Chorizo, Potato, and Mushroom Tacos - p. 189

(I haven't been the best at participating in COTM since our move, but I'm going to try to squeeze a few reports in this month.)

I wanted to like this dish a bit more than I did, but I think part of the issue was using the wrong potato and needing to add just a bit more oil to the dish.

To make, the chorizo is heated until some of the fat starts to render or is half-cooked. He recommends adding a bit of oil if the chorizo hasn't rendered any fat. Mine had, but not much, so I did not add oil, but probably should've added some here. Sliced onions and mushrooms are then added and cooked until they soften. I used red onions and shiitake mushrooms. Grated potatoes are then added over the mixture and cooked until they soften. He recommends red or Yukon Gold. I had russet in the cabinet, so I used those and they ended up clumping very badly, so that it was hard to distribute the chorizo and mushrooms evenly throughout the dish. Once the potatoes are done, chopped cilantro is sprinkled on. He recommends serving with roasted tomatillo salsa, guacamole, or hot sauce. I served with a mystery tomatillo salsa from the freezer and slices of avocado.

Overall, it was good, but not great for us. I bought the chorizo from our local market and it was our first time using it and I wasn't crazy about the spicing of it. The clumping of the potatoes also meant we ended up with some tacos that just didn't have enough chorizo in them and were a little bland. The tacos that I had that were more chorizo heavy were quite nice, but I think they would've also benefited from a bit of cheese and maybe some fresh greens for a little crunch. We ended up with a bit of extra filling despite scaling the recipe in half, so we threw that into some scrambled eggs for a satisfying weekend breakfast.

We're settled into the Mission. Sadly, apartment prices are not what they were when you were here!

The ingredient and CSA options here are fantastic. I sent my fiance to the store for some ingredients tonight and he came home with a bonus ... fresh turmeric.

Thanks! You remembered correctly. The move went as smoothly as moves ever do and I'm finally starting to feel settled.

I haven't been participating in COTM much for the past couple of months, but I caved and ordered Burma and Jerusalem as early Christmas presents. They arrived in the mail today and I can't wait to dive into these books. I'm hoping January is a good month for BURMA.

Thai month is tempting me as well, but I already have McDermott's Real Thai and another book, so I'm not sure I should give shelf space to a third when I've barely cracked those two.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Balsamic Vinegar - p. 238

Our CSA box seems to be on a sweet potato kick lately. Neither one of us is really a sweet potato fan, but I decided to give this one a try hoping the tart vinegar would offset the sweetness enough for us. The end result was okay. I didn't think the tartness came through enough despite using 1 tsp for 2 lbs of potatoes. This dish tastes very seasonal and with the spices screamed Thanksgiving to me, so it could be a nice alternative to a sweet potato casserole.

To make, the potatoes are roasted in the oven until tender. They instruct you to then peel them and pass through a food mill or ricer. I saved a bit of work and let the potato ricer do the peeling. Separately, butter is browned in a saucepan and you add cinnamon and nutmeg (where the Thanksgiving flavors come in!). Milk is then added and brought to a boil, then the sweet potato puree is added. Season with salt, pepper, and vinegar and serve.

We served it with the oven-roasted pork butt from Melissa Clark's two books (slow cooked on a bed of leeks per another CH's suggestion) and a side salad.

Penne with Gorgonzola, Beets and Toasted Walnuts - p. 50

I was apparently still half asleep when posting this this morning. Here's a link to my report on the recipe in the wrong thread: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/8758... My apologies!

My apologies! I just realized I put this in entirely the wrong thread. I should have read more closely this morning. I'll put a link in the proper thread ...

I served it as a main with a large side of salad. Scaled very roughly in half, we still ended up with leftovers, although we're both light eaters. I think you'll be fine.

It's worth trying. I love blue cheese sauces.
Golden beets is a good idea. Candy cane might also work nicely for a lighter shade. We had a beet risotto over the weekend and the dark red looked great, so I was surprised when this one ended up being such a turn-off. I think the cream just puts it at a weird in-between stage for me.

