Chicken with Peanut Satay Sauce

Ok ok before all you know-it-alls get antsy, I realize this isn't a "traditional" satay sauce. I didn't grind my own peanuts, I omitted the ginger, and I'm fresh out of lemongrass, but this is still a delicious peanut satay inspired dish. For those of you unfamiliar with satay, it is basically meat that has been marinated and grilled, then dipped in a sweet and salty peanut butter sauce. It's divine. This version is no exception. 

After researching a variety of satay recipes, I found some common ingredients and decided to venture off on my own to make a simplified, yet tasty version using what I had on hand (gosh that seems like a problem of mine). I am happy to report that the experimenting paid off! I wasn't planning to blog this dish, but halfway through dinner I forced Andy to stop eating so I could snap a few photos to add to the blog. He got a little grumpy, but I succeeded. The flavors of this dish are appealing to both adults and kids alike, and this could easily be served as a main dish protein along side a veggie and some rice (edamame in our case), or it could be served room temperature as an appetizer. Whatever floats your boat. Enjoy!

Chicken with Peanut Satay Sauce

Serves 2 main dish portion

Ingredients

Marinade

1/4 cup coconut milk

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. curry powder

1 tsp. brown sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut lengthwise into 1/4 inch strips

Peanut sauce

1/2 cup coconut milk

2 tsp. curry powder

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter (the "natural" peanut butter is better than a Jif or Skippy type of peanut butter, but use what you have on hand)

1/3 cup chicken or beef stock

2 tbsp. brown sugar

1 tbsp. lemon or lime juice

1 tsp. fish sauce

1 tsp. soy sauce
dash of cayenne pepper to taste (optional)

Other

wooden skewers (1 per chicken strip) soaked in water for 30 minutes

non-stick cooking spray

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together all ingredients for the marinade except the chicken. Add the chicken strips and toss to coat the marinade evenly over each. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, skewer the chicken strips onto the soaked wooden skewers. Discard any remaining marinade.

In the meantime, make the peanut sauce. In a small saucepan over medium low heat, whisk together all ingredients for the peanut sauce. Once it begins to simmer, cook for 5 minutes until smooth and slightly thickened. Remove from heat and transfer to a small serving bowl.

Heat a grill pan over medium high heat. Spray with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Grill the chicken for 3-4 minutes per side or until cooked through. 

Serve the chicken skewers along with the peanut sauce. Yum!

Bolognese Sauce

One of my goals is to create the perfect pasta sauce. I don't care if it's quick, time consuming, easy, hard, or complicated, I just want to create the perfect pasta sauce. While I love a good marinara, this bolognese was pretty darn close to perfection! By using a variety of meats, I was able to obtain a good depth in flavor. There are several ingredients, but all of them blend together to make a delicious meat sauce that sticks wonderfully to pasta - just toss in the pasta at the end and toss. As an alternative, use this sauce with ricotta and lasagna sheets to make a delicious meat lasagna! Enjoy :o)

Bolognese Sauce

Makes Enough for one 11x13 lasagna 

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 lb sweet Italian sausage (no casing)

1/2 lb ground beef

1/2 lb ground pork

2 carrots, peeled and diced

1 medium onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 6 oz. can tomato paste

1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

1 cup beef stock

1 tbsp dried basil

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a large, heavy bottomed pot, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the sausage, beef, and pork and cook until browned and cooked through. Add the carrots, onion, celery, and a pinch of salt and cook until beginning to soften, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes more. 

Stir in the tomato paste to coat the meat and vegetable mixture. Once coated, add the beef stock and bring to a simmer. Allow the meat and stock mixture to simmer for 5 minutes or until it has reduced by about half. Add the crushed tomatoes and dried herbs (you could also use an Italian Herb seasoning blend here). Bring the sauce to a simmer, lower the heat to medium low, and cover. Cook the sauce at a light simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent the bottom from sticking or burning.

After the sauce has cooked for 30 minutes, remove the lid and season to taste with salt and pepper. Continue cooking with the lid off until desired thickness is reached, about 5 minutes.

Toss with pasta, or use in a lasagna for a yummy meal! :o)

Meatballs and Marinara Sauce

Spaghetti and meatballs is a classic meal that is an all-around crowd pleaser. It is one of the earliest dinners I remember eating, probably because it was captured on film - it's hard to resist taking a picture of a kid covered in marinara sauce! My mom has a very distinct, very popular "spaghetti sauce" and meatballs recipe. Now that I make it on my own, I have added a few twists to suit my taste as well as Andy's, but it is all inspired by the original sauce and meatball recipe that my mom still makes. Everyone seems to have their own version of meatballs and sauce, and after many (many) experiments this is the final recipe that we like the best... we like it so much I actually wrote it down! Serve this sauce over spaghetti for a comforting meal any time of year. Enjoy :o)

Italian Meatballs 

makes approximately 2 dozen

Ingredients

1 lb. ground beef (80/20 works well)

1/2 lb. ground pork

1 egg

1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs (use a slice or two of white bread and pulverize in the food processor)

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup grated onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 tbsp. dried Italian seasoning

3 tbsp. olive oil

Mix together the breadcrumbs and milk. Add all other ingredients except the meats and mix very well. Add in the beef and pork and mix well until the breadcrumb mixture is evenly distributed. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil. Roll the meat mixture into balls approximately the size of golf balls (or whatever size you want, you will just end up with a different quantity). Add the meatballs in two or three batches and brown all over. Remove to a plate and continue browning all meatballs. Meatballs will not be cooked through and they will finish cooking in the sauce. Make the sauce in the same pot.

Marinara Sauce

makes approximately 1 quart

Ingredients

1 large onion, diced fine

2 carrots, peeled and diced fine

2 stalks celery, diced fine

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried parsley

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tbsp. tomato paste

1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes, preferably San Marzano

1 tsp. sugar

Drain some of the excess fat from the pot used to brown the meatballs leaving enough to coat the bottom. Add the onions, garlic, carrots and celery as well as the salt and pepper and cook over medium low heat until softened, approximately 10 minutes. Add the herbs, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and sugar and stir well to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer and add the meatballs and any juice that accumulated on the plate. Cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring every few minutes to prevent the bottom from burning. If you would like a smooth sauce, remove the meatballs and puree the sauce until smooth, then return the meatballs to the sauce. If you don't mind some veggie pieces, leave the sauce as-is. You might need to add extra salt or pepper to taste. Serve over spaghetti or use the extra sauce in other dishes.