Curry chicken with peach ginger jam

I recently did an article for The Nashua Telegraph regarding edible gifts, and one of the woman I spoke with, Jena, makes her own jam and preserves for her loved ones at Christmas. I have a killer savory tooth, so the peach ginger concoction she described sounded like a cool twist on the normally overly sweet jams. So, when I met Jena at the Nashua Tweetup last week, I was delighted when she brought me my own jar of peach ginger jam, made from Springdell Farms' peaches and seasoned with Penzeys' spices. The minute I got this gem home, I whipped it open, devoured the aroma with my nose, and planned dinner: curry chicken with peach ginger "sauce"; also inspired by Jena. Plus, I scored a handle of high quality olive oil at Zach's family's Yankee Swap, so I had to incorporate that, too. Check this baby out!

Curry Chicken with Peach Ginger Jam
Serves: 2

-Two thin chicken breasts (I got a huge bag of them at Trader Joe's for under $7 - will last me until 2011)
-Curry powder
-Chicken broth
-Olive oil
-1 tbsp. garlic, jarred
-Salt and pepper to taste
-Peach ginger jam (substitute: store bought peach jam mix with some fresh or ground ginger)
-Sherry wine vinegar (optional)

Directions: Heat up olive oil in a skillet. While heating, season chicken breasts with desired amount of curry, salt, and pepper. Add chicken breasts to pan and brown on each side. When almost done pan frying, add a few splashes of chicken broth, a quick splash of sherry vinegar, and garlic. Let cook for one more minute, then cover pan with tin foil and place in 375 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. When done, immediately coat each piece of chicken with two generous spoonfuls of peach ginger jam.

On the side, I made some comforting, instant mashed potatoes (best packaged food on the market, if you ask me), and I roasted some grape tomatoes I had to use up with olive oil, garlic, basil and parsley.

This dinner was incredibly easy, and delicious. With the help of the broth and sherry, the chicken was insanely moist, and the spicy curry paired perfectly with the sweet and savory jam. Thanks again, Jena, for sharing it with me!

What's your favorite edible gift to give/receive at the holidays?

The Elephant Walk: Worth the extra buck

My boyfriend has been raving about The Elephant Walk since I met him, so the other night, we hit up the Waltham location for some Cambodian and French-inspired cuisine. With additional locations in Cambridge and Boston, the Waltham spot is inviting and cozy, and was surprisingly busy for a Wednesday evening, especially 30 minutes before closing time. When we first arrived, I ordered a glass of Pinot Grigio and sipped away while we munched on some Vegetarian Rouleaux ($8.95), which are Cambodian spring rolls filled with shitake mushrooms, carrots, onions, bean sprouts, peanuts and beanthread with vegetarian tuk trey for dipping.

The spring rolls came fried, although apparently in the spring and summer they are served steamed. Regardless, the rolls were delightfully crispy without being overly greasy, and came out piping hot and fresh. The waiter even informed us about the recommended way to eat the rolls: wrapped up with some of the accompanied bean sprouts, lettuce, and fresh mint leaves. Wrapping the spring rolls as he suggested gave them even more authentic flavor.

For an entree, I enjoyed a plate of Crevettes Amrita ($16.95), which was plump shrimp sauteed in a Cambodian satay sauce with a slew of spices and flavors, including coriander, cumin, star anise, and lemongrass, to name a few.

The plate was vibrant and full of spicy, fresh flavor. The best part for me was that the dish was plenty for one serving, but I wasn't left with three days' worth of leftovers.

My only gripe about Elephant Walk: we had to shoo away several fruit flies during our meal. I'm just happy we didn't find them in our food. However, for spending the money to enjoy dinner out, it was well worth the extra few dollars.

Local Tweetup gave me new holiday meal idea

Thursday night, I headed down to Nashua for a Tweetup. For us Twitterers, a "Tweetup" is simply a meet-up, or networking event, where you can meet your fellow Tweeters face-to-face, exchange business cards, and just get to know people in your community with common interests (in this case, food and social media, mostly). The event was held at Killarney's Pub inside the Holiday Inn, and a good crowd of at least 30 people mingled over cold Bud Lights and over salted popcorn. Having a Tweetup at such a casual location, with inexpensive appetizers for anyone who wanted them, was a great way to keep it cost effective - and thus brought more local Tweeters in.

I chatted with a lot of folks that I've met at previous Tweetups, and I was also fortunate enough to meet a few new people. Before I left for the night, however, I bumped into my buddy Wayne (@WayneNH), a social media guru and columnist. Wayne asked me a number of insightful, food-related queries, including what my beef is with Dunkin' Donuts (for the record, I loathe their coffee and artificial products). When Wayne asked me what my favorite holiday meal was, however, his response back made me rethink my holiday food traditions. He explained that every Christmas he and his family make a special breakfast versus a big dinner. To me, this is a simple, yet brilliant idea. Not only is a Christmas breakfast cheaper than having a big dinner, but it's also a great way to break up the morning that otherwise rushes by.

What food traditions do you cherish during the holidays?

Mushroom Lover's Burgers: Cheap, healthy, and delicious

My budget has never tasted so good: this is one money-saving meal that satisfies. On Monday night, my boyfriend, Zach, and I switched dining out for a quick dinner in. On the menu: Morninstar Mushroom Lover's Burgers atop slices of whole wheat toast, smothered in Dijon. We also topped our burgers with somewhat caramelized onions - basically, the onions were just sauteed in the pan with olive oil, but they tasted semi-caramelized and added a necessary sweetness to the otherwise salty burger. We also melted some Muenster cheese on the burgers, and prepared a simple yet delicious side salad, made with fresh avocado, cherry tomatoes, arugula and balsamic vinaigrette.

