Back Again

Now that the two wedding-dessert-fiascos are past, my mind is settling and I'm here to review a few recipes that have been tested recently.

84.  Pakistani Kima, pg. 131

Perhaps surprisingly, I've been familiar with this recipe since high school, as my school's cafeteria tried their hand at this kima occasionally.  I was never a huge fan of it then, but a Pakistani student assured us it was nothing like his mother's ... which left me with hope that my turn at making it might be more successful.

I'll admit I change the recipe fairly dramatically -- instead of beef, I used about 1 1/2 c. garbanzo beans.  Instead of a regular potato, I used a sweet potato, and as I didn't have any peas or green beans (the peas are starting to set on in the garden, though! :)), used about a cup of frozen corn.  The peas or green beans would have given the dish some much-needed color, but we just had to do without for now.  I kept all the seasonings the same as written, which I really think is the kicker for this recipe.  And, really, as long as you like curry, you can tweak this dish in the vegetable arena as much as you like and still really enjoy what turns out.

I served yogurt alongside, since my curry mix is pretty hot.

This recipe was pretty quick to come together, and it definitely was good.

Overall: 4 out of 5  Get yourself a good curry powder and make this!

85.  Zucchini Bread, pg. 82

We're heading quickly into the days of too many zucchinis.  Are you lining up your recipes already, trying to figure out how to not let a single one go to waste?  I'm not.  For two reasons:  the freezer and this recipe.

I generally am a huge fan of sweet breads, especially fruit and vegetable versions.  Last summer, when our zuke supply was unrelenting, I made this bread at least once a week, and also shredded some by the quart to put in the freezer for winter soups...and...bread. :)

I like this recipe because it's fairly simple to pull together.  I typically add about 1+ c. of chocolate chips for an extra antioxidant boost.  (Right?)  I only have 9" pans, which are fine -- you'll just get a squatter bread and might want to check for doneness starting around 50 minutes.

Overall:  4.5 out of 5  Yum...and it's vegetables!

86.  Easy French Bread, pg. 63

I realise most people have it within their realm of realism that there is the occasional mess-up when making a recipe.  I don't have this realism for myself, and when I came to this self-proclaimed "easy" recipe, I figured I would fly through pulling it together and it would turn out normal and right.

Well, I'm mixing it up and, having decided to halve the recipe, was just mentally cutting each ingredient measurement in half before dumping it in.  Except the flour.  I forgot.  I dumped in 2 c. white flour and 2 c. wheat flour before realising what I had done...and why the dough seemed inordinately dry.  After I gave myself a moment to be angry, I dumped the dry dough onto my countertop.  I tried kneading in some extra butter which helped a little bit...but not enough to reclaim the dough.  So, I did what I could, but it was a tough dough.  I still let it rise, baked it, and have been eating it.  The flavor is pretty good, but it looks positively sad.  I really hate messing up on recipes because Food is one thing I really enjoy doing time and time again ... bleh. 

Overall:  Not sure.  Maybe if I try it again, I'll adjust.  (Or, has anyone else made this?)

Until next time...which, hopefully, will not be 2 weeks from now...