Massaman Curry

My hubby has been asking me to make Massaman Curry for a while now, and I could never get around to it.  I finally made it happen this week and I'm so glad that I did!  This was a delicious, easy, curry recipe, and it was just enough of a change from our other favorite curry recipes, that it was refreshing.

Massaman Curry
adapted from: allrecipes.com

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3 Tbsp. curry paste (mine was red)
1/4-1/2 tsp. ground ginger 
2 chicken breasts, cubed
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 of 1/3 c. of chunky peanut butter (did that make sense?)
2 peeled, cubed potatoes
2 peeled, sliced carrots
1/2  of an onion, sliced
1 can of coconut milk
1 Tbsp. lime juice

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.  Stir in the curry paste and ginger and cook it for 2 minutes.  Add the chicken breast cubes and cook for about 3 minutes.  Stir in the brown sugar, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, peanut butter, potatoes, carrots, onions and coconut milk.  Bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium low.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the veggies are tender.  Add the lime juice and cook it for 5 more minutes.  Serve it over rice or rice noodles.

Coconut Cake

My sisters and I made this dessert one night when Nicole was in town.  As I am obsessed with all things coconut right now, it sounded delicious.  It was delicious.  However, there are a few changes that I will make when I make it again someday.  And I am going to put them into the recipe. One thing is that the original recipe calls for almond extract, but I thought it overpowered the coconut flavor.  So I say, leave it out! Or even add some coconut extract.  Also, I made mine in a bundt cake pan, but it would be so yummy as a layered cake, with whipping cream in between each layer.  Mmmm.  

Coconut Cake
adapted from: allrecipes.com

3 c. cake flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. butter, softened
2 c. white sugar
4 eggs
1 c. coconut milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. coconut extract (optional)
1/2 c. shredded coconut
fresh whipping cream for topping

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.  In another bowl, mix the butter and sugar until fluffy.  Stir in the eggs, one at a time.  Alternate stirring in the flour mixture and the coconut milk until it is all added and well combined.  Stir in the vanilla, coconut extract and shredded coconut.  Pour your batter into a greased and floured cake pan and bake it at 375 degrees for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  After it has cooled, serve it with fresh whipped cream.   

Thai Chicken Vegetable Soup

Soups are very hit and miss with me, but this really hit the spot tonight.  It might be because we're all sick and just needed some comfort food, but it did not disappoint.  I will definitely be making this again.  This also marks the first time in my life I have happily eaten mushrooms, and if you know me, you understand what that means. They really worked well in this recipe!  I modified it just a little from this recipe, and I imagine you could substitute or add any number of other vegetables and it would still be delicious.

Thai Chicken Vegetable Soup

1 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 Carrots (I used about 8-10 baby carrots), sliced very thin - matchstick size
1 Red Pepper, sliced very thin
1 cup Sliced Mushrooms
4 cups Chicken Broth
Ginger, dashed
2 cups Shredded Chicken
1 can Coconut Milk
2 Tbsp Lime Juice
2 Tbsp fresh Cilantro, chopped

In a large pot, heat the vegetable oil over a medium-high heat.  Add the carrots and peppers and stir-fry for about 5 minutes.  Add the mushrooms, chicken broth, and about 8-10 dashes of ginger.  Bring everything to a boil, stirring occasionally, and then turn down to a medium-low heat.  Add the shredded chicken and cook for about 5 minutes.  Add the coconut milk and cook until it gets hot and bubbly, stirring frequently.  Just before you serve it, add the lime juice and fresh cilantro.

Smooth & Creamy Coconut Cake

I made this for a Christmas party this weekend.  It is a delicious cake, even if you are not a huge coconut fan.  The coconut flavor is mild and creamy and by only lightly sweetening the topping, it is a great compliment to an already sweet enough cake.  Plus, it looks so snowy and festive with the coconut all over it!  It is a great Christmas-y cake.

