Indian Spiced Pork with Raita: Really Cheap and Easy, But I would Still Change a Couple Things

I think I've mentioned this before, but I love using Indian spices. This time, I used it on a pork tenderloin, and I have to say that it turned out pretty well.

First, grind up a teaspoon each of coriander, cumin, and fennel seeds in a spice grinder; add a half teaspoon of salt. Brush your tenderloin down with a teaspoon of vegetable oil and rub your spices all over the tenderloin. Let this sit at room temperature for half an hour; meanwhile, preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Cook your tenderloin in the preheated oven for half an hour or until cooked through. Meanwhile, make your raita by combining about 2/3 cup of yogurt with one grated cucumber, a teaspoon of lemon zest, and one minced clove of garlic.

Slice the pork and spoon the raita over the top of the pork; serve with rice.

Will and I both liked it, although I would have used roasted garlic instead of raw garlic in the raita because I forgot just how much I hate raw garlic. Otherwise, it's something easy that I can do again no problem.

Farfalle Casserole: Easy and Cheap

I've had this recipe in my arsenal for years now, but I've never used it before last night. I decided, why not try it? Sadly, I didn't get to try it, but Will appears to have loved it.

First, cook your farfalle according to the package directions. Meanwhile, mix two ounces of alfredo sauce with two and a half cups milk (I used almond milk), a splash of red wine, and a Tablespoon of butter. Bring this mixture to a boil, stirring constantly, and then turn the heat to low. Let the mixture simmer for a minute or two.

Next, add 9 oz trimmed and chopped asparagus, the pasta, and 4 oz of drained sundried tomatoes; mix this well. Pour this into a prepared casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Remove the casserole from the oven and cover with grated havarti cheese. Return the casserole to the oven and bake until the cheese is melted.

Will liked it, but thought it needed Parmesan cheese and seasoned salt. Next time I make this, I'll try adding that stuff to properly tweak it.

Chicken Tikka: Cheap, Easy, and Really Tasty

I wanted to make something easy and cheap, since now that I'm back in school and working on a very full workload, things are often controlled chaos. I settled on chicken Tikka, since it takes so little actual effort to cook and clean up afterward.

First, create the marinade. Combine chicken tenders cut into pieces, plain yogurt, turmeric, coriander, chili powder, salt, and the juice of half a lemon in a bowl; toss the chicken in the marinade to coat and put it in the refrigerator to marinade.

Put a cooling rack over a cookie sheet. Place your chicken on the cooling rack and brush with about a third of a cup of oil. Place this sheet in a preheated 400 degree oven and cook 25 minutes, turning at least once, until cooked through. Serve with chapatis.

Will and I both loved it. It was a fantastic, warming meal, and made great leftovers. I will easily make this again.

Fusilli in Sundried Tomato Sauce: Simple yet Delicious

I had a lot of sundried tomatoes, so I decided to try to find something good to use them in.

First, place three ounces of sundried tomatoes in three cups of water and let it sit at least five minutes. Once it's ready, set aside one third of the tomatoes and process the rest of the tomatoes and the water in a food processor.

Saute a diced onion until the onion is cooked through. Add one minced garlic clove and saute until they just begin to color. Add the reserved tomatoes and the processed tomatoes and simmer ten minutes. Add dried rosemary, seasoned salt, and dried oregano to taste and simmer five minutes; put on low.

Meanwhile, cook fusilli according to the package directions. Toss the sauce with the pasta to coat and toss in ten shredded fresh basil leaves. If you aren't vegan or vegetarian, garnish with grated Parmesan cheese.

Stilton Soup With Dijon Mustard: Easy and Delicious

I wanted something to help me use up some potatoes that were getting a bit old and the stilton cheese that was in my fridge. This was really useful for using both.

In a pan, combine four stalks of roughly chopped celery, one chopped onion, and two Tablespoons of melted butter in a saucepan; cook this for ten minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Add a quart of water to the pan along with two cubed potatoes. Simmer this until the potatoes are soft.

Add a teaspoon of dijon mustard (I used pommery, but any will do), a teaspoon of vegetable base, seasoned salt to taste, six fresh sage leaves, and five ounces of stilton cheese. Stir this until the cheese is melted. Once it's melted, use an immersion blender to blend it until smooth. Then stir in a heaping Tablespoon of creme fraiche and it's ready.

Will didn't like the smell of it, but he certainly loved the flavor. Even better, it reheats well, for those of you who like to bring leftovers to work with you.