What's been going down

We have had some TASTY food around here as of late, and I wanted to share the goodness with all of you!

Recipe #1

I tried making this once before and it wasn't pretty. Leslie and Michelle, do you remember the disaster that was the uncooked cream cheese mess? I'm not sure what happened... but the recipe looked so good I couldn't resist trying again. And the second time it was so much better. Lessons I learned from the first attempt: use a mixer with the cream cheese part (don't try and mix it by hand), and don't underbake them! Don't overbake them either... :)

Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Bars

2 cups of your favorite chocolate chip cookie dough (I made oatmeal chocolate chip)
1 (8 oz.) block of cream cheese
1 egg
1/2 c. sugar

Spread 1 cup of the cookie dough on the bottom of an 8x8 square pan, like a crust. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese for 30 seconds, then add the egg and sugar and beat until it's smooth and thickened. Spread it on the cookie dough crust. Then crumble the remaining 1 c. of dough on top. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes, or until the dough is browning on top. Yum!


Recipe #2

My grandma recommended a book series to me and they are such fun books! Thanks Grandma! They are the culinary mysteries by Josi Kilpack. Mostly I love that the main character appreciates food, and that all the recipes are inside the book! Bowman and I love Indian food, so when I saw a recipe for Chicken Tikka Masala in the book I was very interested. My favorite part of this recipe was that I had everything for it in my cupboard! So convenient. And it turned out delicious. A little spicy, but if you like it milder just add less pepper.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Chicken
1 c. plain yogurt (I used sour cream)
2 T. lemon juice
2 t. cumin
2 t. cayenne pepper (I used only 1)
2 t. black pepper
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. salt
1 t. ground ginger
1 1/2 lbs. chicken, cut into bite-size pieces

Combine all ingredients and let marinate at least 1 hour. Overnight is good too. After marinating, remove chicken and grill or broil (I just cooked mine in a frying pan). You don't need to save the marinade or drippings. Set aside.

Sauce

1 T. butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno, minced (I left this out because I am wimpy when it comes to spicy things)
2 t. ground coriander
1 t. cumin
1 t. paprika
1 t. garam masala (optional, I used a different kind of masala blend I had in the cupboard, but it's still not necessary)
1/2 t. salt
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce (I used half a can of diced tomatoes)
1 c. whipping cream

Saute the garlic and jalapeno in the butter for 1 minute. Add the other spices, then the tomato sauce. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the cream and stir over medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken and heat through, about 5 minutes.

Serve over basmati rice. I also threw in a bunch of vegetables I steamed: cauliflower, broccoli, onions, carrots, potatoes. DELISH!