Smooth & Creamy Coconut Cake
adapted from: allrecipes.com

1 white cake mix
1 15 oz. can cream of coconut (not coconut milk-you find this in the mixer section of the grocery store)
2 c. heavy whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. powdered sugar (maybe a little more-to taste)
1-2 c. shredded sweetened coconut

Bake the white cake according to the package directions in the pan of your choice.  I used a 9X13 pan, lined with wax paper and sprayed with cooking spray.  While the cake is cooking (or cooling) pour the heavy whipping cream into a medium bowl and beat it on high speed with an electric mixer, for 3 minutes.  Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and beat it until stiff peaks form.  Put it in the fridge until you are ready for it.  When the cake is done, cool it completely, then slice it in half for a layered cake (or leave it as is, or if you have 2 round cake pans, ignore this instruction).  Place one layer, face down, on your serving platter.  Using a fork, gently poke holes all over the cake, but don't poke all the way to the bottom of the cake.  Pour 1/2 of the can of cream of coconut on the top of the cake, and using a knife, spread it and kind of work it into the holes.

Apply a thin layer of your prepared heavy cream.  Lay the other layer of cake on top of that one and poke holes all over it, also being careful not to go all the way through the layer.  Now do the same thing with the second half of the cream of coconut.  Spread the rest of the heavy cream on the top and sides of the cake.  Using your hands, gently press coconut all around the top and sides of the cake.  Store it in the fridge and serve it chilled.

Lawry's Coconut Banana Cream Pie

One of my favorite things about Thanksgiving is putting our pinterest to good use and choosing delicious pie recipes that make us drool as we browse the endless sea of "so good!", "the best!", and "delicious!" that pinterest has to offer.  This is one of the (4) pies that we made this year!  It was my favorite for sure, and the favorite of many of our family members too.  The direct quote (that I kept because I'm too lazy to change what other people write when they pin it) from when I pinned it is: "Heads up coconut lovers, this pie is amazing, totally decadent, and the coconut crust is absolutely awesome. The crust takes it from ordinary to sublime."  Okay, if a recipe has amazing, decadent, and absolutely awesome in its description, it's got to be good.  No one would be that liberal with their choice of words unless it was true...

Well, luckily for me it was true.  How embarrassing to make a pie at Thanksgiving that is only "really good".

This pie was pretty awesome.  Absolutely awesome, if you will.  The coconut crust almost made a cookie or macaroon-ish crust that was so yummy.  The homemade vanilla pudding was great too.  If I ever want to make this pie in a crunch (most of the time comes from letting things chill before putting it together), I will just do a boxed vanilla pudding, although it wouldn't taste quite as yummy. 

So, thanks to Jan Can Cook, who took the time to scout out this recipe from L.A. Food Times, we can all enjoy "absolutely wicked awesome decadence" in the form of this pie. (You can quote me on that.)

Lawry's Coconut Banana Cream Pie 
adapted from Jan Can Cook

Active Work Time: 20 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 30 minutes plus 2 hours chilling 

Coconut Pie Shell 

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, plus more for pie plate 
3 cups sweetened flake coconut 

Lightly butter a 9-inch pie plate and set aside. 

Melt the 1/2 cup butter in a large skillet over medium heat and brown the coconut flakes, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes. They should be golden brown. Press the coconut firmly and evenly in the pan to form a shell. Chill the crust 30 minutes before filling. 

Pie Filling 

4 egg yolks 
3/4 cup sugar, divided 
3 tablespoons cornstarch 
1/4 teaspoon salt 
1/4 cup flour 
3 cups half-and-half, divided 
Yellow food coloring 
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
2 bananas 
1 cup whipping cream 
1 tablespoon powdered sugar 

Combine the cornstarch and flour.  Pour a little at a time into a tightly sealed container with 1 cup of the half-and-half.  Shake vigorously until there are no lumps.  Continue to add the remaining flour/cornstarch mixture until no lumps remain.  Combine the egg yolks, 1/4 cup of the sugar, and salt in a small bowl. Gradually add the half-and-half mixture and whisk.

Combine the remaining 2 cups half-and-half and 1/2 cup of the sugar in a 3-quart saucepan and bring just to boil over medium heat. Add the egg mixture and cook and stir until the mixture returns to a boil and thickens, about 1 minute. 

Remove from the heat. Stir in 2 drops of food coloring and the vanilla. Cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool. 

Slice the bananas into the pie shell. Pour the filling into the shell. 

Whip the cream with the powdered sugar until stiff. Spoon in dollops or pipe with a pastry bag around the edge of the pie. Chill 2 hours before slicing. 

*Notes from my experience: 

It seemed like the coconut was going to be way too much to fit in the pie pan as a crust.  I got wax paper and pressed firmly until it resembled a crust.  This worked but it was a little hard to cut into afterwards.  Some readers from this website, Jan Can Cook, said the same thing, but others didn't have a problem with that.

