The PERFECT Bowl

Hubby is gonna be so happy tonight. So, I literally JUST joined Pinterest and I know it's taken me forever but I was honestly scared that I'd get addicted to it and now I really know why! So when I saw this recipe for Laksa (using only 5 ingredients), I thought it'd make the perfect lunch.

So, I made it as described but when I tasted it, I thought it was really missing a few things. So this is my Thai Coconut-Malaysian Laksa Noodle Bowl!



Here's how I made it and what you should use:

3/4lb (350g) noodles (rice, spaghetti, whatever!)
1-2 Tbsp Thai green curry paste
1 large can (1 1/2 cups) coconut milk
2 cups of boiling water (chicken, vegetable, or beef broth could be substituted)
2 cups mixed chopped vegetables (I used red and green pepper and zucchini)
1 clove of garlic
1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
handful fresh basil leaves
handful of chopped scallions
Juice of 1 Lime
Soy Sauce (to taste)

This is a super quick meal to make too! Boil your pasta or noodles or whatever you're using. Then heat up a little bit of vegetable oil on high heat in a saucepan. Add the Thai curry paste to it and stir fry for about a minute. Then add the coconut milk and boiling water. At this point, I put in my ginger and garlic to flavor up the broth. Once it starts boiling, toss in your veggies and leave them for about 2 minutes. Your noodles should be done by now so put them in a bowl and pour your broth and veggies over the top. Tear up some basil leaves and place them on top of your noodle bowl along with the chopped scallions. I squeezed the lime juice right over my dish at the last second.

It is literally perfection in a bowl! I like to eat mine with about half the broth sort of ratio to the noodles but you can eat it straight soupy. It's so fresh and delicious and it's one of those foods that just make you feel so happy! Happy food makes for a happy wifey :)

P.S. This is the best hangover cure ever!

Indian Food Made Easy!

T and I love trying new foods and I especially love trying to make new foods. Maybe I can't make some things the totally authentic way, but I definitely make it work! I got a real craving for Indian food the other day so I made this delicious Dhaniya Murgh, or Coriander Chicken Curry. I, of course, had to be creative after discovering that I couldn't get certain spices. So here is what I used:

• 4 boneless and skinless chicken breasts (cut into cubes)
• 1 small onion
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1-2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 container (I had 200g) of natural Greek (thick) yoghurt (you can use plain yogurt in a pinch!)
• Half tsp turmeric powder
• Half tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• Half tsp cumin
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp oil
• Salt to taste

  

It came out delicious, warm, and spicy! Really warms your heart up on a chilly night. I served it with a side of rice and veggies inspired by the flavors in this Anyhow Prawn Pulao.

School Lunch for Dinner

The other reason Halloween was great for us was because I made these awesome Sloppy Joes. I actually really liked school lunches when I was a kid, probably because we always ate Polish food so I really appreciated eating the American food at lunch. So when I saw this recipe for Grown Up Sloppy Joes with Ground Turkey and Avocado, I got inspired and had to try it. Now I can't always find ingredients here so I make do and use what I have and change things up a bit. Seriously, these came out so good, we loved them!

Here's what I put in them:

1/2 kg Lean Ground Turkey
1 cup assorted diced veggies (carrots, corn, red and green pepper)
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 large cloves of garlic
2 TBS sunflower oil
8-oz can (about 250g) of tomato puree
1/2 cup ketchup
2 TBS cider vinegar
2 TBS brown sugar, packed
(approx.) 1/2 tsp chilli powder
(approx.) 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
(approx.) 1 tsp ground ginger
(approx.) 1 tsp Hot Madras Curry powder (which has coriander, cumin, turmeric, fenugreek, and garlic)
1 avocado
6 whole wheat buns
salt and pepper

Simmering away

We got these nice rolls/buns from the bakery, maybe a tiny bit too bready but then we just added more Joe to it and then topped it off with slices of avocado.

 T agrees! His only other sloppy Joe before was the vegan one at Govinda's in Philly (which is so soooo good!)