other Soup recipes to try:
   Rustic Minestrone                  Chicken Pot Pie Soup              Spicy Beef Stew

Sushi Night

Earlier this year, my best friend, Julie and I took a sushi class together. See our picture below...We had a blast and learned a lot. :) 
One reason we wanted to learn how to make sushi was so we could make it at home and save money. We both love sushi but, lets be honest, going out for sushi is super-duper expensive. If you eat sushi like my husband does, it's easily a hundred dollar dinner. So what better way to still be able to have Sushi Night, only on a budget, by making it at home.

Assembling sushi in the classroom with an instructor telling you what to do step-by-step and having all the ingredients at the ready is one thing, but doing it at home is something else entirely. It's not that it's difficult to make, the hardest part about sushi is the preparation. There are a lot of ingredients that need to be prepared before you can begin. Veggies need to be cleaned and cut. Sauces need to be prepared. Tuna and Crab both need to be chopped, spiced and mixed to taste. And don't forget the most important ingredient in sushi, the rice. The rice needs to be cooked and cooled before it's sushi time! In our class, we learned that expert sushi chefs spend a whole year learning just about rice. That's a long time to study one ingredient don't you think? So right away, my anxiety peaked about making sushi rice. I didn't want to make bad rice, since sushi is--all about the rice.  
 

In an attempt to temper my anxiety, I did some homework and discovered that every recipe said to make it in a rice cooker. Needless to say, I didn't have a year to kill over Sushi rice, so I followed the recipe instructions and bought a rice cooker. I got a cheap one for $20 and it worked like a charm. My rice turned out great, sticky enough and cooked perfectly.


Given that this was my first time making it all by my lonesome with no backup instructor talking me through, some of my sushi didn't turn out all that great. Even though the rejects weren't pretty enough to make it to the photos, my husband and I ate them and they tasted incredible.

I made the traditional Spicy Tuna roll and the California roll, but got a little creative with my Green Veggie roll and a version of an Ashley roll. A little sushi place near by makes an Ashley roll with a Tempura fried Shrimp, spicy crab and jalapeno topped with mango. It is one of my favorites. So because I didn't have large shrimp to dip into tempura batter and fry up, I substituted it with a spicy salad of small shrimp and crab. To mimic the crunch that would have come from the tempura I added toasted Panko flakes to the outside of the roll. I loved it. My husband however, did not like the texture of the Panko. Oh well, you can't win them all. I liked it though and that's what's important, right? Hehe! 

Anyway here are some rather blurry in-progress pics. Sorry for the bad pictures. Enjoy!

Sushi Rice
3 cups sushi rice
3 cups water
3 T rice wine vinegar
2 T sugar
1 t salt

Add appropriate rice and water according to rice cooker directions and cook rice. Let the rice cool to for about 10 minutes. Dissolve sugar and salt in rice wine vinegar and then add to rice and mix well, cool to room temperature. 


Spicy Tuna Roll                                           

1/4 lb sashimi grade tuna
2-3 T garlic chili sauce
1 T mayonnaise
splash of soy sauce
Radish sprouts
Sushinori sheets
sushi rice






Prepare tuna to desired spiciness. I like mine really spicy. But you can adjust to taste. Using wet hands spread a thin layer of rice over 3/4 of a sheet, leaving about an inch without rice at top of sheet. Add Spicy tuna and radish sprouts and roll beginning at the end with rice. Roll tightly. Use sushi mat to square off the roll and then cut using a very sharp knife. 


California Roll

1 package Imitation Crab, chopped
2 T mayonnaise
cucumber, sliced
avocado, sliced
Sushinori sheets
rice
sesame seeds

Prepare Crab. Using wet hands, spread a layer of rice on the whole sheet. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and then flip the seaweed sheet with rice over, rice side down. Add crab mixture and layer cucumber and avocado next. Roll tightly and slice into bite size pieces. The California roll will have the rice on the outside. 