Thanks for adding the page number. I hope my used copy arrives soon!

Penne with Gorgonzola, Beets and Toasted Walnuts
http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/1705...

My copy of the book hasn't arrived yet, but I found this recipe using EYB and then searching online. I deviated a bit from the recipe, but I think I kept the basic idea intact. After cooking and slicing a couple of beets, a gorgonzola cheese sauce is made. To start the sauce, they have you mince garlic and thinly slice some red onion. Those are cooked, then wine is added and reduced. Then cream is added and simmered and you're supposed to strain the sauce. Straining the sauce seemed a bit too fiddly for me for a weeknight meal, so I finely chopped the onions and just left those and the garlic in the sauce. While I was making the sauce, I realized that I only had half of the gorgonzola called for (and my beets and onion were on the small side), so I cut the sauce recipe in half for the cream and gorgonzola, but used the full amount of wine. After the straining, gorgonzola is melted into the sauce and it's seasoned with salt and pepper. Cooked penne pasta is then added to the pan that has the sauce along with the cooked beets and walnuts. I wasn't sure if in the book it specifies whether the walnuts should be whole or chopped. I decided to chop mine. These are stirred until the sauce turns pink. Garnish with parmesan and parsley and serve.

The sauce was quite rich and we both liked it, except for the color! It looked like someone had poured Pepto-Bismol on top of the pasta and that just wasn't very appetizing.

Yogurt-Marinated Lamb with Ginger and Garlic, page 214

Just echoing the glowing reviews of the two other posters. I served this to a friend who lived in India for 6 months for work and he raved about it. I used 1 lb of lamb stewing meat and kept the rest of the amounts the same for the recipe. I did simmer it for closer to an hour because I started the dish too early. Served with the black cardamom scented rice in the book.

Yogurt Curry with Cumin and Curry Leaves--page 353

I had some leftover nutty rice in the fridge, so I decided to give this a try as a quick working from home weekday lunch. I've never had yogurt soup, so this was a new dish to me and it made a perfect lunch. I can't comment on how it is on its own, but it paired wonderfully with the nutty rice, giving me the tang of yogurt and surprisingly crunches of nut together. I made a half recipe and used 3 dried chiles which gave a nice mild heat to the dish for me. The cumin didn't seem too prominent, but I love cumin and the rice pairing may've helped that issue. My one word of caution is it can boil over very quickly, so keep a close eye on it. Mine escaped the pot while I was getting the ghee ready.

Fenugreek-Scented Cheese with Cream p.292

I don't have much to add to Allegra's detailed review. I made this last night and we both greatly enjoyed it. The sauce with the fenugreek is outstanding. I used frozen instead of dried. Very quick and easy. I like that if you have everything prepped, the dish comes together in less time than it takes from rice to rest after cooking. I didn't have the same problems Allegra did with things reducing too quickly, but I think I had the gas turned down closer to medium when I started (I'm still getting used to the new gas stove). The sauce was just the right amount for us. Although I wish I had read the suggestion of serving it with naan before I started prepping the rice as I agree that would've been an even better pairing.

Nutty Rice with Cashews, Almonds and Fresh Mint (Kaaju Badam Chawal) on page 712

I made a half recipe of this last night for 2 and we ended up with leftovers (I served it with paneer). My only change was to chop the nuts a bit instead of serving them whole due to personal preferences. Neither one of us would've minded having the nuts even more finely chopped. Overall, very good rice and worth a repeat.

Well the handle is now misleading as I've left Montreal for San Francisco and been settled here for about a month now. I guess that's what I get for hastily registering a name so I could lurk more easily and then starting to join the conversation on a whim! Nice to see another wandering Texan on the boards!

Vengayam Avarai (Spicy Green Beans with Saucy Red Onions) p 509

This is our second green bean recipe in this book. It was okay, but we both preferred the aromatic green beans with pounded mustard and cardamom on p. 508.

