Dahiwali Chicken Curry

source: Mothering Magazine Jan/Feb 2009

2 tbsp light cooking oil
3-4 cardamom pods, bruised
4-5 whole black peppercorns
1-2 dried bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
3-4 whole cloves
1 large onion, finely chopped
2-3 medium green chillis, finely chopped (i wasn't sure what to get so i skipped this!)
1 tsp ginger, finely chopped
1 tsp garlic, finely chopped (I used like 6 cloves - way more than 1 tsp...)
1/2 tsp red chilli powder (another thing I couldn't find)
1/4 tsp cumin powder
1/4 tsp tumeric powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp garam masala powder
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
a few cups baby spinach (my addition)
salt to taste
1/2 cup plain yogurt, beaten
2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced to 1 inch cubes
1 handful fresh coriader (cilantro) chopped for garnish

Heat oil in thick-bottomed pan and saute cardamom, peppercorns, bay leaves, cinnamon, and cloves until they begin to sizzle.

Add onions, green chillis, and fry 3-5 minutes on medium high heat, until onions turn pink(??? I never saw pink, but was missing a few ingredients...) and tender. Add ginger and garlic and saute 1-2 minutes until mixture begins to express oil.

Add red chilli powder, cumin, tumeric, coriander and garam masala, and fry 1 minute. Mix in tomatoes and salt, and cook a few minutes until tomatoes pulp and release oil around sides of pan. Slowly stir in yogurt to form a smooth gravy base.

Add chicken pieces and cook covered 10-15 minutes on medium low heat until done. If using spinach - toss in spinach at the end - last few minutes so it has time to wilt.

Garnish with coriander leaves (cilantro) and serve hot with a side of rotis bread or rice and a salad.

Rotis - is a traditional Indian flatbread. I used whole wheat flour and added enough water to make a dough and rolled out small circles and cooked it in a cast iron skillet.

Prep - 15 minutes (i think this is a bit short - took me a little longer while juggling the antics of a toddler and preschooler)

Cooking - 30 minutes

Serves 2 (main dish) or 4 (side dish) - this served 2 easily with enough to give Maddie and have a whole serving left over.

My tummy is growling

You will never find anything quite as elaborate as my best friend Becca's Food Blog - in my writings but from time to time I might write about a recipe or being hungry and going to her house to eat breakfast!

Right now as we speak I have banana oatmeal muffins baking in the oven. I had a "rotten-by-my-standards" but very bakable banana on the counter this morning. I asked Maddie if she wanted banana pancakes or banana muffins for breakfast and she said she wanted muffins.

One of the things I love about having a preschooler is that Maddie LOVES to help do things. She dragged her little chair over to the counter and mashed up the bananas for me. She also helped mix all the ingredients together. She talked me into letting her put some of the batter in the muffin cups, but I took over that job as she was being a little too messy.

Wyatt even got in on the action at the end - after the muffins were already in the oven. Maddie had lost interest and run off and he climbed up on the chair and put all my measuring cups into the empty bowl of muffin batter. 

They were yummy! Enjoy!

Banana Oatmeal Muffins

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. butter softened

2 eggs

2 ripe bananas, mashed

3/4 c. honey

1/4 c. milk

1 3/4 c. flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 c. oatmeal

1 c. raisins

1/2 c. walnuts

* I added cinnamon and nutmeg (for a half recipe I added 1/2 tsp cinnamon and about 1/4 tsp nutmeg - freshly grated)

Preheat oven to 375. Cream butter and sugar. Add egg, banana, honey and milk. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda and oatmeal and spices if using. Fold in nuts and raisins. Spoon in greased muffin tins. Bake for 20 minutes, yield 18 muffins.

*Anne's notes: I made a half batch (1 cup minus 2 tbsp for the flour measurement). I used 1/3 cup whole wheat graham flour, and then 2/3 c. AP flour (minus 2 tbsp of flour). I used salted butter - most recipes call for unsalted, but this one didn't specify and honestly i never buy unsalted butter!. I added cinnamon and nutmeg, which I think greatly improved on the taste. I used quick cooking oats and omitted the nuts and raisins since I detest raisins!

I also used mini-muffin pans instead of the full size muffins. I rarely use big muffins these days because both Maddie and Wyatt like the little ones :)  Half a batch made 24 mini muffins, which is MORE than enough for us! I baked them for about 12 minutes, but I would start checking at 8 minutes. They didn't rise a whole lot, but were very moist and yummy!