Welcome to Mumbai, Wisconsin

Okay, so I know the Indian food I make is not authentic in any way, shape, or form, but we do love it.  Our favorite Indian dish is Butter Chicken (Chicken Makhani) with freshly made naan (Indian flatbread) alongside.


Living in fairly rural Wisconsin, I feel the need to continue to broaden my children’s world view on food, so I try to make something ethnic at least once a week. We recently had Butter Chicken over Farro, Naan, and Watermelon-Cucumber Salad.  It rocked. And I made enough chicken to put a meal in the freezer for the future.

The butter chicken recipe can be found at Tasty Kitchen.  Although the recipe calls for cooking it on the stovetop, I’ve also just put all the ingredients except the cream in the crockpot and it’s delish. Without heating up your kitchen.  This dish is not at all spicy, but you could make it so if you wished.

Naan

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons salt
4 1/2 cups bread flour
2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)
1/4 cup butter, melted

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.

2. Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

3. During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat.

4. At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill.

5. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes.
Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.  I cook mine on a cast iron grill pan inside, but it can be grilled outside, as well.

This is best served fresh off the grill, but it can be stored, wrapped tightly, then reheated in the microwave or oven.


This Cucumber Watermelon Salad is one of those happy accidents in the kitchen.  I needed a refreshing salad to go along with our Butter Chicken, and only had a couple of cucumbers so couldn’t make a cucumber salad.  I added watermelon, and it was exactly what I had in mind.

Cucumber Watermelon Salad

6 cups cubed seeded watermelon
4 small cucumbers, cubed
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tablespoon white sugar (optional)
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Place the watermelon and cucumber cubes in a large bowl, and gently toss with the salt, pepper, and sugar. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and toss to coat. Refrigerate for 15 minutes, then gently toss one last time before serving.

Click here to print recipes for naan and salad

Berry-best Chicken Salad

Can you tell we watch a little too much Strawberry Shortcake around here? Of course, that threshold is not too hard to surpass. But on with blog business.

I have a confession to make. I do not like salad. I know, it’s shocking. I should say I don’t like lettuce. I love chopped vegetable salads, and I like main dish salads that are heavy on vegetables other than lettuce. And yes, I’ve tried all kinds…it’s not that I tried Iceberg and didn’t care for it. Although I did and didn’t.

Since moving to Wisconsin, we have become Culver’s Butterburger and Custard fans. If you’ve not tried either, they are da bomb. As the kids say. (I know they don’t really say that anymore, but I like to sound hip.) Occasionally, though, if I really want custard after my meal, I order one of their chicken salads instead of a Butterburger. It’s really pointless, since I looked up the nutrition info online and the salad is basically the same as a burger, but I feel virtuous about it.

They do make a darn tasty Strawberry Fields Chicken Salad, and here’s my home version of it.

Chicken Salad with Strawberries

2 boneless chicken breasts, about 6 oz. each

1 heart Romaine lettuce, chopped

2 cups strawberries, chopped (about 4 whole berries per salad)

1/2 to 1 cup Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup green onions, sliced (green parts only)

1/2 cup chopped roasted pistachios, pecans, or almonds (we prefer pistachios)

Raspberry or Cranberry Vinaigrette, store-bought
or
Strawberry-Balsamic Dressing: Whisk together 1 Tbsp strawberry jam, 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, and 6 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil.

1. Pressing down on a chicken breast with one hand, slice horizontally through the center to make 2 thin fillets with each breast. Alternatively, you can buy the thin-sliced ones, but where’s the fun in that?

2. Salt and pepper them well, and place on very hot grill or grill pan. I use a cast-iron grill my GI gave me for Christmas…it works fabulously. Drizzle a bit of olive oil on first, then heat over medium high. Reduce to medium when you put the chicken in, and leave it alone for about 5 minutes, until it turns loose on its own. That means it’s ready to turn over. Cook on the other side for about 3 minutes, until it also turns loose. If you're grilling it outside, I'm sure you know how to cook a piece of chicken, so I won't boss you about it.

3. Remove the chicken and let it rest while you assemble the salads. Divide evenly among 4 chilled plates the lettuce, strawberries, onions, nuts, and cheese. Slice chicken diagonally and arrange prettily (as I did not in the photo) on top of salad, then drizzle with dressing. The strawberries are so juicy and the salad so flavorful, it doesn’t need a lot of dressing.

This comes together in no time…you can easily cut up the lettuce, strawberries, and nuts in the time it takes the chicken to cook. We can sit down to dinner a half hour after I decide to make this. We usually have some sort of French or Italian bread to accompany it…after all, we’re not having custard for dessert when we eat at home!