Falafel patties with Chickpeas and Black beans

This is a good protein dish for vegetarians and it tastes great as an appetizer or a light meal with a side of a salad.

Ingredients:
Chickpeas/Garbanzo Beans - 1/2 Cup dry
Black beans: 1/2 Cup dry
Onion - 1 small or half big
Jalapeno/Green Chili - 1
Red pepper flakes - 1 tsp
Garlic - 2 to 3 cloves
Parsley/Cilantro - A small bunch
Salt - To taste
Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp
Cumin Powder - 2 tsp

Soak the Chickpeas and Black beans overnight. Alternatively, use canned beans. Drain and wash before use.
All all the ingredients into a food processor and pulse until the mixture is coarse ground. Mix all the ingredients until well incorporated.
Make patties and bake them or pan fry using very little oil.

Serve with salad or in a pita with Tzatziki and Hummus.

Clay Pot Chicken Curry

I have always been fascinated with cooking in Clay pots. This visit to India, I got the Clay cooking pot. However, it was a nightmare bringing it back in one piece. To add to that, I got 2 of these, one more for friends. This pot needs seasoning by soaking it with some rice water for a minimum of 5 days.  Just wash some rice in the water, drain and use this water.

It's best to add some oil, saute a few onion slices and then discard them to season the pot. I don't use a much oil when I cook. However, this pot did absorb a ton of oil. While the chicken curry tasted excellent, I really didn't see a lot of difference in cooking it in a pot (except for the excess oil).

Ingredients:
Chicken - 1lb
Oil - 2 tbsp (add more as needed)
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
Curry Leaves - 1 sprig
Cashew Pieces - 1 tbsp
Red Onion - 1 big or 2 small
Tomatoes - 2
Green Chilis - 2
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Coconut Powder - 1 tbsp
Salt - to taste
Red Chili Powder - 1 tbsp
Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1.5 tbsp
Chicken Masala - 1 tbsp
Cilantro - 1 sprig

Wash and chop the chicken into bite sized pieces. Marinate with Ingredients from Ginger Garlic paste to chicken masala.
Finely chop the onions and tomatoes and slit the green chilis. Heat the clay pot on medium and heat the oil. Add the cumin seeds, cashews and curry leaves. Add the onions, green chilis and saute till soft. Add more oil if the pot absorbs the oil. Add the tomatoes and cook till soft.
Add the marinated chicken and close the lid and cook till the chicken is cooked through. Add a little water if it starts to get dry. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Top with chopped cilantro.

Serve with rotis, naan or rice.