Double the Potatoes with Cumin and Chiles - p. 583

This is our second mix of sweet potatoes and potatoes tried from this book. We thought this dish was okay, but gave a slight preference to the Potato Mix with a Cracked Peppercorn Sauce on p. 584 as both of us preferred the sauce on that dish. This is a bit easier to put together though than the other dish.

To make, heat oil in a large skillet and add cumin seeds. Add chopped white and sweet potatoes and cook until they lightly brown. Add salt and ground Deggi chiles (I used the recommended substitute of cayenne and sweet paprika). Then add water, lower heat, cover, and simmer. To thicken the sauce, the heat is raised back up and the dish uncovered. Add chopped cilantro and serve.

Razia Syed's Chicken with an Almond Yogurt Sauce - p. 130
http://blog.mlive.com/great-tastes/20...

We both loved the sauce on this chicken. It's thick with a fragrant hit of cardamom. I made a half recipe and cooked only thighs and drumsticks. This dish requires no pre-made spice blends other than the ginger and garlic pastes for the marinade.

To make the chicken is mixed with yogurt, ginger paste, and garlic paste and left to tenderize for 1 hour - overnight. I went with about 6 hours. When you're ready to start cooking, oil is heated in a skillet and whole cloves, black peppercorn, green and black cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, and bay leaves are cooked. Onions are then added and cooked until light brown. The mixture is transferred to a blender and pureed with some water. Then almonds, salt, and cayenne are added to the mix and pureed to a paste. He calls for slivered blanched almonds, but I only had whole on hand so I used those. The chicken is then placed in the skillet and browned on each side. The onion spice paste is then added back to the skillet with a little bit of water. Reduce heat and cover to simmer until the chicken is cooked. The last step of the recipe instructs you to remove the whole spices if desired. I think this must be an error (or I've misread) as my spices were all pulverized in the blender. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Sri Lankan-Style Hard-Cooked Eggs with Coconut Milk - p. 166

I was on my own for dinner last night and wanted something quick and easy. This fit the bill quite well as I already had the spice blend made and had all other ingredients on hand. The coconut milk sauce on this is rich and flavorful without having too much heat (I used one serrano chile for a 1/2 recipe).

To make, heat oil in a saucepan and cook fenugreek seeds and cinnamon stick (I used 1 for a half recipe). Finely chopped red onion is added and cooked until it browns a bit. Sri Lankan curry powder is sprinkled in and cooked. Then coconut, milk, salt, and turmeric are stirred in. Hard-cooked eggs are lowered into the simmering sauce and the sauce is cooked until it thickens. He calls for extra-large or jumbo eggs, but I just used large. He suggests serving on steamed white rice, ideally muttu sambha. I used some leftover saffron basmati. You'll definitely want the rice to eat the sauce with. The dish as a whole was a bit heavy on the cinnamon. I didn't mind it, but I know some here are more averse to it. He also suggests you could make this using peeled potatoes which I think would make a very nice side.

I think it's more likely some lamb may sneak its way home with me from the farmer's market today.

Aromatic Beef Stew with Mustard Greens, Fenugreek, and Mint - p. 173

I was having a bad day when I made this and had low expectations for the dish. They were lowered even further when I pulled the greens out of the fridge and discovered they were well past their prime and worked going to be usable (oops!). Not having anything on hand to substitute for the mustard greens and not wanting to run to the store, I decided to proceed anyways. I was pleasantly surprised by the final dish. The beef was tender and the flavor from the fenugreek and herbs was wonderful. I'm certain it would be even better with mustard greens.

