Since the beginning of January I’ve been craving curry. Constantly. The combination of cumin, turmeric, coriander, fenugreek, cardamon, is all I want. I’ve already gone through a big bottle of sweet curry powder from Penzey’s making this amazing Gourmet recipe for curry chicken with cashews non-stop for weeknight dinner. And I even attempted a curried lentil recipe for the first time just so I could use it as a sandwich filling for warm flat bread (this was less successful). My friend told me this craving is due to the obvious fact that it’s winter, and the spices in curry create perfect cold-weather food. I think this is true, although I also live in an Indian food no-fly zone so if I want it, I gotta make it.
Which leads me to this easy and so delicious chicken tikka and raita recipe that I got from the newish cookbook What To Cook And How To Cook It by Jane Hornby. If you or someone you know is looking for a great collection of essential basic recipes, maybe for the beginner cook who wants to learn more, this is the one. Every recipe has step-by-step photos and Hornby covers the classics from breakfast to dessert and across the globe (with a bit of a Brit focus since she’s English and has worked on a BBC food show): from cinnamon rolls and roast beef with Yorkshire pudding to vegetable tagine and a spicy Southeast Asian shrimp soup called Laksa. The first thing I decided to make from the book was the chicken tikka with raita, a simple Indian dish with chicken thighs marinated in yogurt and garam masala (a spice mix like curry but with no turmeric so it’s reddish in color), served with a cold yogurt and cucumber sauce, and then wrapped in a lettuce leaf and eaten with your fingers. This is great chicken dish to add to your repertoire because it’s simple to make, can be used not only in lettuce leaves but in flat bread, over rice, with a side of potatoes or lentils, or skewered like chicken sate for an appetizer. For lunch leftovers I wrapped the chicken in a tortilla I scavenged from the fridge, added sliced carrots that I’d mixed with a little lime juice and salt, and then topped it with the leftover raita (if you have miso mayo on-hand then try that). 
I don’t know if this dish will solve my curry fixation but I’ll keep making it until it does.
Recipe for Chicken Tikka with Raita (adapted from What To Cook And How To Cook It):
-3 cloves of garlic, crushed
-1 thumb-size piece of ginger, finely grated (you can use a microplane)
-1/2 tsp garam masala
-1/4 tsp chili powder
-1/2 tsp ground turmeric
-1 tsp kosher salt
-ground pepper
-1tbs tomato paste
-juice from 1 lime –
2 1/2 cups of Greek yogurt (I used 2%)
-6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
-1 red onion, finely chopped
-1 cucumber, peeled, seeds scooped out and grated (or you can finely chop)
-1 small bunch of fresh mint or cilantro, leaves chopped
And large lettuce leaves like Boston or Bibb for wrapping, unless you prefer tortilla, flat bread, or serving over rice.
1. Combine garlic and ginger in a large bowl. Stir in all the spices, salt, and tomato paste. Add lime juice and 3/4 cup of the yogurt and combine thoroughly to make the marinade for the chicken.
2. Add the chicken to the marinade and let stand for at least 30 minutes at room temp or up to 4 hours in the fridge (this is great if you want to make it for a lunch party and you can make the marinade in the morning).
3. Make the raita next. Add onion, cucumber, mint or cilantro leaves, and remaining yogurt in medium bowl and combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Put in the fridge until needed.
4. To cook the chicken:
