Eggplant Parmesan

Ingredients

• 2 eggplants, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 2 tsp dried basil
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 12 oz can tomato paste
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups dry bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup butter
• 32 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1 cup parmesan cheese
  

Place eggplant slices in colander and sprinkle with salt. Let sit for 30 minutes. Saute onions, basil, bay leaves, oregano, and parsley in oil until onions are soft. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, honey, lemon juice, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Simmer for 30 minutes while covered. Add garlic and simmer for 10 more minutes. Take out bay leaves. Rinse eggplant slices, pat dry with paper towels. In a bowl, combine eggs and pepper. In another bowl, place bread crumbs. Dip eggplant slices into eggs, then breadcrumbs, then in skillet cook halfway in butter for 3 minutes on each side. In large baking dish, layer eggplant, tomato sauce, and mozzarella. Repeat layers. Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. Bake at 375 for 35 minutes.

Original recipe taken from here.

Baked Saucy Chicken

• 1 chicken, cut into pieces
• 1 Tbsp flour
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/8 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 2 Tbsp vinegar
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp wasabi sauce
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 tsp mustard oil
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper

Whisk together water and flour on stove. Add brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar, lemon juice, and wasabi sauce. Bring to boil and cook a few minutes until sauce thickens. Add chopped onion, mustard oil, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Place chicken pieces in baking dish and cover with the sauce. Marinate 2-4 hours in the fridge. Take out of fridge for half hour before baking. Bake at 400 degrees for ~45 minutes (check for done-ness).

Modified from this recipe.

Buffalo Chicken Sandwich Spread

Too hungry to take pictures before I ate. But this is a quick and yummy recipe:

• 2 lbs chicken breast
• 3 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup hot sauce (I used Frank's Red)
• 4 Tbsp honey (I used Trader Joe's desert mesquite honey)
• 2 Tbsp vinegar
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt

Cube chicken and boil for about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let it cool, then chop/shred into small pieces. Melt butter in a saucepan, add the hot sauce, honey, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Add shredded chicken, and heat till the chicken is warm again. Makes really good sandwiches.

Original recipe is here.

Shepherd's Pie

...or maybe it's called Cottage Pie? Serves 15.

Potato layer:

• 10-12 medium small to medium sized potatoes
• 3 Tbsp butter butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 small onion, VERY finely diced
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used the Mexican 4 cheese mix)
  
• salt and pepper to taste

Vegetable layer:

• 1.5 to 2 bags (12 oz.) of mixed veggies (diced carrots, peas, corn)
• 2 Tbsp oil

Meat layer:

• 3 medium sized onions, chopped
• 2 and 1/2 pounds ground beef
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2-3 Tbsp chili sauce
• 1 can (14 oz.) vegetable broth
• cumin, coriander, cajun seasoning, salt, pepper -- to taste

Steps 1-3 can be going on at the same time in 3 different pots/pans.

1. Potato layer: Boil whole potatoes with the skin on for about 20-25 minutes until cooked and soft. Mash. Add diced onions, butter, milk, salt, pepper. Set aside.
2. Vegetable layer: Cook vegetables in a oil. Add some salt if needed.
3. Meat layer: Brown onions in oil. Add beef and season with spices. Once browned, drain out excess fat. Add flour, chili sauce, vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, and simmer.
4. Layer meat in a large casserole dish, then the vegetables, then the potatoes. Garnish with another half cup of shredded cheese if you'd like.
5. Bake at 375 deg for 20 minutes.

Recipe modified from the one here.

Sauteed Chicken with Green Peppers and Onions

• 2 pounds chicken breasts, chopped/cubed into very tiny pieces
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1-2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 1.5 green bell peppers, sliced thinly
• 3 tsp minced garlic
• 1 onion, sliced thinly
• 3 Tbsp dry oregano
• 1 cup chopped scallions/green onions
• 2 cups of water

Season chicken in lemon and black pepper. Pan fry on one side in a little bit of olive oil and butter while seasoning the uncooked side with oregano. Flip and season the other side. Cook until brown on both sides. Add sliced green peppers, onions, scallions, and salt. Add 2 cups of water, cover and simmer over medium heat for about 20 minutes. Recipe modified from this one.

Apple Cheddar Sandwich

Who would have thought this combination exists and is actually good? As simple as a slice of cheddar cheese with sliced apples on bread (I used Arnold's multi grain sandwich thins). Toasted.

Corny Bean Salad and Soup

Super easy.

• 6 cans of beans (I used red kidney, white kidney, chickpeas, and black beans)
• 2 cups of corn, cooked
  
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 12 Tbsp olive oil
• 4 Tbsp vinegar
• 2 tsp spicy mustard
• Salt and pepper
  

Mix beans, corn, bell pepper, and red onion in the serving dish. To make the dressing: mix olive oil, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper (to taste) in a bowl. Slowly add the the dressing to the salad and mix. I didn't use all of the dressing, but add enough to suit your own taste. Original recipe is here.

