Chicken Biryani

Way back in December we spent 2 weeks in southern India, and managed to have biryani once--we did, however, visit a spice plantation in the mountains of Kerala and brought home some spices to make this. The recipe here is a good rendition, using chicken drumsticks, so it is an economical dish that serves a crowd if you double it up. It wasn't pomegranite season, so we skipped them and it was good without them. Next time I would add vegetables as well. For the Marinade ¾cup Greek yogurt 3large garlic cloves, grated (about 1 tablespoon) 1(1½-inch) piece ginger, peeled and grated (about 1 tablespoon) 3tablespoons lemon juice 2½teaspoons kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) 1tablespoon garam masala 1½teaspoons Kashmiri chile powder (see Tip) ½teaspoon ground turmeric 1green chile, such as Thai or serrano, slit in the middle (optional) 8chicken drumsticks (about 2¼ pounds), skin on or off For the Fried Onion 1large yellow onion ⅓cup grapeseed or vegetable oil ¼teaspoon ground turmeric For the Chicken 4green cardamom pods 5whole cloves 1dried bay leaf 1star anise 1(2-inch) cinnamon stick For the Rice 6green cardamom pods 5whole cloves 2dried bay leaves 1star anise 1(2 -inch) cinnamon stick 3tablespoons kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal), plus more as needed 2½cups basmati rice, rinsed until the water runs clear, and soaked in 2 cups water for 30 minutes For Assembly Large pinch of saffron threads 3tablespoons milk 1 to 2teaspoons rose water, to taste (optional) 4tablespoons ghee or butter ½cup fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped, plus more for serving ½cup cilantro leaves and tender stems, roughly chopped Pomegranate seeds, for serving (optional) Add ingredients to Grocery List Shop ingredients on Instacart Your first order gets $20 off and free delivery. Instacart terms apply. Ingredient Substitution Guide Preparation Step 1 Marinate the chicken: Place the yogurt, garlic, ginger, lemon juice, salt, garam masala, chile powder, turmeric and green chile (if using) in a large bowl. Stir to combine and taste, adjusting salt if necessary. The flavors should be bold and pleasantly spicy. Make a shallow slit in the thickest part of the drumsticks. Add the chicken to the marinade and mix until coated. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, or preferably overnight. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Step 2 Prepare the fried onion: Line a large plate with paper towels and set aside. Cut the onion in half, then lengthwise into ¼-inch-thick slices, discarding any smaller pieces that may burn. In a large (12-inch) deep skillet with a lid, heat the oil over medium-high, add the onion in an even layer (a little overlapping is fine) and cook without touching, until the onions around the sides of the pan start to color, about 4 minutes. Step 3 Scoot the onions on the sides of the pan to the center, reduce the heat to medium and continue frying, stirring frequently, until golden brown and some are crisp, about 6 minutes more. The onion will keep cooking and turn darker off the heat. Season with salt, add the turmeric and stir for 20 seconds. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the onion to the prepared plate with a slotted spoon. Do not discard the oil. Step 4 Cook the chicken: Place the pan with the oil over medium and add the cardamom, cloves, bay leaf, star anise and cinnamon stick. Stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the drumsticks (save the marinade) and increase the heat to medium-high. Cook, turning once, until the chicken takes on a little color, 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in the marinade and 2 tablespoons of water. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is just cooked through and the gravy is thick, 20 to 25 minutes. If the chicken is cooked but the gravy hasn’t thickened, remove the drumsticks and increase the heat to medium-high; cook until thickened. Taste and adjust seasoning, if needed, then return drumsticks to the skillet. Remove the pan from the heat. Step 5 Prepare the rice: In a large (5-quart) pot or Dutch oven that you plan on using for the biryani, add 10 cups of water, the cardamom, cloves, bay leaves, star anise and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil over high. Add salt and stir to dissolve; carefully taste and add more if needed (it should be pleasantly salty). Drain the soaked rice and add it to the boiling water, giving it a quick stir; par-cook the rice until it’s tender on the outside but has a bite, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain and sprinkle it with a little cold water to stop the cooking, then set aside to drain completely. (The rice should not sit in a pool of water as it drains.) Give the rice pot a quick rinse and dry it. Step 6 Assemble the biryani: In a small bowl, heat the milk in the microwave until warm, about 20 seconds. Crumble the saffron threads between your fingers as you add them to the warm milk. Stir in the rose water, if using. In the rice pot, melt the ghee over medium heat, then transfer half to a small bowl. Transfer ⅓ of the rice and the whole spices to the biryani pot and gently pat it down. Transfer the drumsticks to the pot, then add the gravy and whole spices. Scatter ⅓ of the onion and ⅓ of the herbs over the chicken. Add another ⅓ of rice, top with another ⅓ of the onion, ⅓ of the herb mixture and drizzle with half of the saffron milk. Layer with the remaining rice, fried onion and herbs, and drizzle with the remaining saffron milk and ghee. Step 7 Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the lid and wrap it with a clean, thin dish towel or a couple of paper towels, making sure the ends are tied at the top, in order to get a good seal and catch extra condensation. Return the lid and reduce heat to low; cook for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and rest for 10 minutes with the lid on the pot. Serve with mint leaves and pomegranate seeds, if using. Tip