Also, I changed the directions slightly to make the pudding recipe.  It said to mix the egg yolk with the dry ingredients, two of them being cornstarch and flour, which I did, then to mix them into the cup of half-and-half.  It wouldn't mix in with the liquid at that point.  It just made egg yolk clumps at the bottom of my bowl.  I had to scratch that and start over.  It worked well to mix it first with the cornstarch and flour, and then add the other ingredients. 

Coconut Crusted French Toast

When Nicole visited last April, we thought it would be fun to make something different and delicious for breakfast on Easter morning.  At that time I was going through a coconut phase (still am, a little bit) and so this was an obvious choice for me.  It has taken me a long time to post it, but I have actually made it a couple more times because it is so delicious.  It definitely works best with a thicker bread, but is also yummy with regular bread.  We served ours with buttermilk syrup and fruit.  Mmmm. (P.S. this is Carolyn posting :)  

Coconut Crusted French Toast

adapted from: twopeasandtheirpod.com

3 eggs

3/4 c. coconut milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/8 tsp. salt

1 c. shredded sweetened coconut

6 slices french bread, cut into 1/2 inch slices (texas toast bread would work great, too) From the pictures, you can see that we used a thicker, regular bread, but I have also used french bread.

Heat a griddle or frying pan.  In a shallow dish, whisk together the eggs, coconut milk, vanilla and salt.  Pour the shredded coconut into another shallow dish.  Dip both sides of the bread in the egg mixture, then dip both sides into the shredded coconut (to coat the bread).  Place the bread onto your griddle or frying pan and then drizzle a little of the egg mixture over the top.  It will take a little more time to cook than usual.  When it is done, serve it with syrup or fruit, or both!

Mango Sauce (2 Versions, Sweet and Spicy)

One night we had 3 ripe mangoes, sitting, beckoning to us to eat them.  I love mangoes.  They are my favorite fruit.  We looked online for a main dish involving mangoes and ended up finding two great ideas!  Dinner and dessert, for the price of the same mango!  We found a chef on youtube who taught me how to properly cut, squish and dice a mango (see pictures below).  Then I looked at his food blog and adapted the spicy sauce from that website.  
Here is the way to finely dice your mango.  First, peel it, using a peeler.  Discard the peels.  Then continue to peel the actual mango onto your cutting board.  

Next, using your fingers, squish all that mango juice onto your pile of mango slices.  A lot of juice will come off of that mango.  I was a little surprised.

Now take a large knife and finely dice your mango.  If you puree it, according to the youtube guy, it will throw the universe off.  So don't do that.  Just dice it.

Now you are ready to add the other delicious ingredients.


Sweet Mango Sauce
adapted from: www.uk.answers.yahoo.com


1 large, very ripe mango, finely diced
1/2 can coconut milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/8 c. brown sugar (plus a teeny bit more)


Mix all ingredients in a saucepan and heat it over low heat until it is warm.  And that is it. Split the sauce in half and reserve one half to put over vanilla ice cream.  Mmmm.

Using the other half of your mango sauce, make this recipe to put over grilled chicken:

Spicy/Sweet Mango Sauce

adapted from: www.foodwishes.blogspot.com

1/2 recipe sweet mango sauce (see above)

1/4 tsp. minced garlic (actually, just a slightly less)

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

1 tsp. lemon juice

1/2 tsp. seasoned rice vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

1 sprig cilantro, chopped

In a medium sauce pan, combine all the ingredients and stir gently.  Serve over grilled chicken.

Toasted Nutmegged Almond and Coconut Waffles

I wanted to be specific with the title so you knew the yummy goodness that this waffle offers.  I got the idea for adding the nutmegged (is that an adjective) almonds from the Klutzy Chef and loved the flavor so much I tried it in a lot of different things.  I also love toasted coconut so I always add this as well and the combination is awesome.  Add fresh fruit on top and you've got some amazing flavors and textures.

Toasted Nutmegged Almond and Coconut Waffles

Ingredients:

Basic waffle recipe  (One of my favorites is this one, minus the bacon of course.)

