Matt's Makkhani Murghi

CQ writes: Matt and I went to high school together years ago.  We both pursued musical careers as performers and ended up doing different things with our lives. Who knew that we would also both grow up to be such food lovers? Here is a recipe he recently posted on Facebook that he agreed to let me re-post here. I hope you enjoy it, as I know I will.

Matt's Makkhani Murghi

For years I went to my local Indian buffet thinking that what they called Chicken Tikki Masala was what I wanted. I had experimented with recipes over the years and been sadly disappointed. Recently, I came across a recipe for Butter Chicken that sounded very much like what I was looking for. I even learned that it was often mislabeled as Tikki Masala!

So after trying out an initial recipe and somewhat liking it I hit the internet and every Indian cookbook I could put my hands on. What follows is what I consider to be what I have been after all these years. It is lengthy, but there are things you can make ahead like the marinade and tomato puree and your spice blends. Marinate one day. Broil the next. Make the Tomato Gravy the day after that and assemble.

Chef Rick Ryan's Chipotle Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chipotle Chocolate Chip Cookies
(one of my favorite recipes for a dark and smokey chocolate treat)

2 Cups AP Flour
1/4 Cup Cocoa Powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Chipotle Powder

(mix all dry together)

2 Sticks Butter softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs

(cream butter and sugar then add remaining ingredients)

Add dry mixture to wet then add in chocolate chips

11.5 oz package chocolate chips

Bake in a 375 degree oven for 9 to 11 minutes


Enjoy and watch the heat!


Chef Rick Ryan owns Doris and Dixie

Di Lenardo, "TOH!" Tocai Friulano

I'm drinking a little Tocai Friulano tonight with my take-out dinner while watching the Winter Olympics.  What a great way to unwind after my work week!  Today was my "Friday" and I was ready for a glass of wine and some tube time.  I picked it out of the fridge because I knew it would be crisp, refreshing, and immediately enjoyable, and I certainly was not disappointed.  In fact, I really enjoyed this inexpensive bottle, and it served its purpose quite nicely.

Tocai is a commonly planted grape in the North-Eastern part of Italy.  It has nothing to do with Tokaji, the famous sweet wine of Hungary, though they sound the same when spoken.  It may, however, be one in the same with Sauvignon Vert, a less-refined cousin of Sauvignon Blanc.  I buy into the theory mainly because the common aroma of grapefruit and the usually citrus flavored palete remind me of some of the great wines of Sancerre and Pouilly Fume made from its cousin, Sauvignon Blanc.  Tocai is just a little more understated and does not usually have the level of complexity that these benchmark Loire wines are known for.

The region of Friuli is incredibly dynamic and there are many grape varietals growing there; both red and white as well as international and local varietals.  Winemakers are much further ahead of the curve than many of the winemakers of the rest of Italy and many other parts of the world for that matter.  They take full advantage of the latest in wine-making techniques, a school of thought led by the great Mario Schiopetto who revolutionized white wine-making the world over from his home in Northern Italy.  For example, Di Lenardo used pneumatic presses to make this particular Tocai.  It's a device that slowly and gently crushes the grapes to ensure purity in the juice.  Champagne is another wine that uses gentle crushing, often by pneumatic press, to make only the best quality wines.

Banh Mi, Where have been all my life?

Have you ever had a Banh mi?  I hadn't until today, when I went on a hunt for them in Boston's Chinatown.  I was inspired by a conversation about them with my friend, Annie, who I just went to Portland with.  We were talking about charcuterie, and Banh mi came up.  She was waxing on quite poetically about them, and I was embarrassed that I had never heard of them before.  She filled me in that they are Vietnamese sandwiches that are made with various lunch meats, pates, mayonnaise, pickled vegetables, and cilantro.  In fact, you can fill them with a myriad of all sorts of different delicious things.  They were invented when the French occupied Vietnam as a result of the two cultures coming together to make possibly the most delicious lunch you'll ever hope to eat.

I took the T down to the Boylston street stop and walked a couple of blocks to the intersection of Beach and Washington where there are three Banh mi places on a single block.  I picked up a sandwich at each of them for comparison and took them to work as a surprise for my friends.  Annie, Beth (the pastry ninja), and I all ate them together at family meal and compared notes.  I cut each sandwich into three parts and put a piece of each on separate plates.  It was fun talking about them together and we ended up liking each one for different reasons.

"Adriano" Red by Ramos Pinto

Portuguese non-fortified red and white wines are off the radar for most folks.  For almost everyone, Port is the only wine associated with a country that is rich and varied in its offerings for the œnophile.  For that very reason, you can find some pretty amazing bargains when it comes to the $10 and under category if you know what you're looking for.  I don't know about you, but I'm very pleased if I can find a wine that is good enough for everyday consumption that comes in at a price that I can afford to drink a couple of times a week.  That's why I was so excited to discover "Adriano" Red made by the venerable Port house, Ramos Pinto on my last wine shopping excursion.

I have a feeling that part of the reason Portuguese reds are so misunderstood and under appreciated is because they are made from grapes that we Americans have a hard time pronouncing.  Because of our country's labeling laws, we tend to order wine in restaurants and shop for it in stores by looking for our favorite varietal: Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, etc.  You won't see these varietals in Portuguese wines at all.  Instead you'll see difficult to pronounce and spell regions like Duoro, Alentenjo, and Estramadura and obscure varietals like Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, and Tinta Roriz.  Indeed, the "Adriano" red is made from a blend of these three grapes, and it's named for the region it comes from, the Duoro.  These factors work against the consumer as obstacles between them and the cash register in an unassisted sales environment.

What the Portuguese and their wines do have going for them is a lot of farming know-how, a rich wine-making culture, relatively cheap labor, and a new interest from foreign investment.  In the case of Ramos Pinto's "Adriano" Red, the folks in sales make things a lot more appealing to the consumer by designing beautiful, even sexy, packaging and creating an easy name that just about anyone can comfortably pronounce.  The price certainly doesn't hurt either.  I snatched up 6 bottles on sale at my favorite wine shop for $6 each!  In all honesty, it would be a bargain at twice the price, but I'm not telling my friends at the liquor store.