Butter Chicken

We had a bit of a snowfall here in Minnesota over the weekend.  You might have heard.  It even caused the Metrodome roof to collapse!  Fortunately, Ron and I thought to run to the grocery store on Friday before the storm hit with the rest of the city.  Honestly, up until I was sitting at work on Friday, I had no idea that we were even supposed to get snow.  That sounds pathetic, but I tend to live in a bubble during finals period.  I do skim the headlines each day, but I think my brain is so overwhelmed that nothing I read, outside of law related items, actually sticks.  So, I found out it was supposed to snow and we stopped at the grocery store on the way home from Ron's hospital excursion (that's another story).

The blizzard was kind of fun and exciting.  I don't really remember the blizzard of '93 in Pittsburgh, but I'm sure it was as exciting as this one was.  I think it was exciting because we really had no place to go that Saturday.  Now, it's kind of annoying because we really can't get in and out of our driveway.  But, I'm surely glad we had food in the house for this whole ordeal because we certainly wouldn't have been able to leave to get some.  On Saturday night, after baking 6 dozen cookies for a cookie exchange party that I sadly could not get out of my driveway to attend, I mixed up this indian-spiced butter chicken recipe.  It was delicious!  I served mine on a bed of lettuce (and I wouldn't do that again; wilty lettuce) and was pleasantly pleased with the flavor.  The recipe does use some more bowls and kitchen appliances than I would have preferred, but overall it was a quick recipe to whip up and I enjoyed the change of pace.

Butter Chicken
from Baked Bree, from Good Life Eats
Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 jalepeno, seeded and minced
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
• 2 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into small cubes
• 1/2 tsp grated pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup butter
• lime wedges
• chopped cilantro
• cooked basmati rice (cook according to package directions)

Instructions

1. In large saute pan coated with olive oil, cook onions, jalepeno, ginger, and garlic over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, or until lightly browned.
2. Add the garam masala, chili powder, cardamom, and coriander.  Cook for 2 more minutes, stirring frequently.
3. Scrape the onion and spice mixture into the bowl of a food processor.  Add the tomato paste and chicken broth.  Process until smooth.
4. Add the puree back into the saute pan and add the bay leaves and cream.  Let come to a boil and reduce heat; simmer until it has reduced to about 3 cups, about 5-7 minutes.  Stir frequently.  Pour mixture into a large bowl and set aside.
5. Season chicken with salt and pepper.  Preheat saute pan to high and add chicken w/ 1 Tbsp butter.  Cook the chicken until it starts to brown, about 3-4 minutes.
6. Add the sauce back to the pan and cook over medium heat until the chicken is cooked through.  Add the remaining butter to the sauce and stir until it is melted and incorporated.
7. Once chicken is cooked, spoon over rice.  Squeeze lime wedges over and sprinkle with cilantro leaves.  Enjoy!