Green Veggie Roll

asparagus spears
cucumber, sliced
avocado, sliced
jalapeno, strips
spicy mayonnaise (1/4 cup mayo+Sriracha to taste)
Sushinori sheets
rice

With wet hands, spread rice over 3/4 of the sheet leaving about one inch at the top of the roll with no rice. Add veggies and spicy mayo. Roll tightly and cut into bite sized pieces. I added a lot of the spicy mayo on this one, it was delicious but made for a sloppy looking roll. That being said, it was so good I left the pictures as is. :)



Ashley Roll (Lori's version)

imitation crab, chopped
mini salad shrimp
2-3 T spicy mayonnaise
jalapeno, strips
Panko flakes, toasted
mango, sliced
hoisin sauce

Prepare crab and shrimp salad to desired spiciness. Toast panko flakes in a small skillet until lightly brown. Using wet hands, spread rice onto whole sheet. Sprinkle rice with toasted Panko flakes. Flip seaweed sheet with rice over. Rice side down. Fill roll with crab and shrimp salad and jalapeno slices. Roll tightly. Add sliced mango on top of roll and cover the top of the roll with plastic wrap. Using your sushi mat, round out the mango. Leaving the plastic wrap in place, cut into bite sized pieces. Remove plastic wrap and drizzle with hoisin sauce.

Simple Sesame Noodles with Edamame & Asparagus

Last night, my girlfriends and I were discussing passion and being passionate about the things in our lives. Each of us around the table, share a passion about our kid's education and upbringing which, in a way, is one of the reasons we all became friends. But my friendship grows with these women because they are fun, strong, authentic women, who I simply like very much. They enrich my life and make me happy. :)
So our conversation touched on the fact that passion is a great thing to have because it motivates us to achieve and do the things that interest us. But on the other hand, as we sat there recapping some of the things that didn't go exactly as planned this week, it was easy to get swept up in the negative because we're all passionate about and invested in what we were talking about. I realized that talking about the set backs felt emotionally the same as when we talk about the victories. It comes with the territory, Ying and Yang and all that. That lead us to talk about balance. Oh that ever alluding catch-phrase...BALANCE. How to get it? How to maintain it in life? That's the question of a lifetime. 
If you can't strike a balance with passion, passion is often replaced with equally powerful negative emotions like anger and frustration that leads ultimately to unhappiness. That got me thinking this morning, that with passion comes an increased responsibility to self. Being in a heightened state of emotion like passion, I must be willing to prioritize and work to recognize when the passion I feel isn't passion but thinly guised unhappiness, clouded by a purpose that I've rationalized as passion.  

When I'm unhappy, it is easy to stay there. A torturous stasis that will continue if I don't spend deliberate energy to change it. It takes little or no work to stay unhappy. When I feel unhappy, I give the negative thoughts priority in my head and sometimes that leaves me feeling helpless in being able to change those feelings. Last night, I was reminded that I must spend the time and work to make conscious decisions about happiness. Sometimes it's merely making the decision to find something that makes me happy that frees me from the negative thoughts. Refocus and prioritize, seek balance. Get reacquainted with the things I like to do and make the time to do them.  Passion is great but I believe it must be spread out over many things in my life. Balance. I need to have multiple passions so that I can shift my priorities when they consume themselves or demand too much of my attention which leaves me out of balance. I need to recognize when passion changes and be okay with stepping way and saying no to the things that don't bring happiness even if I'm invested in them. 
One of my favorite phrases, "Sometimes you need to take a step back before you are able to move forward." 

Simple Sesame Noodles with Edamame & Asparagus
(adapted recipe from The Cutting Edge of Ordinary/Pioneer Woman)

10 oz. Chow Mein Noodles, cooked and drained
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 T brown sugar 
1 T honey
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 T rice wine vinegar
3 T toasted sesame oil
1 t garlic chili sauce (to taste or omit)
4 T canola oil
2 T hot water

1 lb asparagus spears, chopped and blanched
1 cup edamame, shelled
4 whole green onions, chopped
generous sprinkle of sesame seeds

Whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, vinegar, sesame oil, garlic chili sauce, canola oil and water and set sauce aside.  

Cook noodles according to package directions. 
In a large skillet, saute edamame and asparagus in 1 tablespoon of the sesame sauce for approximately 5 minutes until the asparagus is tender-crisp. Remove from heat and add to warm noodles. Add the remaining sesame sauce and toss to coat. This dish can be served warm, room temperature or cold. Top with green onions and sesame seeds. Enjoy!

