Basil Chicken in Coconut-Curry Sauce

I love waking up in the morning already knowing what I'm going to make for dinner that night.  It not only gives  me a chance to do some of the prep work early in the day, but I also invariably get excited about what I'm cooking that night.    As I mixed together the spices for this Indian curry dish,  I found myself drooling even before I'd cooked a thing.  By the time I was done cooking this aromatic, super creamy (but dairy free), and  deliciously flavorful dish, I was ready start eating straight out of the pan.   Although it was a bit too "weird" tasting for a couple of my younger kids, those of us over the age of 10 totally devoured it.  In fact my husband even went so far as to start questioning me about when I would blog about it.  He knows me too well that if I don't blog about a recipe that it gets forgotten and this is one he did not want forgotten.  :) 

Recipe Source: Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book  

Click here for printable recipe.

Posted by Lara.


The ingredients:
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, diced
2 tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. ginger
1 red onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, chopped
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped (take care not to touch the seeds)
2 Tbs. olive oil, divided
1 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
1 Tbs. cornstarch
1/4 cup snipped fresh basil, chopped
Hot cooked rice

Directions:

EARLY PREP (if you like cutting down on the prep time during the dinner crunch, this part can be done early in the day):  Cut the chicken into 1-inch pieces and place in a medium bowl.  In a small bowl stir together the curry powder, salt, pepper, chili powder, and ginger.  Sprinkle spice mixture over chicken.  Stir together and refrigerate until ready to use.    You can also chop the onion, garlic, and jalapeno peppers if desired. 

DINNERTIME PREP: 
In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat.  When oil is hot, add onion, garlic, and jalapeno peppers and stir together.  Saute for 3-4 minutes, then remove onion mixture from pan and set aside. 

Add an additional 1 tablespoon olive oil and chicken to hot skillet and heat over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes.  Then reduce the heat to low and cook 8-10 minutes or until chicken is tender and cooked through.  Remove chicken from pan and set aside. 

In a small bowl combine coconut milk and cornstarch.   Pour into hot skillet and cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly. 

Return chicken and onion mixture to skillet.  Stir together with coconut milk to combine. 

Stir in fresh basil and cook and stir about 2 minutes more. 

Makes about 4-5 servings.  Serve over hot rice. 

Enjoy! 

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Slow Cooker Thai Chicken Peanut Noodles

The sun is out, the flower buds are poking their heads out,  and I've got spring fever in a bad way!  I have all these house projects calling out for my attention and all I want to do is go outside and soak up the sunshine and vitamin d that my body is craving. So what's a girl to do?   More and more the answer to that question for me is to pull out the crockpot, throw in a low-maintenance dinner, then run a gazillion miles an hour to cross things off my list, only to return a few hours later to an already made dinner.  It's awesome!   I found this  fabulous slow cooker recipe  over at 365 Days of Crockpot (a treasure trove of non-mushy crockpot recipes all rated with 1-5 stars).  We love Thai food at our house and Karen had given this one a full 5 stars, so we figured it would be a perfect dish to try on a crazy day (um, I guess with five kids, you could call every day a crazy day around here, but that's beside the point).    It was easy to throw together and totally fresh tasting with the lime/cilantro flavor combination. Kids and hubby alike enjoyed this one topped with honey roasted peanuts!  Enjoy!  

Click here for printable recipe. 

The ingredients:

1-1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
1 red bell pepper, cut into short, thin strips
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you like things)
2 Tbs. cornstarch
1/4 cup lime juice
1/3 cup chunky peanut butter
3/4 cup chopped peanuts or cashews (we really liked it with honey roasted peanuts)
3/4 cup chopped cilantro
Cooked spaghetti noodles or rice

Directions:  Place chicken, bell pepper, broth, soy sauce, garlic, and red pepper flakes in slow cooker. 

Cover and cook on LOW for 3 hours.  Mix cornstarch with lime juice in small bowl until smooth. 

Turn slow cooker on HIGH.  Stir in peanut butter and cornstarch mixture. 

Cover and cook 30 minutes or until sauce is thickened and chicken is no longer pink.  Stir well. 

Serve over  spaghetti noodles or rice.  Sprinkle with nuts and cilantro.  Enjoy!

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Thai Chicken and Potato Curry

 My husband and I are quickly becoming big fans of Thai food and this recipe from a friend was right up our alley.  The coconut milk, the slightly spicy flavor from the red curry, the hearty potatoes, the tender chicken--it all came together so perfectly yummy!  I don't know if my kids are mutants that they eagerly eat all different kinds of cuisine, but this one was another hit with the whole family.   

It was such a crazy day when I made this, that I only took one picture total, but hopefully it's enough to get you excited enough to try it too!   

Click here for printable recipe. 

The ingredients:
1 lb. potatoes, red or white (peeled and cut into bite size pieces)
1 can (14-oz) coconut milk
1/2 tsp. salt
4-5 chicken breasts, cut into pieces
1 Tbs. peanut oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped finely
1-inch cube fresh ginger root, peeled and chopped finely
1 tsp. brown sugar or honey
2 tsp. red curry paste (found mine in the Asian section)
1-2 Tbs. fish sauce or 1 tsp. salt (we have seafood allergies, so we used the salt)
Hot cooked rice

Directions:  Start off by boiling the diced potatoes and get rice started.  In a separate saucepan, add the coconut milk and salt. Add the chicken and bring to a boil.  Simmer about 10 minutes, remove from heat, set aside.  In a large wok or frying pan, heat peanut oil, then add onion, garlic, ginger root, and the brown sugar or honey.  Cook for a couple of minutes on medium heat.  Add the curry paste and stir fry for another 1-2 minutes.  Lower the heat and add the fish sauce (or additional salt) and chicken with coconut milk.  Cook for about 5 minutes, add the cooked potatoes and stir.  Place in a serving dish.  Add a dash of  lime juice and basil leaves on top if desired.  Serve hot over rice.  Enjoy!

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Thai Chicken Pasta

Over the course of cooking for my family I feel like I've got a pretty good eye for determining at a glance whether or not we would like a recipe, before even making it.  Of course, sometimes things don't turn out quite the way you expect, but for us  there are certain ingredients that guarantee almost a sure-fire success.  Peanut butter, cilantro, or pasta  are some of those winning combinations for us and this recipe from the latest Taste of Home magazine has all three.   Not surprisingly it was a hit for everyone.  Even my four-year-old picky girl loved it and came back for seconds! 

Click here for printable recipe.

The ingredients:

12 oz. uncooked whole wheat spaghetti noodles (or fettuccine)
2 cups salsa
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup orange juice
2 Tbs. honey
4 tsp. soy sauce
4 cups chicken breast, cubed and cooked
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro

Directions:  Cook pasta according to package directions.  Meanwhile in large sauce pot, combine the salsa, peanut butter, orange juice, honey, and soy sauce.

Heat until sauce thickens and add chicken;

heat through.  Drain pasta.  Serve with chicken mixture.  Garnish with peanuts and cilantro. Makes 8 servings.   Enjoy!

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Thai Beef Salad

I'm always on the look-out for healthy and easy meals I think my family will like. This is one I found in a recent Taste of Home magazine that caught my eye for its nice presentation and well-roundedness. My kids would love the noodles, my husband would love the beef, and I loved that it was healthy and easy. Of course things don't always necessarily go as planned with cooking!

While did all end up eating our portions (even the younger kids), it definitely didn't go on any of our favorite's lists either. We found that the dressing was a tad bit too sour for our liking, so if I ever made it again, I would probably end up finding a recipe for a savory peanut sauce to use instead of the vinaigrette dressing. We actually ended up eating the leftovers without any dressing at all and with all that hearty beef and crisp red peppers we didn't miss it at all.

Click here for printable recipe.

The ingredients:
8 oz. uncooked spaghetti
DRESSING:
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup peanut or canola oil
2 Tbs. lemon or lime juice (I used lime)
1 Tbs. sugar
1-1/2 tsp. minced fresh gingerroot
1-1/2 tsp. hot pepper sauce (optional)
1-1/2 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. salt
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

SALAD:
1 pkg. (5-oz.) spring mix salad greens
1 small sweet red pepper, thinly sliced
4 green onions, chopped
1 lb. deli roast beef, cut into strips (I had the deli slice it 1/4-inch thick for this recipe)
2 Tbs. chopped salted peanuts, optional

Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the dressing ingredients.

Drain spaghetti and rinse in cold water; toss with 1/2 cup dressing. Place in a large serving dish.

In a large bowl, combine the salad greens, red peppers, and green onions. Drizzle with remaining dressing; toss to coat. Arrange lettuce mixture over spaghetti. Top with roast beef; sprinkle with peanuts, if desired.

Enjoy!

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Indian Style Steak Kebabs with cilantro sauce

Just typing up this recipe today made me long for the laid back days of summer again. I miss cooking on the grill while my kids happily jump on the trampoline with carefree abandon. Now our evenings are filled with sports practices, homework, practicing music, and back-to-school nights. I feel like I barely have time to breathe, yet alone take the time to slowly cook up some juicy meat on the grill.

This recipe is one I found in a church cookbook and got excited about the different combination of flavors. My husband went absolutely crazy over this easy grilled meal and is still asking me when I'm going to make it again. Surprisingly even my kids were willing to overlook the green tinge the cilantro sauce gave to everything and eagerly gobbled it up. This one is definitely going into the keeper files.

The ingredients:

Click here for printable recipe.

1 bunch fresh cilantro (about 2 cups cilantro leaves)
1 small onion, peeled
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 small can green chilies
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
1-1/4 tsp. kosher salt
4 Tbs. vegetable oil
3 Tbs. fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp. curry powder
1-1/2 lbs. rib-eye steak, cut into 24 one-inch chunks
1 medium red onion, peeled
1 cup mango chutney (optional)
4 pieces naan bread (optional)
wooden skewers for grilling

Place the cilantro, small onion, garlic, green chilies, ginger, and salt with 3 tablespoons of the oil into a food processor. Process until a paste is formed. Transfer to a large bowl. Put 2 tablespoons of the paste in a small bowl and stir in the lime juice to make the cilantro sauce. Cover and set aside. Stir the curry powder into the rest of the paste.

Add the steak and coat well. Cover and marinate at room temperature for 20 minutes. Cut the red onion into 6 wedges and separate each wedge into 2 layers. Thread the beef and onion chunks onto eight 9-inch skewers. Brush a grill pan with the remaining oil ( I just cooked them right on my grill). Preheat grill pan, then grill the kebabs for 8-10 minutes, turning the skewers every 2 minutes. Serve with the cilantro sauce, chutney, and naan, if desired.

Enjoy!

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Thai Chicken Peanut Noodles

This past week I found myself unexpectedly out of town with only one of my five kids at my grandmother's funeral in Wyoming. My grandmother was a beautiful lady who would have been 94 next week. She raised 11 children and left a legacy of love, faith, service, hard work, and handiwork that I will never forget. While, of course I still miss her very much, my heart is full when I think of the happy reunion there must have been when she was finally reunited with my grandfather. I was thrilled to be there to honor her life and legacy.

So now I'm back home after a week away completely surrounded by (and enjoying) all the rambunctious noise and chaos that goes with having five kids, but realizing that with all my traveling and readjusting back to reality that I haven't typed up any recipes for a couple of weeks. Generally I try to have at least a week or two cushion of recipes made, typed, and scheduled to publish every other day, so I don't have to stress when life gets crazy that I don't have time to post. But here I am now with a pretty substantial stack of recipes that I've made but still need to be typed and I can't seem to focus...so without further ado....Thai Chicken Peanut Noodles (typed and published the same day). :)

This is another one of those recipes I tried from the awesome Sisters' Cafe that I really enjoyed. I made it one time at home for my family and then made it again for my extended family in Utah while we were there last week. The first time I made it I added one whole cup of water as indicated on the original recipe and thought it made the sauce just a little too watery, so the second time I tried it with only about a third of a cup and thought it was perfect. My family (especially my Dad) went gaga over the slightly spicy savory sauce. I highly recommend adding the water slowly until you get to your spiciness level.

I actually had enough natural light at my parents' house that I didn't have to go outside to take the picture. :)

CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE RECIPE

The ingredients:
1 lb. whole wheat thin spaghetti noodles
2 Tbs. sesame oil
1 garlic clove, peeled
1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbs. brown sugar
1 Tbs. rice vinegar
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/3 - 1 cup water (the original recipe calls for a whole cup, but the second time we made it with only a 1/3 cup and we much preferred the spicier flavor)
2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup white onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup red or orange bell pepper, finely chopped
3 cups chicken breast, cooked and shredded (One time I sauteed it on low heat and the other time I stuck it in the crockpot)
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, finely chopped
2 Tbs. toasted sesame seeds

Set the water to boil and cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile prepare sauce in the food processor (or blender). Place garlic and ginger in food processor until well chopped. Add peanut butter, sesame oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, and red pepper flakes. Pulse until well combined and slowly add hot water (to taste). Set aside.

Place olive oil in hot skillet over medium heat. Saute onion and bell pepper for 5 minutes or until softened. Stir in cooked chicken breast, cilantro, and salt. Stir until heated through.

Add sauce and chicken mixture to noodles. Toss to coat and garnish with peanuts and sesame seeds, if desired. Makes 6 servings.

Enjoy!

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