I've tried quite a few veggie burgers, and haven't been impressed with a lot of them, but these mushroom patties were divine, and full of flavor. Eating the burger on top of just one piece of bread also helps to make the loaf last the entire week, and sometimes I find two pieces of bread on a burger is too filling. The side salad was a healthier alternative to fries, too, and was cheap for us because we already had half the ingredients. Plus, I'll pay the extra buck any day for arugula over iceberg lettuce; sometimes, you just can't compromise flavor.

'Tis the season to save some money

This weekend, I traveled to Long Island to see some friends from my alma mater for a mini holiday party. One of my friends is getting married in June, so us bridesmaids got together this weekend to get fitted for our dresses, but we also made time to meet up with a few of our other friends Saturday night for the gathering. My friend, Stephanie, held the festivity at her apartment, and she had everyone bring one appetizer or side dish, while she focused on the main meal. Everyone brought a little something, including goat cheese tartlets, spinach and artichoke dip, and pigs-in-a-blanket. For the entrée, Stephanie prepared chicken rolled up with fresh mozzarella, breaded and baked in a sauce of butter, white wine, and fresh herbs. She used the remaining cheese for her homemade mashed potatoes, served on the side. The chicken was delicious, although I could have gone without all that butter – over two and a half sticks were used for the sauce!

For dessert, Stephanie had a great, cost-effective idea that also extended the holiday get-together: a few hours before everyone arrived, she had some of her girlfriends over to bake several different kinds of cookies for dessert after the holiday dinner. By doing this, Stephanie saved herself some money as the host – she had each person bring a recipe and its relevant ingredients. The girls had made so many different kinds of cookies, too, including sugar cookies with icing, gingerbread men, and chocolate fudge cookies filled with creamy peanut butter – ah, how I love the taste of the holidays! Here's a photo of my friend Janine putting her artistic skills to good use:

The Nashua Telegraph - Holiday Parties on the Cheap:
I recently wrote an article for The Nashua Telegraph regarding holiday parties on the cheap, and the event planners I spoke with had some awesome tips. I learned that eliminating the little expenses add up quick, without compromising the ability to have elegant décor and delicious food.

In what ways are you cutting corners this year to keep your holiday party within budget?

Where to get $12 wine for under $8

For wine drinkers like me that enjoy good, cheap wine, North Andover's got a new shop that not only sells an endless variety of brands for cheap, but the bottles also come with a whole lot of information.

I love wine, but I don't know much about the different varietals and what wine goes well with what food - I just eat and drink whatever feels good to me at the time. My lack of wine knowledge is why I am a big supporter of local wine shops, where the owners are informative and the wine is high quality - and reasonably priced. The Wine Connextion is one of the newest additions to the N. Andover's Main Street, and carries row upon row of wine varietals, separated by region. Above each wine is a piece of paper that lists information about the wine, including: acidity, body, food to pair it with, and drinkability (meaning whether you should drink the wine today, or if it will be at its best in 2012). The list also includes the original price of the bottle to compare the current price to. For instance, a lot of the bottles I was looking at should have cost $12, but at Wine Connextion, they're only being sold for $7.99. The shop owner confessed that they can sell the wine at such a low price because they buy the vino in bulk. I'm guessing they won't have any trouble selling their stock.

I settled on a bottle of Four Vines Naked Chardonnay ($8.99), and a large bottle of CK Mondavi Pinot Grigio ($8.79). I plan to break into both of these this weekend at various holiday gatherings - I'll let you know if the taste is worth saving the extra dollars.

Curried eggplant with chickpeas and spinach

My recent purchase of curry powder went to great use last night. I didn't start getting into Indian food or flavors until about a year ago, but with my high tolerance for spice and love for authentic fare, it was inevitable for me to adopt a love affair with the cuisine. Last night was the first time I cooked an Indian dish from start to finish, so a simple meal like this one was perfect for a first try. Inspired by this Food & Wine recipe, I only made a few small changes to the ingredient list, to save some dough and use up items I already had in my kitchen - as well as to satisfy my own personal tastes. For instance, the original recipe calls for vegetable oil, but I only had olive oil - plus, I love the taste of olive oil versus vegetable. I also added crushed red pepper for extra heat, and use powdered ginger versus fresh. By reading both recipes, you'll notice the differences, but the taste was not compromised by making a few subtle changes. Roasting the ingredients also resulted in a symphony of flavors that other forms of cooking just could not capture. Trust me when I say, this dish is worth trying; and took less than one hour to prepare and cook.

Curried Eggplant with Chickpeas & Spinach
Yields: 4 servings

-2 tbsp. jarred minced garlic
-2 tsp. curry powder
-1/2 cup olive oil
-1 medium eggplant, peeled and cubed in 3/4-inch pieces
-1 large onion, cut into 1/2-inch wedges
-3/4 of 15 oz. can chickpeas, drained (I used all 15 oz., and found it to be too much)
-1/4 tsp. ground ginger
-1/2 tbsp. crushed red pepper
-One 5 oz. bag baby spinach
-Salt and pepper
-Warm Naan and plain yogurt, for serving

Directions: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Mash the garlic to a paste with a pinch of salt. In a bowl, mix the paste with the curry powder and olive oil. Put eggplant, onion, chickpeas and ginger in a large roasting pan (or spread out flat on cookie sheet), and coat with the oil, garlic and curry mixture. Season liberally with salt and pepper, and toss well. Roast for about 30 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the eggplant and onion are tender. Stir in the spinach and roast until wilted (about two minutes). Serve with Naan and plain yogurt.

Do you like Indian food/flavors? Why or why not?