The Most Fun We Ever Had by Clair Lombardo

A reviewer called this the love child of Jonathan Franzen and Anne Tyler and if you are a fan of those two and were to read this as well, I think you would agree that that is a great summation of the vibe here. It is the author's first novel, and you can tell she graduated from the Iowa Writers Workshop because the family in this story spend time in Iowa City, a place that most people do not have even a glancing knowledge of. This is an intricate multigenerational saga that covers a 40-year span for one family. It is about marriage, sibling rivalry, how the growing up experience shapes us, including our birth order and the stability of the ground we stand on — there are four sisters who are close, constantly sparring, and trying to figure out their place in the world as they measure themselves against their parents and each other. The book swings back and forth over the entire span of the couple's marriage, and there are plenty of secrets that seep out at various times, and the trick to tie them all together at the end, so that all the reader's questions are answered. I would say that this was mostly accomplished, and I would definitely recommend this to anyone who routinely puts down a 700+ page books and sighs with disappointment that there is not more of this story to read.

Chennai, India--The Home of Madras Fabric

Chennai is the capital of Tamil Nadu state, located on the Coromandel Coast of the beautiful Bay of Bengal, is known as the “Gateway to South India.” Yes, India is a country where vibrant colors abound, but Chennai, formerly known as Madras, is the origin of Madras fabric. The quilter in me needs to point this out. In the 17th century, British traders of the East India Company established a presence in Madras, where they encountered the local handwoven cotton textiles. Enthralled by the fabric's lightweight and breathable qualities, they began exporting it to Europe. Traditionally, Madras fabric was meticulously handwoven by skilled artisans in India. The cotton yarns were dyed using natural vegetable dyes, resulting in a vibrant range of colours. Weavers employed intricate techniques to create the distinctive plaid patterns, characterised by their irregular and lively designs.

During the 19th century, the popularity of Madras fabric soared, primarily due to its association with the Scottish influence on Indian textile production. Scottish soldiers stationed in India, particularly in the Madras region, developed an affinity for the lightweight fabric, which suited the tropical climate. The demand for Madras fabric skyrocketed, leading to the creation of plaid patterns specifically tailored to the Scottish market. As the British Empire expanded, Madras fabric made its way into international markets, gaining increasing recognition in Europe and the Americas. It was embraced as a vibrant and distinctive textile, capturing the fascination with Indian craftsmanship and cultural influences of the era.