Sweet Chili Lime Tofu with Quinoa

What can I say about this dish? Oh...just that this dish was utterly amazing! My husband even loved it. This is the final dish of my three-part tofu excursion and this by far can be categorized as 'saved the best for last'. I am not vegetarian or vegan, but I love veggies and I also love tofu and this dish alone has to be my new favorite way to eat tofu. 
The flavors were so delicious and fresh and like nothing I'd ever tasted. The  extra firm tofu was dry fried and then caramelized with a sweet lime glaze. It was to die for! The quinoa also had lime and a pinch of cinnamon that complemented the sweet lime tofu perfectly. Then, the roasted Baby Bok Choy...pure heaven on a plate. But, don't take my word for it...well maybe you should in this case, but definitely try this super flavorful and wonderful dish. You will be amazed and happy you did.

Sweet Chili Lime Tofu with Quinoa (slightly adapted recipe from Vegan Yum Yum)
Serves 4

1 block tofu, extra firm

3 small baby Bok Choy, halved

Sweet Chili Lime Sauce
6 T sugar
6 T soy sauce
3 1/2 T fresh lime juice
zest of one lime
1 t red chili flakes (or 1-2 fresh hot chilies, minced)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T sesame oil (I added this ingredient)
1/2 t salt
8 mint leaves (I used some lemon basil leaves from my garden)

Quinoa
1 cup pre-rinsed Quinoa
zest of half a lime
pinch of cinnamon
1/4 t salt
1 3/4 cup chicken broth + 1/4 cup water

Prepare Quinoa:
Put all ingredients in a small saucepan. Heat quinoa until water begins to boil. Cover and reduce heat to medium and continue to boil for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn off heat and let sit covered for another 10 minutes to finish cooking. Fluff with fork when ready to serve.

Prepare Baby Bok Choy:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut washed baby bok choy in half and place in a roasting pan. Lightly brush bok choy with garlic infused olive oil and salt and pepper. Roast for about 15 minutes. 

Prepare Tofu: 
Drain tofu and cut tofu block into 1/2 inch thick slices. Now you will have rectangular slices that you'll cut into two squares by cutting each rectangle in half width-wise. Further cut the squares into small triangles by cutting each square diagonally. Place tofu triangles in a dry non-stick skillet.

Dry fry tofu on medium heat. Pressing down on tofu with a spatula, releases liquid. Fry until tofu is golden and turn over to brown other side. Turn off heat and set tofu aside until ready to serve.







Prepare Sweet Chili Lime Sauce by whisking all ingredients together in a small bowl. 

Bring the skillet with browned tofu back up to temperature. Turn on high heat to heat tofu thoroughly and heat the pan. Add the sweet chili lime sauce to the hot pan, stirring to coat the tofu. Allow the sauce to bubble and the sugar to glaze the tofu. Turn off heat to make sure you don't scorch the sauce but allow it to continue to heat and reduce in the still hot pan. Serve over a bed of quinoa and a side of baby bok choy. Garnish with sesame seeds and lemon basil or mint leaves.

Spicy Sesame Tofu

I love tofu but I'll admit that my entire home culinary experience with tofu was to cut it up and put it in soup. Tofu is basically an inert ingredient. It doesn't really taste like anything in particular. Depending on what type you get, silken, soft, firm, or extra firm, tofu is basically texture that takes on the flavor of the sauce you put on it. This is not said to discount tofu in any way. In fact, I love tofu and wanted to be able to use it at home in more ways than just soup. I turned my search to Pinterest and found this spicy Sesame Tofu recipe  from the blog called Use Real Butter. I served this as an appetizer but it could also be a great side dish. It's super simple and just plain yummy. Extra firm Tofu is dusted with cornstarch, lightly fried and served with a delicious spicy sauce. How can you go wrong with fried anything, right? The tofu gets crispy on the outside and is still soft but firm on the inside and then you add the spicy sauce, utterly delicious!  This recipe is part 1 of my three-part blog on tofu.  Over the next few days, look out for part 2, a Tofu Bruschetta with Pesto and Smoked Gouda and for the final part, Sweet Chili Lime Tofu with Quinoa and Baby Bok Choy. Enjoy!

