Moroccan Chicken

made this the other night - everyone liked it except for our 1 very American kid who really is only excited about burgers, grilled cheeses, and basically anything found on a kids' menu

moroccan chicken 
makes 4 servings

1 tsp paprika
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
3 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
1.5 lbs chicken thighs
2 cups chicken broth
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup onions, diced
1 tsp ginger, minced
1 cup uncooked quinoa
1 can chickpeas, drained
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup sliced almonds
cilantro, for garnish

In a small bowl, mix paprika, turmeric, cumin, salt and pepper.

Coat chicken with spice rub as evenly as possible on both sides. Set aside on a plate.

Add 2 tbsp oil to the bottom of the Instant Pot pan.

Press SAUTE mode on the Instant Pot.

Add chicken to the pot and cook until slightly brown. Then flip over each chicken and continue cooking until that side is slightly browned. Remove from Instant Pot and set aside on a plate.

Add remaining 1 tbsp oil to the bottom of the pot.

Add garlic, onions and ginger. Saute for 2 mins, stirring slowly.

Add quinoa, raisins, chickpeas, chicken broth and the browned chicken.

Close the Instant Pot lid and make sure the knob is turned to SEAL.

Press MANUAL and set for 16 mins.

When Instant Pot has come to pressure and cooked for 16 mins, wait 10 mins before opening to allow Pot pressure to slowly come back down. Turn the knob to VENT and remove the lid.

Chicken will be done if a thermometer registers it as 165 degrees F.

Serve and garnish with optional cilantro or parsley leaves.

home made gingerbread house

We attempted our own gingerbread house from scratch this year - these were the recipes we used:

gingerbread (for cookies or a house)
makes 36 cookies or 1 house

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp all spice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp clove
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup butter
1 egg, beaten
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour

In a medium saucepan, heat sugar, molasses, ginger, allspice, cinnamon and cloves to boiling, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat and stir in baking soda (it will foam up).

Stir in butter until melted.

On a floured surface, knead dough until mixed. Divide dough in half, and set aside half.

Roll half the dough with a rolling pin, slightly thinner than 1/4 inch.

Cut dough into desired shapes. (We used this template for our gingerbread house and followed this guide on how to cut out the shapes)

Bake at 325 degrees F on a cookie sheet for 12 mins; then cool on a wire rack.

Then, to assemble the gingerbread house, we used....

Royal Icing for Gingerbread House

2 large egg whites (room temperature)
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
3 cups powdered sugar

In a mixing bowl, whip egg whites until foamy, then add cream of tartar. Continue to mix for 30 seconds.

Add in powdered sugar a little bit at time, mixing well.

Once the powdered sugar is incorporated, turn mixer to high and continue beating until thick and icing holds its shape (about 3-5 minutes)

Store well, covered.