Sara Dhanani

Archive for the ‘Favorite Recipes’ Category

Cranberry Apple Sauce

In Favorite Recipes on January 1, 2012 at 10:39 pm

I love holidays. Its the perfect excuse to putter about the kitchen all day long to come with a meal that satisfies everyone (mostly Aly :)). On thanksgiving he eagerly awaits turkey with gravy,stuffing, cranberry sauce and a few vegetables. Every year, I wonder if i should divert from our usual menu and make something exciting, yet there’s comfort in traditions.

Cranberry sauce or cranberry chutney? Cranberries are the perfect accompaniment to turkey. Bright, bold, sweet, tart! I made a cross between a chutney and sauce to go with our turkey this year. I added some apple along with apple cider to increase the fruity flavors and for spice used star anise and a cinnamon stick.. the aromas were divine. Since the recipe made about 2 1/2 cups, there’s plenty left over for some cheese cake or tarts.

Ingredients:

One bag of fresh cranberries (12oz bag)

One apple – peeled, cored and diced finely

2 cups water

1 1/2 cup granulated sugar

Vanilla extract to taste

Zest from 1/2 a lemon

Star Anise

One cinnamon stick

Method:
In a medium sized saucepan boil water, sugar, star anise and cinnamon stick. To this add apples and cranberries cooking them on a medium to low heat till the cranberries have popped and are soft, approximately 15-20 minutes. Stir in one teaspoon of vanilla and a pinch of salt. Stir in lemon zest. Cook till the sauce is jammy looking.

Sticky Honey Garlic Wings

In Appetizers, Favorite Recipes, Meat & Poultry, Week night meals on January 1, 2012 at 9:06 am


Happy New Year!

After some partying and drunken stupor, we’ve been craving some comfort foods. Enter in chicken wings!

These are by far the best chicken wings ever! Seriously. If I ever entered a contest, it would be with this recipe. They are “oh, so really good”! Just the right amount of sweet with tender chicken. You will have devoured an entire pan before you know it!

The first time I made honey garlic chicken wings was when I was in the mid teens. My little sister has been asking me to make that recipe, but I couldn’t seem to reproduce it. You could also make this recipe on the stove top, by cooking the chicken wings in their marinade till sticky and cooked through.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
3/4 cup honey
1/2 cup soft brown sugar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
3 lbs chicken wings

Method:

Line a baking sheet with foil. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
In a large bowl, whisk together soy sauce, honey, garlic, sesame oil and cayenne. Add chicken wings and toss to coat. Marinate for a few hours. Remove wings from marinade and spread in a single layer on the baking sheet. Reserve marinade. Bake wings for 15 minutes and turn over once during baking. Once done, remove from oven and set aside.

Boil remaining marinade over high heat until thick and syrupy.Toss with chicken wings. Dig in!!

Karhai Chicken

In Favorite Recipes, Meat & Poultry on November 19, 2011 at 11:34 pm

My younger brother is in town and after a full morning of bhatkofying around scottsdale, we needed a quick lunch. Gul has been trailing her mamoo and loving him endlessly. Its incredible to watch them together. My brother thankfully, also boycotted any Indian restaurants for the weekend! smart lad!

For our quick lunch , I made Karhai. I love making Karhai, its quick, nourishing and wholesome. You can use paneer to make it vegetarian. Recently, I’ve quit using red chilli powder in my cooking. Cumin has such wonderful flavor and can give any dish heat, without being as intense as red chilli powder.

Ingredients:

One chicken breast (boneless cut into 3-4 inch cubes) as well as a few pieces of bony chicken

One 32 ounce can of crushed tomato

One or two green finely chopped green chillies

Three cloves of garlic minced

Two inches of ginger finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped coriander

1/2 teaspoon powdered garam masala

One teaspoon cumin powder

One teaspoon ground black pepper

1/8 cup olive oil

Method:

Heat oil in a wok or karhai. Add the garlic and ginger and fry till fragrant, only a few moments. Be careful not to let the garlic and ginger brown. Add the cumin and garam masala to the oil and also fry till you can smell the pungent aroma. Next, quickly add chicken to the masala and saute on high heat till semi cooked and golden (don’t brown it). Mix in the green chillies and give another whirl, still cooking on high heat.

Now add the canned tomato’s and coat the chicken with tomato while sauteing on high heat for 5-7 minutes till some of the juice evaporates. Add the black pepper, stir and lower the heat. Cook till the oil separates from the gravy.

Garnish with fresh coriander.

Whole Wheat Brownies

In Dessert, Favorite Recipes on October 16, 2011 at 10:24 pm
I’m partial to fudgy, chewy, chocolatey brownies. Its been hard to get that texture with whole wheat flour until I found this recipe. They are divine. Just that simple.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tsp natural vanilla
Two eggs
Method:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F) and grease an 8 in x 8 in baking pan. Combine the whole wheat flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a small mixing bowl. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over heat. Once melted, add the sugar and heat gently till dissolved. Combine the melted butter and sugar with the flour mixture. Beat the eggs with vanilla in a separate bowl.
Add the eggs to the flour and butter and combine thoroughly. Finally, toss in the chocolate chips and give it one final stir. Pour the batter into your prepared baking pan. Bake for 12 -14 minutes for a crackly top and chewy center.
oh so good..

French Apple Cake

In Cakes, Dessert, Favorite Recipes on October 8, 2011 at 5:24 pm

We’ve been having some gorgeous fall weather in Phoenix lately. I’d bookmarked this recipe for weeks now, but it was just too hot to bake earlier. I didn’t change the recipe at all.