Date Night Recipe #1

Last fall, Eric and I began a weekly date-night dinner.  We have been cooking our way through one of Rachel Ray's cookbook, and some of the recipes are amazing.  I thought I'd share a few on here for everyone's benefit!

Last night we made this really yummy Indian meal.  It was super easy, took less than 30 minutes to make, and was quite healthy.  Enjoy!

Indian-Spiced Chickpea and Fire-Roasted Tomato Soup

1/4 cup EVOO
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained
1/2 small onion
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp ground turmeric
salt and black pepper
1 cup chicken stock
1 28-ounce can fire-roasted tomatoes
1/4 cup plain yogurt

Heat the EVOO in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes.  Combine the chickpeas and onions in a food processor and process until finely chopped.  Add them to the pot and cook for 5 minutes to sweeten the onions.  Season the chickpeas with the cumin, cardamom, turmeric, salt, and pepper.  Stir in the stock, then the tomatoes, and simmer the soup for 5-10 minutes to combine the flavors.  Serve it with a dollop of yogurt on top.

Spiced Chicken Patties in a Pita

1 pound ground chicken
salt and black pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp paprika
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 TBSP chopped fresh mint
2 TBSP chopped fresh cilantro
2 TBSP plain yogurt
2 TBSP EVOO, plus some for drizzling
1/4 seedless cucumber, thinly sliced
1 plum tomato, thinly sliced
1/4 small onion, thinly sliced
1 small romaine heart, shredded
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 pitas, warmed

Combine the meat and spices, garlic, herbs, and yogurt and form 4 very thin patties, 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick.  Heat the 2 TBSP of EVOO in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Cooke the patties until they are golden and cooked through, 3-4 minutes on each side.

Dress the sliced veggies and lettuce with lemon juice, a liberal drizzle of EVOO, and salt and pepper.  Slice the tops off of the pitas to open up the pockets.  Layer 2 patties and half of the veggies into each pita and serve.