Use the leftovers to make a soup. For about 2/3 of the above recipe...

• 1 can vegetable broth
• 3/4 tsp cumin powder
  
• 3/4 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp cajun spice
• 1/2 tsp pepper (or to your liking)
• 1/2 tsp Frank's red hot sauce (or to your liking)

Add all of it to a pot and simmer until the broth becomes thick with the spices and beans.

Oriental Chicken

• 1 lb boneless chicken, cut into small pieces
• 2 Tbsp + 1 tsp vinegar
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp mustard oil
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch (mixed with water)
• 1 tsp chili paste
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 4-6 green onions, chopped
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• Frozen stir fry vegetables (amount to your liking)

Combine 1 Tbsp vinegar, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp mustard oil, 1 Tbsp cornstarch (mixed in water). Use this as a marinade for chicken. Keep in fridge for 30 minutes to an hour. Combine 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp vinegar, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp oil, 1 Tbsp cornstarch (mixed in water), chili paste, and brown sugar. Add in the chopped green onions, garlic powder. Start heating this sauce on low heat. Mix in vegetables to cook. While sauce is cooking, cook marinated chicken, then add chicken to the sauce. Let sauce simmer until it gets thick. I took this recipe from a recipe for what was originally Kung Pao Chicken.

Bengali Chicken Curry

• 1 lb. boneless chicken, cut in small pieces
• 2 green bell peppers
• 1 tsp salt and pepper
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 3 Tbsp oil
• 1 cup tomato puree
• 1 tsp red chili paste

Fry the green bell peppers with garlic in oil for a few minutes. Add chicken with salt and cook for 5+ minutes. Add the tomato puree and then lower the heat. Add chili paste and pepper. Simmer until chicken is fully cooked. The original recipe is here.

Alu Mattar (Potato and Pea Curry)

• 5-6 small potatoes
• 2 medium onions
• 2 Tbsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp ginger powder
• 6 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1-2 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp salt (to tast)
• 1/2 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 4 tomatoes, diced
• 2 cups peas
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 teaspoon coriander

Boil potatoes until soft. Cool, peel, cut into cubes. While potatoes are being prepared: In oil, cook cumin, garlic, ginger, and onions for about 10 minutes. Add salt, chili powder, turmeric, and tomatoes. Cook about 10 minutes. Add peas and water, reduce heat, cover, and cook for about 10-15 minutes. Add potatoes and cook a few more minutes. Original recipe is here.

Eggplant Curry

Without peeling the eggplant.

With the eggplants peeled.

• 2 eggplants
• 4 Tbsp oil
• 2 tsp cumin powder
• 2 onions, sliced
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp ginger powder
  
• 1 Tbsp coriander powder
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
• 2 teaspoon salt

Bake whole eggplants for 25 minutes at 450 degrees. Let cool, peel, cut into pieces. Fry onion and cumin powder in oil until onions are soft. Add garlic, ginger, coriander, tomatoes and cook. Add yogurt. Add eggplant pieces and chopped pepper. Add salt to taste. Cook for 10-15 minutes on high heat while covered. Uncover and cook for another 5-10 minutes on low heat. Original recipe is here.

Note: The dish looks a lot prettier if you don't peel the eggplants after baking them.

Chili Chicken

I got this recipe from here.

• 2 pounds boneless chicken, cubed
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2 medium onions
• 4+ Tbsp red chili powder
• 2+ Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 8oz. can tomato sauce
• Oil
• Garlic powder
  

Marinate chicken with chili powder and soy sauce for 1 hour. Dice bell pepper and onion into big chunks, sautee in a bit of oil. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp garlic powder over chicken, then sautee in a bit of oil. Add bell pepper and onion mixture to chicken, add tomato sauce, sautee until sauce is a thick and all chicken is well coated.

Warning: Super duper spicy.

General Tso's Chicken

This turned out really good. The original recipe I used is here, but I modified it a lot into my own version below:

• 3 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cut into chunks

For the cornstarch mixture:

• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 egg
• 1 cup cornstarch
• About 3-4 Tbsp water (or teensy bit more if needed)

For the sauce:

• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 cup water
• 3/8 tsp garlic powder
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 2 1/4 cups chicken broth
• 1-2 cups of scallions/green onions, chopped
• 1 tsp of red chili pepper flakes
• 1-2 tsp of Franks Red Hot sauce
  
• 1/2 tsp of chili powder

Mix together all ingredients for the cornstarch mixture (the water is there in case mixture is thick, so add a few Tbsp until its just enough to stir it). Mix all chicken pieces into the cornstarch mixture. Deep fry all coated chicken pieces in hot oil and drain on napkin on plate. Mix together all sauce ingredients and cook over medium heat in a big pot - it should be a thick sauce. Add all fried chicken pieces to the sauce and stir until completely coated. Serve with yummy, greasy fried rice.