Sesame Tofu (recipe from Use Real Butter)
Serves 4 as an appetizer

14 oz. extra-firm tofu
1/4 cup cornstarch
frying oil
1-2 T sesame seeds
3-4 green onions, minced

Sauce:
1/3 cup honey
3 T soy sauce
3 T fresh ginger, minced
2 T sesame oil
2 T rice wine vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-2 t red chili pepper flakes (1 tsp for medium spice, more for spicy)

Wrap the block of tofu in paper towels and set it on a flat plate or cutting board. Place a heavy plate or flat-bottomed bowl on top of the tofu to squeeze the liquid out. Let it sit for 20-30 minutes. While the tofu is being pressed, stir all of the sauce ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Simmer the sauce on low. Unwrap the tofu block and dry it with more paper towels. Cut the tofu into 1-inch cubes and place in a bowl. Dust the tofu with cornstarch and gently toss to coat the cubes. 

Heat an inch of vegetable oil in a deep pan with a candy thermometer clipped to the side to measure the temperature of the oil. When the oil reaches 350°F, fry the tofu cubes in batches (I did mine in 2 batches) until light golden in color. Remove the tofu from the oil and set on paper towels to drain. When all of the tofu is fried, place the cubes in a large bowl. Remove the sauce from the heat and pour half to two-thirds of it over the tofu. Toss to coat the tofu. 

Add the sesame seeds and green onions. Serve immediately with sauce on the side for dipping or pouring over the tofu.

UPCOMING TOFU RECIPES...

Part 2- Tofu Bruschetta with Pesto and Smoked Gouda

Part 3- Sweet Chili Lime Tofu with Quinoa and Baby Bok Choy

Nappa Cabbage Salad with Ginger Garlic Dressing

Today, I was in the mood for salad, and I LOVE salad. I love all kinds of salads because to me salad is comfort food. I know, most people think salad is the farthest thing from comfort food, but just think of it...Hellooo? You can add bacon and cheese to salad. You can add nuts, croutons, wontons, chow mein noodles, cheese or beans, rice, wheat berries, corn, peas, eggs, did I say cheese?... broccoli, fruit, olives, pasta, flax seeds or even more cheese? Believe me, I can calorie-load a salad that rivals the Big Mac...what part of that isn't comfort food? And then, as if that isn't enough you coat the whole thing in a delicious dressing.  Let's be honest...the dressing is the best part, especially when you get to the bottom of the salad and have all the small bite-sized toppings swimming in deliciousness...yum! 

Okay...back to reality. I also realize salads don't need to be calorically extreme to be comforting because I also like simple salads that just highlight the vegetables. I love veggies. My Nappa Cabbage Salad is very simple and light and showcased by a delicious Ginger Garlic Dressing.  I meant this to be a starter salad at the beginning of a meal, but you can easily make it a filling lunch or a light dinner by adding chicken, beef, fish or tofu.
The salad dressing came about a few months back while I experimented with Trader Joe's Blue Agave Sweetner. It's sweet like honey, but has an incredible depth of flavor. Don't worry, if you don't have agave sweetner on hand, you can substitute it with honey, but if you happen to pick some up you will taste the difference in the salad dressing.

Ginger Garlic Dressing

• 1/3 c rice vinegar
• 1/3 c canola oil
• 1/4 c agave sweetner (or substitute with honey)
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 T ginger, fresh, grated*
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• salt and pepper (to taste)

Combine all ingredients in a air-tight container with lid. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Shake well before serving. Store in refrigerator for up to a week.

*Freezing ginger root makes it a snap to grate for recipes.

Nappa Cabbage Salad

• 1 large head nappa cabbage
• 1 1/2 cup carrots, shredded
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 1 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 cup slivered almonds, toasted
• 1 cup chow mein noodles

Cut about 2 inches from base of cabbage, separate leaves, rinse and spin in salad spinner to remove water from leaves.

Stack leaves and cut in half lengthwise.

 Then stack halves and rotate to thinly slice leaves.

Add carrots, green onions, cilantro, almonds and chow mein noodles and toss with Ginger Garlic Dressing or if you prefer, have salad dressing on the side (as pictured below).

Enjoy!