Aloo Gobi

One of my favorite Indian foods is Aloo Gobi, a delicious mix of potatoes, cauliflower and spices. It is delicious served with naan or rice. When searching for an aloo gobi recipe, I was thrilled to come across Manjula's Kitchen. Manjula is a grandmother who relocated to the U.S. from India and who blogs her authentic Indian vegetarian recipes. Her aloo gobi recipe is here, and, like many of her recipes, includes a video.

I followed the recipe as closely as I could, omitting a few ingredients such as mango powder which I didn't have. It turned out delicious and the leftovers held up nicely. Definitely check Manjula out!

In Search of Sweet Potato Pie

I have fond memories of sweet potato pie from my college days. The ladies at the campus cafeteria downtown made an excellent sweet potato pie that I would treat myself to on dismal winter days. It was thick, rich and substantial. Not too sweet, but definitely not bland. Very satisfying. And way better than pumpkin pie.

Its been awhile since I've made sweet potato pie at home, so I decided to start with what seemed to be a tried and true recipe from All Recipes. Although I followed the basics of the recipe, I made the following modifications:

• I used four small sweet potatoes instead of one large one. Using one sweet potato to me is like using a single clove of garlic--why bother?
• I used 3/4 a stick of butter instead of a whole stick.
• I subbed 1/2 of the white sugar with brown sugar.
• I used soy milk instead of regular milk.
• I used a store bought graham cracker crust. I love these and almost always prefer them to a "real" crust.
  

The resulting pie was tasty, but a bit too airy and mushy for my tastes. Even though I had enough filling for each slice of pie to seem substantial, it lacked the heft and weight I was after. I think next time I might try subbing sweetened condensed milk for regular milk. Any other suggestions for baking a killer sweet potato pie?

Herbed Cheese Biscuits

What's soup without homemade bread? So, after making the split pea soup, I decided to try Herbed Cheese Biscuits as described on Pinch My Salt. I followed the basic recipe, using a combination of parsley and basil for the dry herbs, and I added a chopped green onion. I used cheddar for the cheese and low-fat sour cream for the sour cream. As you can see, I cut the biscuits into triangles using a knife.

The recipe didn't take very long to make, and the dough was very easy to work with. The mustard powder and parsley gave the biscuits a pleasing color, and the texture was what you would want from a biscuit. Overall, I was a bit disappointed with them--I thought they were too bland and would have benefited from some garlic. My partner liked them better than I did, although also commented that the texture was good but the taste was missing something.

Next time, I think I'll stick with Rasa Malaysia's Cheddar Bay Biscuits.

Split Pea Soup

Inspired by Happy Herbivore's recipe as well as the cold weather, last week I made up a big pot of split pea soup. The recipe I followed is this:

Ingredients:

• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 shallots, chopped
• 1/3 white onion, chopped
• Salt
• Pepper
• 8 cups water
• 7 cubes veggie bouillion
• 1 lb bag split green peas
• 1 potato, cubed
• 3 handfuls of baby carrots, cubed

I rinsed and sorted the peas and sauteed the onions, shallots and garlic before adding to the soup pot. Otherwise I just threw everything in the pot and simmered on low for about 1.5 hours. Once it was cooked I blended with a stick blender until the large chunks of potato and carrot had turned more into flecks (but the soup was not completely pureed.). It was very hearty and tasty and the leftovers have been delicious as well. This was also very inexpensive to make (the entire pot cost about $3.00 in new ingredients since I had the bouillion and most of the veggies on hand). Especially nice when served with fresh ground pepper and paprika sprinkled on top.

A Sign You Need to Organize Your Kitchen

I *just* realized we have a whisk attachment for our stick blender.

We've had said blender since I think *last* Christmas.

Fried Eggs--Its Easier Than You Think!

Fried eggs were always a bit of a mystery to me. I'd start out with good intentions, but invariably break the yolk and end up with scrambled eggs. Or worse, I'd burn the whites.

Until I was clued in to this really simple method by Cook's Illustrated. The main things I was doing wrong? 1.) Not using a cover! and 2.) Feeling like I had to flip the egg.

Since we're on the topic of fried eggs, I highly recommend the also easy, fun and very delicious egg in a hole. The Pioneer Woman has a mouth-watering pictorial recipe here.

Chicago Craft Fair--DEPART-ment

DEPART-ment's December show opens tonight at the AV-aerie, 2000 w. fulton. Over 125 artists and craftspeople are participating this month, so its a terrific opportunity to see what's going on and to buy local, hand-made holiday gifts. Visit the DEPART-ment site for a full list of participating craftspeople.

The show is cash only and runs through Sunday.