Happy Norouz Everyone! May the new season and New Year bring prosperity and good health to everyone anywhere around the world. This year I was unprepared and unable to do a haft seen (norouz table of 7 S’s). We are going to my in-laws for norouz dinner and I will have pictures of the sure to be amazing spread that will be waiting for us.

This year, I decided to K.I.S.S. (Keep it simple stupid) I need more sweetness and sugar in my life, so I made shortbread cookies to bring in the New Year. It’s really not about the recipe, but more about the cookies themselves and decorating them with love and attention. I used Martha Stewarts short bread cookie recipe; (recipe here) . It’s a simple and quick one. The fun and exciting part was using my new Golreezan Iran shaped cookie cutter.

As I cut into the dough with my country in hand, I thought about the people of Iran. I thought about the richness and colors of Iran and then I thought about the richness and colors of my own life. I decorated the cookies using only the colors of the Iranian flag; green, white and red. According to Wikipedia, green on the flag “in the Iranian Culture symbolizes Growth, Happiness, Unity, Nature, Vitality”. I love that so much! So as I used the green icing, I thought about the areas in my life where I wanted to grow. I want to grow in my personal relationships and decide to be ultimately happy. White “Stands for Peace as in many other Cultures. In the Iranian Culture it also symbolizes Chasteness, Equality, Freedom, Honesty, and Power.” The white sugar crystals I used to decorate the cookies, made me think, that I could definitely add some honesty and power in all aspects of my life. Starting with being honest with myself. Once I can be honest with myself, it will make me feel so powerful and sure of myself. Red “In the Iranian Culture symbolizes Bravery, Fire, Life, Love, Warmth, and Sophistication.” The red icing I was using was actually quite difficult to use cause it was runny and hard to manage. Ironically, the same can be said about life and love; so beautiful yet so hard to manage and understand. Love has no set pattern, it runs freely. I do believe that with the bravery and fire within, unconditional love can be so warm and soothing.

I don’t always put so much thought into everything I do… lol. I guess when it’s the New Year, it just forces you to be more self reflecting. I’ve got my work cut out for me this year. But I’m excited and I can’t wait to get to work and see what the New Year has in store for me. What about you? How will you be adding some green, white and red into your life?  

                         Some like it orange, others yellow. I like it red. My chicken of course. I like my chicken red. Generally speaking I tend to migrate towards red food. Whether its fruits like strawberries and cherries, or stews and mixed rice, like gheimeh (split pea stew) or loubia polo (green bean rice). But this is by far my favorite way to cook chicken. I call it Red Chicken (very clever I know). It’s a simple name because it’s a simple recipe. It’s awesome, because you only need a small list of ingredients and it’s super simple and quick to make. You really cannot get it wrong. You can make the Red Chicken to go with plain rice, or with zereshk polo (barberries with rice). So without further a due, I introduce you the Red Chicken.  This recipe is for a serving of 3-4 people. Try it tonight and leave me a comment to let me know how yours turned out. 

What you will need:            (refer to the “essentials" post for more info)

-        1 teaspoon ghee or cooking oil                           - Medium size non-stick pan
-       1 medium size onion                                                - wooden spoon
-       1 pack of 500gr boneless skinless chicken thighs                       
-       1 teaspoon salt
-       ½ teaspoon pepper
-       1 teaspoon turmeric
-       ½ teaspoon lemon powder (optional)
-       2 cups water
-       ½ cup tomato paste
-       2 tablespoon lemon juice

-       Peel and slice the onion. For this chicken, I like to keep the onion slices chunky so that even after they fry and shrink, you’ll still be able to see them amongst your chicken. (if you happen to hate seeing onions in your food, slice them small and thin).

-       Put the ghee in the pan and place pan over medium heat on the stove.

-       Throw in the onions.

-       Fry until golden brown (10-15min)

-       Add the chicken thighs. Stir them in a little so it mixes with the onions.

-      Add in all your spices: salt, pepper, turmeric and lime powder if you have any.    

-       Add ½ cup of water and stir it all in so that the spices dissolve.

-        Let it sit like that for 2 min.

-       Add in the tomato paste. It will stick to the chicken at first and might be hard to mix in, so just do it slowly so that it     doesn’t splash all over your stove and counter. 

-       Add the rest of the water and lemon juice and mix it all in with the paste so that everything is dissolved.

-       Cover and leave on medium heat for 20 mins.

-       Remove the lid and stir. Make sure there is still water in your mixture and nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pan. If the water is all gone add another cup of water and reduce your heat. If the water is mostly gone, add another ½ cup of water and reduce to medium low. (I'm using an electrical stove, so my heat may be different than yours.) There should always be a happy medium of water and paste. The mixture should be red and thick, not clear and separated. 

-       Cover and leave on for another 20 min.

-       The longer the chicken cooks in this mixture, the more tender and juicier your chicken will be.

-       Check again to make sure nothing is sticking to your pan and that you have your nice medium of water and paste. 

-       Reduce heat to low and let simmer for another 15 – 20 min or so.  Your water should separate the oil. Meaning you will notice small pools of oil gather on the surface of your mixture. This is how you know your mixture is ready.

-       Chicken joke: 
Chicken and James Bond meet for the first time. 
James Bond: “My name is Bond; James Bond.” 
The chicken: “My name is Ken; Chi-Ken”  LOL!!!!!  :) 

Just got my package in the mail from Golreezan!!! I’m so excited to share this beautiful little gem of a store I recently discovered online. Who or what is Golreezan? They are a “New York based Iranian-American brand. (They) offer a wide range of stationary, posters, wedding items, children’s products, home décor, and apparel.” Iranian designed with an “Iranian charm that appeals to not only Iranians, but non-Iranians as well.” I absolutely love their clever designs. I just had to have the Iran shaped cutting board. Like seriously how amazing is this?! I ordered a couple more things that I can’t wait to share in upcoming posts. In the mean time check out www.golreezan.com. Thanks Afsoon and team, I love my new Golreezan cutting board :)