Spiced Moroccan Chicken Wrap with Eggplant Tomato Jam

I know, I know... long time, no cook.  But it's not that I haven't been cooking, it's just that what I have been cooking hasn't been new or particularly blog-worthy.  And, yes, since moving to Bangkok I have definitely been cooking a little bit less frequently.  Food is so delicious and cheap here, whether on the street, in a restaurant or at the market!

Anyway, this spiced Moroccan chicken wrap is a recipe from The Cozy Apron that I have cooked twice now, once in Jakarta and once in Bangkok, and both times I failed to get a good photo because it was dark and also because the dish was so tasty we snarfed it down immediately.  But please do check out The Cozy Apron for some mouthwatering pics.

The dish is full of spices and garlic and pretty healthy: awesome.  It consists of 3 parts (hummus, spiced and grilled chicken, eggplant and tomato "jam"), which seems like a lot, but none of the steps is particularly taxing or time-consuming.  You can make the hummus in advance (although we liked it to be room temp on the sandwiches, not cold), which helps the flavors meld and the chicken can be marinated overnight (I started marinating mine in the morning and that was sufficient, too).  We thought the sandwiches were good with a little lettuce for crunch, too.  Mmmm.

Pumpkin Bacon Mac & Cheese

More bacon, I know.  But I made half recipes of this awesome pumpkin bacon mac and cheese as well as the tasty pea and bacon risotto... two half recipes = one package of bacon.

Anywho, this dish turned out pretty great (despite the terrible photos, sorry).  I combined two recipes I found online to make my final product.  I basically followed the sauce instructions from this recipe (minus the honey and all-spice), combined with the onion, bacon and buttered breadcrumb topping from this recipe.  Plus my own addition: some minced garlic with the onion.  

Healthier than your average mac and cheese, but still cheesy enough to satisfy your craving.  

Saag Paneer and Tandoori Spiced Cauliflower

My favorite Indian dishes, hands down, are saag paneer and chana masala.  Unfortunately, our preferred Indian joint here in Jakarta is kinda a pain to get to on the regular, so I don't get my favorites as often as I would like, leaving it up to me to try to recreate them at home.

Step 1: Sag Paneer.  Step 2: Chana masala (coming soon... maybe this recipe?).

 

My first attempt at saag paneer was pretty successful!  Two thumbs up for the recipe, although I wish now that I had made my own paneer (there are instructions in the recipe) rather than using the store-bought kind... the consistency of the cheese wasn't what I was looking for, but I bet homemade would have the creamy goodness I seek.

The only change I made was to splash a few tablespoons of heavy cream into the dish before serving, as it was a little too thick for my taste.  Other than that, pretty straightforward and simple.  And healthy, too... Give it a try!

We paired it with some tandoori-style roasted cauliflower that had a nice flavor, but turned out a bit mushy for my taste.  Maybe a dry spice rub is better for cauliflower than the yogurt-based marinade in this recipe?