A Walk In The Park by Kevin Fedarko

This is the tale of the author's self described obsessive attempts (and failures) to hike on foot in the Grand Canyon. He is seeking more than just adventure in this goal--he is seeking all sorts of things within himself when he embarks on this quest, and his chosen companion, photographer and long time friend Peter McBride, is not a good counter balance for him either. There are a lot of interesting tidbits of information to be gained while reading this altogether painful account of hiking the canyon--warning, do not read this if you are hoping for inspiration for your own hiking trip, you are unlikely to be tempted when all is said and done. There is a litany of information about the geology and stratigraphy of the Grand Canyon, From the billon year gap in the Great Unconformity layer, to the oldest exposed rocks in the world, his unrivaled explanation of their stargazing of the Celestial Vault, solidifying their three-dimensional insignificance, is a powerful portion of the narrative. So is the apparent movement of the stylized human figures painted on the rocks nearly 4000 years ago, where the canyon is alive and speaking to them. In between is the sad story of the local Havasupai tribe’s struggle for a voice in the fate of the canyon and the rampant Eco-tourism depicted by air traffic in Helicopter Alley. All told, this is well worth reading and thinking about, but for me it is also quite flawed in concept and execution in the trip itself.

Nancy Silverton's Best Peanut Butter Cookies

For the Toasted Peanuts 375 grams (3 cups) skin-on Spanish peanuts 3 tablespoons grapeseed oil (or other neutral-flavored oil, such as safflower) 1½ tablespoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt For the Dough 2 extra-large eggs 2 tablespoons pure vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract 140 grams (1 cup) unbleached all-purpose flour 130 grams (1 cup) sorghum flour 170 grams (1½ sticks) cold unsalted butter, cubed 270 grams (1 cup) creamy peanut butter 180 grams (about ¾ cup plus 2½ tablespoons) granulated sugar 110 grams (½ cup plus 2 teaspoons packed) dark brown sugar 1½ teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt ½ teaspoon baking powder For Finishing 100 grams (½ cup) granulated sugar 270 grams (1 cup) peanut butter (preferably creamy) 2 tablespoons flaky sea salt method To toast the peanuts, adjust an oven rack to the center position and preheat the oven to 350°F. Put the peanuts on a large baking sheet, drizzle them with the oil, sprinkle with the salt, and toss to coat them. Spread the peanuts out in an even layer and toast them on the center rack of the oven until they are dark mahogany in color, 18 to 20 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally and rotating the pan front to back halfway through the toasting time so the peanuts brown evenly. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and set aside to cool the nuts to room temperature. (If you think they are on the verge of being overtoasted, transfer them to a plate so they don’t continue to cook from the residual heat of the pan.) Turn off the oven. To make the dough, whisk the eggs and vanilla together in a small bowl. Combine the all-purpose and sorghum flours in a medium bowl and stir with a whisk to combine. Put the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle and beat at medium speed until the butter is softened but still cold, 3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and paddle with a rubber spatula whenever butter is accumulating. Add the peanut butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar and beat on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the baking soda, salt, and baking powder and beat on medium speed for about 15 seconds to incorporate the additions. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl and paddle. With the mixer on medium speed, gradually add the egg/vanilla mixture, mixing until the egg is completely incorporated. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl. Add the combined flours and mix on low speed for about 30 seconds until no flour is visible. Stop the mixer, remove the paddle and bowl, and clean them with the spatula, scraping from the bottom up to release any ingredients from the bottom of the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the dough is chilled and firm, at least 30 minutes. Adjust the oven racks so one is in the top third and the other is in the bottom third of the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. To finish the cookies, pour the granulated sugar into a small bowl. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Remove the plastic wrap and reserve it. Scoop the dough into 21-gram (1½-tablespoon) portions and roll each portion into a ball. Roll the balls in the sugar to coat them and place 12 cookies on each of the prepared baking sheets, leaving at least 1½ inches between them. (Re-cover the remaining dough and return it to the refrigerator.) Press your thumb in the center of each ball of dough and turn your thumb to expand the divot slightly and make it round. Spoon 1 teaspoon of peanut butter into each divot and sprinkle a generous pinch of flaky sea salt on top. Place one baking sheet on each oven rack and bake the cookies for 4 minutes. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and pile a mound of peanuts (about 20) in the center of each cookie. Return the baking sheets to the oven, switching racks and rotating the sheets front to back, and bake the cookies until they are golden brown, have puffed up, and are just beginning to collapse, 4 to 5 minutes. (You want the cookies to be slightly underdone, so they will feel soft to the touch. They will firm up when they cool.) Remove the cookies from the oven. If any of the cookies have become misshapen during baking, gently cup your hands around the edges to reshape them. If the cookies spread so much that there are gaps between the peanuts, add a few of the remaining peanuts to each cookie so you have a pretty, abundant nut cluster on each cookie. Allow the cookies to cool completely before removing them from the baking sheet. Bake the remaining cookies in the same way.

Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors

I very much enjoyed this book, which is not overly long and not overly complicated, yet is able to deliver on some well loved themes for me. The four sisters Blue grow up in a tiny New York City apartment--the six of them sharing two bedrooms. So there is all the potential sibling rivalry at hand but it is subverted by an alcoholic abusive father and a mother who protects him over her children. So they are prone to wanting and needing to escape and they are more bonded to each other than might have otherwise happened. The story revolves around the accidental overdose death of the third sister from fentanyl and the grief that engulfs them in the aftermath. There is addiction in all sorts of manifestations, there is difficultly with intimacy, and there is generational grief, which is kind of a trifecta for a mental health professional, with general appeal for all.

Bianca Springer--Thanks I Made Them!

I skipped lectures at QuiltCon for a number of reasons—I wanted time with the quilts in the exhibit was the main one—between classes and the exhibit, I have no additional time. Then the auditorium set up is not my favorite for lectures—too big, too distracting and not enough bang for my buck. Finally, the on site experience is a sensory overload, whereas at home I can watch in an ideal environment. The only downside is that there is a limited time within which to watch the lectures, and this one was the last one I had a chance to watch. Bianca has a passion for garment making that is impressive. She is an inveterate upcycler who haunts thrift shops for vintage patterns as well as fabric, quilt tops, and quilts. She talked a bit about how she approaches making a quilt made by someone else into a garment. She tries to honor the spirit of the design the maker had in mind—which she is amazing at—and then points out that if she is buying it, no one who knew the maker is making space in their life for that quilt, so she is giving it a new life it wouldn’t otherwise have. She went on to walk the viewer through how to pick a pattern, how to make the garment, and the various ways you could make and embellish pieced clothing. It was very inspiring and I would seek out a talk by her in the future.

Tenth of December by George Saunders

This was on the New York Times list of 100 Best Books of the Twenty-First Century (so far, 25 years in), and there are two other of his books, one that I petered out on reading years ago and will get back to and one other. This is a collection of short stories, which are not my favorite, but I will say these are well written and enjoyable just not my particular cup of tea. The 10 stories in Tenth of December (the name of the last story and not anything else to do with these) are all about people. No matter the setting – a futuristic prison lab, a middle-class home where human lawn ornaments are a great status symbol –the stories are consistently about humanity and the meaning we find in small moments, in objects or gestures. He paints painful portraits of domesticity, of families, of death. The can be described as sadly happy, each story full of little truths that make us both amused and very uneasy. The author has a keen eye for detail and a way of portraying human foibles in hte kindest of lights.