To make chicken crispier, make cornstarch mix as little watery as possible.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Before baking.

After baking.

• 2 lb. boneless/skinless chicken breast, cut into small pieces
• 2-3 tsp. cumin
• 3 chili peppers, chopped finely
• 2-3 cups salsa
• 1 package neufchatel cheese
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 6 whole wheat tortillas
• 1-2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

Cook chicken in tiny bit of oil for several minutes. Add cumin and cook for few minutes. Add peppers and cook for few minutes. Add salsa and neufchatel cheese, cook until all the cheese is melted. Mix in the black beans and tomatoes. Separate chicken mix, tortillas, and cheese into thirds. Layer chicken, tortilla, cheese (make 3 layers). Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Recipe modified from this one at Kraftfoods.

Can also try this with beef instead of chicken.

Yasai Cha Han

• 3/4 cup cooked rice
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 14 button mushrooms, quartered (or can of sliced mushrooms)
• 3/4 inch cubes of firm tofu
• handful of corn
• handful of peas
• 4 scallions, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 eggs
• Chili paste (optional)
  

Add oil to hot frying pan or wok if you have one. Add mushrooms and sautee for few minutes. Add tofu and continue stir-frying for several minutes or until tofu is brown on all sides. Add corn, peas, and scallions. Stir fry until cooked through. Add rice, salt, soy sauce, and stir fry. Scramble the eggs and add to the stir fry mix.

I prefer this dip a bit spicy so I added a bit of Sriracha chili paste. You can also try using shichimi (a.k.a seven-spice pepper that can be found in oriental grocery stores).

Serve with miso soup.

Courtesy of the Wagamama Cookbook.

Baked Chicken and Pasta

• 2 cups uncooked rotini
• 1 can tomato sauce (8 oz)
• Dried herbs to taste
  
• 4 chicken breasts
• 1+ cup Italian style bread crumbs

Boil rotini until cooked. Add can of tomato sauce. Add in pinch of dried oregano, basil, parsley, and black pepper to taste. Preheat oven to 400 deg. Cut chicken breasts into strips, dip in bowl of bread crumbs, and place in baking tray. Bake for 30 minutes or until fully cooked. Arrange chicken strips on top of pasta.

Coconut Shrimp Curry

• 1 lb shrimp
• 1 large onion
• 1 Tbsp ginger powder
• 1 green chili, chopped
• 1 1/2 tsp Shan Bombay Biryani mix
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 cup water
• 1 can (14 oz) unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar

Sautee onion until golden brown. Add green chili, ginger powder, Shan mix, turmeric and sautee 2 more minutes. Add water, coconut milk, lemon juice, salt, sugar, and lower heat to simmer. Simmer until sauce is thickened and stir occasionally. Add shrimp and simmer until shrimp is fully cooked.

This was modified from this recipe.

Tomato and Spinach Rotini

I tried this recipe today, turned out good.

My changes:
1. No meat.
2. Sauteed a few onions and mushrooms, then added the spinach and tomatoes to it.
3. Added half a can of pasta sauce because 1 can of tomatoes leaves the pasta still too dry. Either add pasta sauce or double the amount of canned tomatoes.

• 2 cups rotini
• 1 package spinach (7 cups)
  
• 1 can Italian style diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 Tbsp grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 onion
• 1 small can mushrooms
• 1/2 can pasta sauce

Cook pasta. Cook spinach with tomatoes, onion, mushrooms. Add cheeses. Mix sauce with drained pasta.

Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

I made this recipe last night for my friends. 6 of us ate it and we still had a lot leftover. Pretty quick and easy to make. However, 12 minutes at 425 degrees was not enough for the shrimp to get cooked through. I left it in about 30 minutes.

Cottage Cheese Lasagna

Didn't get a chance to take a picture when I made this. It turned out good, but a bit liquidy just because I decided to add a layer of spaghetti sauce in there...so make this dish without the sauce. Use fat free cheeses to make it healthier.

• 1 box lasagna noodles
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 green bell peppers, chopped
• 2 small zucchini or squash, chopped
  
• 1 tsp garlic powder
  
• 1/2 cup flour
• 3 cups milk
• 3/4 cup parmesan cheese
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 package frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 1 small container cottage cheese
• 1 medium container ricotta cheese
• 2 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375. Grease pan/dish. Boil water and cook lasagna noodles, drain. Sautee all veggies. Whisk flour and milk in pan, boil and cook until thick. Stir in 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, salt, pepper. Remove from stove, add spinach. In a different bowl mix cottage and ricotta cheeses. Layer noodles, spinach mix, cheese mix, mozzarella cheese, and sauteed veggies in any order. Bake for 35 minutes.