Shrimp Curry with Coconut Milk

In my adventures of self-taught cookery, I’ve had my share of recipe success and epic fail. Though there are two cuisines in particular where the guess-we’ll-order-a-pizza end of the scale weighs a little heavier – Asian and Indian. Perhaps because there are so many spices and exotic ingredients involved, the final product can too easily have that Americanized taste to it or be just plain a la Larry David, ‘eh’. But if you’re craving pizza my friends, then skip this dish because this dish is not eh. This dish is spectacular.

It’s actually a blend of Asian and Indian cuisine, as the lemongrass hints at Thailand while the cumin, coriander and fenugreek are Indian ingredients. And best of all, it is not hard to do. Basically you hunt down (this may well be the hardest part depending on where you live), toast and grind a number of spices, saute some shallot, mix together and add coconut milk. And presto you have a very authentic-tasting nicely spiced curry recipe up your sleeve. If you’re not a shellfish person you could swap in chicken or pork, or spoon the sauce over steamed vegetables with rice.

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Greek Moussaka with Swiss Chard

September is a month I’ve always loved. As a kid I was a big back-to-school fan. The local school supply sale was a huge event and I’d have my backpack packed and pencils sharpened weeks before the big day.  In college I couldn’t wait to  head back to the Big House in Ann Arbor, Michigan for a new semester. It took years post-graduation to shake that fish out of water feeling sitting in conference rooms working instead of coffee shops studying come Fall.

Nowadays I associate September with a wider net of things. The painful memories of 9/11/01. The US Open. Braking for school buses. Realizing I’ll need to start wearing socks again soon. Apples everywhere! It’s a segueway into Fall. And in the foodie world, segueway-ing into Fall is a fantastic thing. September is particularly special because you can still enjoy the best of both worlds – the summer harvest – and your oven! Comforting almost-autumn dishes like this one take the chill off these cooler nights. This Greek Moussaka casts eggplant in the starring role, my absolute favorite summer harvest vegetable.

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Mojo de Ajo

Mojo de Ajo is a Mexcican slow-roasted garlic sauce that I watched Chef Rick Bayless make on an episode of his show ‘Mexico one Plate at a Time’. He titled the episode ‘Liquid Gold’ and trust me, this stuff is a culinary goldmine! It keeps in the fridge for up to 3 months so long as the garlic stays submerged in the oil, though I can’t imagine you wouldn’t use it up within a week or two. Stuff like this is so much fun because it really allows your culinary creativity to shine through, as you come up with various ways to use it up. Here are just a few ideas I plan to try with mine:

  • Use as a marinade for grilled chicken (DONE and delish)
  • Use for sauteing vegetables
  • Toss with hot cooked pasta. Top with avocado and chopped fresh tomatoes.
  • Drizzle over pizza
  • Use for sauteing mushrooms. Add to risotto or rice.
  • Drizzle over poached fish
  • Use in place of oil for salad dressing
  • Serve as a starter for dunking bread

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Ratatouille Soup with Melted Gruyere Croutons

Planning the menu with a hurricane in the forecast is a tricky task. Do you stock the fridge with loads of fresh fruits and veggies to see you through the stormy weekend, or do you go the canned-goods route in the event you should lose power?  For the first time in a long time I felt completely dazed and confused as I wandered the usually familiar aisles of my local grocery store.

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Romesco Sauce

This toasted almond and roasted red pepper sauce may look like the Harissa Sauce posted earlier this spring, but the similarities end with the color and roasted red peppers. This Spanish sauce is deeply flavorful, bright and punchy (in an acidic kind of way), and absolutely delicious. It comes together quickly in the food processor and now is the perfect time of year to give this a whirl while both tomatoes and peppers are at their peak.

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Cherry Tomato Gratin

Looking to make the most of those gorgeous red and yellow jewels that have all but taken over your farmer’s market? Look no further than this simple but intensely flavorful cherry tomato gratin!

The tomatoes are tossed with a hit of fresh orange juice and balsamic vinegar for some nice acidity to wake up the flavor, then slow-roasted under a blanket of seasoned breadcrumbs and become slightly reduced, bubbly and utterly delish.

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Greek Gazpacho

One of the things I love most in life is stumbling upon a new group of friends. But what I love even more is when this happens completely by surprise. When David and I moved from NYC to Westchester and then from Westchester to Connecticut, we had enough people in our lives between families and existing friends who live in that close-enough radius so we didn’t feel isolated. But we didn’t exactly know people here either. That is changing for me after joining a new gym.

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