Roasted Pork with Peach Sauce

This is a hands off meal, but requires long cooking--we were going our for the afternoon and popped it in hte oven before we left and it ws ready when we got home--we used some peaches we froze last summer for the sauce which worked beautifully. 6 to 8 pound bone-in pork butt 1/3 cup kosher salt 1/3 cup light brown sugar 1 teaspoon ground black pepper Peach Sauce: 10-oz frozen peaches (or use 2 fresh peaches) 2 cups dry white wine 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon rice vinegar 2 sprigs thyme 1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard The night before your meal, use a sharp knife to cut slits into the fat cap; 1″ apart forming a cross-hatch pattern, but take care not to cut into the meat. Combine 1/3-cup kosher salt and 1/3-cup brown sugar in small bowl, then rub over the entire roast (including the slits). Wrap roast tightly using two layers of plastic wrap, place of a rimmed baking sheet, and refrigerate until ready to cook the roast (but no more than 24 hours). The next day, unwrap and brush off any excess salt mixture using paper towels. Season roast with 1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper. Spray your V-rack coated with non-stick cooking spray. Add 1 quart of water to your roasting pan. Place the roast on V-rack with the fat cap facing up and set aside while the oven pre-heats. Set an oven rack to the lowest position and pre-heat your oven to 325-degrees. Bake for 5 to 6 hours, depending on the size of the roast. Basting every two hours, adding more water after each basting to prevent the fond from burning. But don’t add so much water as to dilute the liquid. The roast will be finished when an instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone (but not touching) reaches 190-degrees. Place the roast on a carving board and loosely tented with aluminum foil for one hour. While the meat rests make the sauce. Pour the jus from roasting pan into a fat separator. After allowing the fat to separate for 5 minutes, pour 1/4-cup into a small saucepan. You can discard the remaining jus. Cut the peaches into 1″ chunks. Add your peach chunks, 2-cups white wine, 1/2-cup sugar, 1/4-cup rice vinegar, and 2 sprigs of thyme to the small saucepan with the 1/4-cup jus. Bring sauce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. When the sauce has reduce to 2 cups remove from heat. Find and discard the thyme sprigs, then add the final tablespoon of rice vinegar and tablespoon of whole-grain mustard. Mix together and cover to keep warm. Cut around the bone (shaped like an up-side-down “T”) with a paring knife, then use a clean kitchen towel to pull it from the roast. Slice the roast using a serrated knife, and serve, passing the peach sauce separately.

The Anthropologists by Ayşegül Sava

This is a quiet novel. It is a meditation on modern life and modern love, with some juxtaposition between the older generation and the younger one, between those who immigrate and those who stay put, and finally between those on the brink of living fully adult lives, and those who are on the brink of it, maybe for some time to come. Asya and Manu have been living together in a foreign, unnamed city in a foreign, unnamed country for several years. Estrangement – from the city, from society, from the self – lies at the center of this story. Asya and Manu are not like their parents, who live in faraway countries and send dispatches, good and bad. They have a small social circle, but more often than not, it’s just Asya, Manu and their close friend Ravi who spend the days of their lives together – drinking, talking, dreaming, and revealing themselves in these still moments that they spend together.

Rachel Clark's Quilt Coats

I am taking a class with this artist in June and I wanted to watch her QuiltCon lecture to get a sense of both her work and what I am in for when I spend two days with her. She brought over twenty coats that were modeled by four different volunteers, and it was feast for the eyes. She grew up with garment makers in her family, but Rachel’s life as a quilter didn’t fully blossom until she got married to her husband, Gary, and moved from New Orleans, Louisiana to Watsonville, California in the early 1970s. After this long-distance move, she found herself without community for the first time.

Clark discovered that even though she wasn’t very good at approaching people and striking up conversations, she was very good at designing clothing that could serve as an excellent conversation piece. People will approach you to talk about what you wear—she did say in her talk that you should not wear it if you need to run through an airport—people who want to ask you about your jacket will just slow you down and you could miss your plane. Clark loved both dressmaking and quilting, and didn't feel the need to choose between the two. She explored the possibility of combining them to make unique clothes with quilting techniques. People were interested in her clothes, and in turn, interested in her. She used clothing to “invite people in.” Well, I share some of these traits with her—not the creative one or the garment maker one—the shy with people I don’t know one—and I hope this pieced garment phase I am about to enter will be a good one for me.