To make, beef is marinated with ginger paste, garlic paste, and salt. I marinated for 5 or 6 hours. In a wok or cast-iron skillet (I opted for wok), oil is heated and the beef and fresh green chiles are seared. Mustard greens and fenugreek leaves are then added and cooked until the greens are wilted and the wok is deglazed. I cooked for a slightly shorter period of time due to the lack of greens. Water is then added, heat reduced, covered, and allowed to simmer until the beef is tender. I messed up here and should've added a bit more water to compensate for the lack of greens because all of my water simmered off well before the 15 minutes were up. Luckily, the dish was fine. Stir in chopped mint and cilantro and serve.

I served with the saffron-laced rice recommended by the book and it worked well together. Is it just me or has EYB updated these entries to now also include the accompaniments? I don't remember seeing those before on these recipes but the feature is very much appreciated! I expected this dish to be more stew-like, but for me the liquid all evaporated and I was left with meat, greens, and no sauce. In my case, I don't think this was a bad thing at all. This was a good dish, but I still find myself wishing our meat CSA had given us more lamb and less beef to work with this month!

Mrs. Vakharia's Peanutty Spinach - p. 591

This one just didn't do it for us. The problem may have stemmed in part from my substitution of kale for spinach, but I think our biggest issue is that we felt like we were eating spinach and peanuts rather than one side dish. The other problem may've been that we both loved the peanutty spinach topping for the scallops in this book and this recipe was quite different from that one.

To make, the greens are wilted in boiling water, drained reserving 1 cup of the water, and chopped. Cumin seeds are then cooked in oil and a mixture of peanuts, coriander, ground cumin, sugar, salt, cayenne, asafetida, and turmeric is added very briefly before adding the reserved water, chopped greens, and ginger. I think we would've liked this dish more if the peanuts had been chopped or ground rather than whole. It would've eliminated the textural contrast Iyer mentions in the nice intro though and perhaps let the spices burn. With so many good recipes in this book though, I doubt we'll be experimenting further with this one.

I like the idea of a cardamom-mango puree poured on top of a regular cheesecake!

Beginner Almond Shrimp With Tomatoes (Tamatar Jhinga) p.277

Just to echo Jane's assessment of this dish. It's great, quick, and easy. It seems to be one of the few shrimp recipes that doesn't require a 30 minute (or more) marinade. I wish I had made some rice or naan to get the extra sauce. We ended up finishing off some bread while mopping up the last of the sauce.

I think I pounded the peppercorns a bit too much to get a slap in the face from them sadly! His descriptions of these recipes are great and I share his love of potatoes, so it's great to see the variety of potato dishes here.

I'm extremely partial to duck, but I do think you could use this recipe with other birds. I almost put a comment about that in my original review, but then I decided I liked the duck too much to mention others!

I know. I love duck, but it's so expensive. I used sweet cherries.

Definitely. I've made several of the chicken recipes in this book using only the legs and this recipe is similar to the way most of those are set up. I see no reason why legs only wouldn't work here as well.

It's not really a sweet dish. The cherries are nicely balanced by a bit of heat from the ground chiles and the aromatics. Neither one of us is fond of sweet sauces on top of meat or poultry and this was a big hit.

Mango Cardamom Cheesecake with a Pistachio Crust - p. 751

This dessert rounded out our non-traditional Canadian Thanksgiving meal. I was a bit worried attempting this one as I'm working with a new oven that I haven't really baked in yet, but the cheesecake came out beautifully. No cracking, perfectly cooked, and the crust was nicely browned. The pistachio crust was a nice change of pace from more traditional graham cracker crusts. I had to use salted nuts and skipped on the added salt as suggested. It worked out fine. I wanted just a bit more mango taste in the cheesecake itself, but the flavor with the cardamom was still excellent. I forgot to look for mango pulp at the Indian grocery and couldn't find any at the regular grocery store, so I ended up making the puree with mangoes that could've been just a bit more ripe, so that may have also contributed to the lack of intense mango taste. I garnished with pomegranate seeds which added a nice tart contrast to the cheesecake.

All in all, this was a great cheesecake that I wouldn't mind serving at an Indian-themed dinner party.