The Adventures of a Calamari Queen

I’ve made this dish a couple of times now.  It’s delicious and easy (my kind of dish).  The spices smelled so good. My Husband really likes Indian food, and I’m not a big fan but with this dish I totally enjoyed it.  I will likely cook this again soon!  I made a simple salad to go with our meal, and Hubby made dessert (banana split!).

Chicken Tandoori (www.foodnetwork.com)

Ingredients

• 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 2 1/2 pounds)
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Kosher salt
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons plain yogurt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/2 small red onion, roughly chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 2-inch piece ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 4 teaspoons tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 3/4 teaspoons hot paprika
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• Cooked rice, for serving (optional)

Directions

It’s been a while since we made this at home.  I don’t know why we hardly prepare clams when they’re so easy to fix.  I usually order this dish in my favorite local restaurant. We love the garlicky broth and how simple this dish is!

Clams in Garlic with White Wine and Tomatoes (adapted from www.food.com)

2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (or butter)
4 garlic cloves, smashed
1/3 cup Italian parsley, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 lb littleneck clams (or Manila clams or small clams of your choice)
Directions:

To the pan, add butter,garlic, half of the parsley and the hot pepper flakes; fry for 1 minute. Add wine; bring to boil over medium high heat, add clams, cover and steam until clams open, about 5 minutes. Discard any clams that do not open.
Sprinkle with parsley.
Ladle clams into small bowls and offer plenty of crusty bread to soak up the delicious broth.

I had this recipe in my bookmarks for a while now and last night I finally made it.  I was craving for chicken wings but we didn’t have any chicken wings, so to satisfy the buffalo chicken cravings, I decided to make this pasta dish( we had chicken breasts that I needed to use anyway).  I really liked the cheesy pasta (but Hubby thinks it still needed more cheese) and the spicy chicken/blue cheese combo. I’ll have to add this recipe to my favorite pasta dishes to keep.

Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Blue Cheese (www.canyoustayfordinner.com)

1  cup 1 % milk

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 tablespoon butter

¾ cup extra sharp cheddar cheese (3 oz)

½ cup crumbled blue cheese (2 oz)

4 cups cooked elbow shaped pasta

1 lb chicken breast, cooked and chopped into bite sized pieces

1/2-2/3  cup hot buffalo wing sauce (recommended: Frank’s Red Hot)

Stir the milk and cornstarch in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer. Stir in the butter. When the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, add the cheddar cheese and stir until the cheese has melted and the mixture is silky and well blended.

Place your cooked, drained pasta in a large bowl. Pour the hot sauce over it and stir to combine.

In a separate bowl, toss the cooked chicken with the hot sauce, evenly coating and moistening the meat evenly. Use more or less hot sauce depending on your spice preference.

Gently stir the chicken into the pasta, followed by the crumbled blue cheese. Serve immediately.

A couple of weeks ago I had a hard time sleeping and found myself watching late night cooking shows.  The chef/host made this simple no cook cheesecake dessert and I knew I wanted to make it the next day.  This is so easy and tasty!  I’m really surprised at how well it turned out, in spite of being no bake.  I think this will be my go to easy cheesecake recipe. We’ve made it twice already in less than a month!

Recipe From Livewellnetwork.com

Ingredients: