Pineapple Coconut Chicken Curry (Thai)

I'm a little behind on my dinners, and unfortunately I don't have pictures for this meal. 

What I usually do when I don't have a set recipe for a dish I want to try is to go online, find 3 different recipes for the same thing, and then mix my favorite ingredients of all of them to make one spectacular dish. That's what I did for this Thai dish.

1 Tbsp jarred garlic stuff

1 Tbsp vegetable oil 

1/2 onion - chopped big or small, however you like it

1 can coconut milk

1 1/2  cups chicken bouillon/ broth

3 medium potatoes - diced in small-ish cubes/chunks

1/2 green pepper, sliced into long skinny pieces

1/2 yellow pepper, same as above

1/2 red pepper, same as above

1 chicken breast, cut into chunks (can use more chicken if you like)

1 can diced pineapple

Spices - as always, you can use more or less than the amount I give. You taste, you decide.

1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (if you like spicy)

Garlic salt to taste

1 tsp ginger

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp cumin seed

2 tsp turmeric 

2 Tbsp curry

2 bay leaves

1/8 tsp nutmeg or cinnamon

Dash of red pepper flakes (if you like spicy)

Pepper

The key: Salt. But add last. Very last - after the pineapple

1. Put oil, onions, and garlic in a big, deep pan. Saute onions until soft. Add coconut milk, chicken bouillon, and potatoes. 

2. Start throwing in the spices! 

3. Simmer until potatoes are almost soft.

4. Add red, green, and yellow peppers.

5. Add chicken.

6. Add pineapple. Pour the juice into a separate cup and add the chunks of pineapple. Slowly add the juice into the pan, testing along the way. Only add as much as it needs to be your perfect level of sweetness. This may be half the juice or all of it! 

7. Now, when I got to this point, it smelled and looked delicious. We served it over rice and started chowing down....and then we realized it was kind of..... plain tasting. But how could it be with all those spices I had put in it? And then I realized I forgot just plain old salt. We sprinkled some on top, and voila! The salt brought out all the other yummy flavors and spices and it was amazing. 

Homemade Stuffed-Crust Pizza

I used to want to own my own pizzeria. I thought I had the meanest, baddest pizza crust recipe that ever existed. But then my mom said she didn't like it, and my hopes were shattered. And since then, I've adopted Noelani's recipe for crust, which is really easy and simple and quick, but kept my own sauce recipe. You're lucky I'll share this with you....

The Sauce:

Make the sauce first, so it can simmer on the stove while you make the crust.

- Start by putting a little oil in a hot pan with chopped onions (about a quarter of an onion) and garlic (about a tablespoon of the crushed, jarred garlic)

Saute until soft. Then add: 

1 can crushed tomatoes

1 can tomato sauce

(or, if you're like me and don't like chunky tomatoes in your sauce, just use 2 cans of sauce)

Sprinkle:

Garlic Salt (maybe a teaspoon? I dont know, I dont usually measure my seasonings)

Basil

Italian Seasoning

Thyme

Parsley

--- At this point, stir and taste. It probably tastes either salty or acidic, or both. Sometimes I like to add lemon juice, and although that contributes to the acidity, it gives it a nice flavor. If you're going to do it, dont add more than 1/2 tsp to a tsp.

Here's where you add:

A sprinkle (seriously, just a sprinkle) of cinnamon

And about 1 tsp of brown sugar

--- this will help cut down on the acidity of the sauce, and give it just a hint of sweetness. If it's still salty/bitey, add a little more sugar until it tastes just right to you.

If you like a little spice, add a touch of red pepper flakes

The Crust:
2 1/2 cups flour (sometimes I do half and half white and wheat flour)
1 Tbs. sugar
1 Tbs yeast
1 tsp salt
1 cup warm water

Put water, yeast, and sugar together in a bowl and let sit for a few minutes. Then add salt and flour. Mix until a good solid dough is formed, not too sticky, but elastic-y consistency. Roll it out to fit your pan, leaving a bit of hang-over dough to make the crust. Put on pan

For stuffed crust, use string cheese divided into thirds (the long way) to line the outside rim of your crust. Roll the edges of the crust over the string cheese, and tuck it in nice and tight.

Our toppings included: pepperoni, pineapple, sausage, tomatoes, and cheese (a mixture of mozzarella and cheddar)

Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, checking on it once you start to smell it.
*These amounts will make about 2 pizzas the size in the photo above. If you want to, double the dough recipe, but no need to double the sauce recipe - most likely you will have enough left over anyway. (I used my pizza sauce leftovers on spaghetti the next night)

Winger's Chicken Strips

Holy Macaroons it's been a looooong time since I've made dinner!

Here are my excuses:

After graduation we lived with my father-in-law for 2 weeks.

Then we lived in a friend's studio apartment (no oven, only hotplate)

Then we lived with my mother-in-law for 2 weeks.

Then we lived with my sister-in-law for 6 (yes, six) weeks.

Then we spent another week in Hawaii between sister-in-law and mother-in-law.

Then we moved to Maryland, where I stayed for 5 days.

Then I left for Europe for 4 weeks.

And now that I'm back, 

I can start cooking again!

And that makes Adam - and me - very happy :)

I checked out this book from the library yesterday:

I was so excited to see some of my favorite restaurant dishes in there! This guy is a genius! 

The first one we tried was Winger's Sticky Chicken Fingers -

if you're from Idaho, you know what I'm talking about.

If you're from Hawaii, you probably don't and you probably should.

The recipe is super easy and it is soooooooooo good. I only made half of our chicken strips this way because I didn't think Adam would like it (he doesn't like spicy, and didn't believe me that this wouldn't be spicy), but Adam ended up trading his plain strips for the sticky ones! It's a success!

Winger's Sticky Fingers:

The Sauce:

1/3 Cup brown sugar (this makes it very sweet; can reduce)

1/3 cup worcestershire sauce (i love saying that word; it just goes on and on and on)

1/4 cup ketchup

1 TBS honey

2 tsp tabasco (I used a different hot sauce because I dont like the flavor of tabasco, and I used a little more than called for because I like mine a little hotter)

2 tsp apple cider vinegar

About 10-12 chicken strips

1. Preheat oven to 350 F

2. Bake the chicken strips like normal in the oven.

3. In a saucepan, combine all sauce ingredients and simmer until warmed through.

4. Toss the cooked chicken in the sauce, coating it well and evenly. Place the coated strips on a cooking sheet and place in the oven.

5. Bake for 5-8 mins; this is what makes the sauce thicken and become sticky.

6. Use remaining sauce for dipping!

This recipe is true to the original, both Adam and I loved it. The plain strips looked cold, crusty, and boring compared to the sticky fingers! Will def. use again. Served with my easy mashed potatoes.