Sliced almonds

Shredded coconut

Nutmeg 

Cinnamon

Sliced fruit (optional)

Directions:

Whip up your waffle batter.  Spread sliced almonds on cookie sheet and lightly spray with cooking spray or lightly drizzle with vegetable or olive oil, toss until they are all lightly coated.  Sprinkle with nutmeg then toss again.  Add shredded coconut to the cookie sheet.  Put your oven on broil and (set a timer if you're like me and you always forget and/or have set your oven on fire the last time you toasted coconut) toast the coconut and almonds until lightly browned.

When you're ready to make your first waffle, pour batter onto hot waffle iron then sprinkle generously with cinnamon, coconut, and almonds, right there on top of the batter.  Close the lid on that sucker and wait til all that deliciousness is baked right inside of that hot, fluffy waffle.

Slice fresh fruit on top and drizzle slather with syrup.  I can almost smell the nutmeg and cinnamon right now.

Coconut Crusted Tilapia with Apricot Dipping Sauce (and a Honey Mustard Sauce, just for fun!)

Have I mentioned that one of my New Year's Resolutions is to eat healthier?  I didn't get too specific because I didn't want to be disappointed if I failed, but basically I want to eat more fruits and veggies and less sweets.  I'm going for more heart healthy meals because my sweet hubby has cholesterol issues and is dieting (kind of).  Because I am the buyer and preparer of food, it is at least partly up to me to help him be successful.  I haven't been really excited about this, so I'm trying to change my attitude.  Even though it sounds so boring and tasteless to eat healthy, I'm trying to think of it as an exciting food challenge!  Tonight, I made a heart healthy fish dish, and you may too, if you wish :)  It was REALLY good.  Not at all boring and tasteless.  I made two different dipping sauces and they each gave the tilapia an entirely different taste.  So, I'm including them both in this recipe. (Our favorite was the apricot, FYI)

Coconut Crusted Tilapia
adapted from: allrecipes.com

1 c. shredded coconut, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. creole seasoning (I didn't have this, so I made my own from this recipe)
4 (4 oz.) tilapia fillets
1/2 c. cornstarch
1 egg
1/2 c. canola oil

Spray a 9X13 pan with cooking spray.  In a shallow dish, combine coconut, flour and creole seasoning and stir it well.  In another bowl, whisk together the egg and oil.  Put the cornstarch in another bowl, dip the tilapia in to coat it, and shake off the excess.  Then dip each fish piece in the egg mixture, then the coconut mixture until they are evenly coated.  Use tongs for this!  It is so much cleaner on your hands.  Place the prepared fish fillets in the baking dish and bake it at 400 degrees for approximately 30 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork when tested.  I covered mine with tinfoil for half of the cooking time, and flipped the fish one time, halfway through, and it came out juicy on the inside and a little crispy on the outside.  Perfect!

Apricot Dipping Sauce
also adapted from allrecipes.com

1/2 c. apricot jam (or nectarine)
2 tsp. brown mustard (or dijon)
1 tsp. prepared horseradish (or omit this)

Stir it all together in a small bowl.  I thought I had apricot jam downstairs, and it ended up being nectarine.  I also used dijon mustard and no horseradish.  And it was delicious with the tilapia.  I put the recipe in the way it was stated on allrecipes because I'm guessing it would taste even better if you followed what they had.  Unless, of course, you hate horseradish and don't have brown mustard, or apricot jam.  Then follow my recipe.

Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
from allrecipes.com

1/2 c. mayonaise
2 Tbsp. yellow mustard
1 Tbsp. dijon mustard
2 Tbsp. honey
1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Stir all the ingredients together until they are well mixed.  Maren like this so much she was eating it plain.  I know that sounds terrible, but she loves mustard.  Go figure!

Banana Almond Muffins

So my good friend from work also loves to bake and she has given me a few awesome recipes that I will be keeping and making for a long time.  One recipe that she loves to make, and luckily loves to share with us the next day:), is this yummy muffin recipe.  They are sweet and filling and perfect for breakfast or brunch!  The original recipe calls for macadamia nuts, but my friend makes them with almonds and I didn't want to mess with something so perfect.  (She actually uses whole almonds but I had slivered on hand, so depending on the amount of crunch you want, you could always coarsely chop some whole almonds for the top instead.)  And if I'm completely honest, I accidentally added a little too much pineapple and I was scared it would be too thin, but they turned out perfect and I liked the added sweetness.

Banana Almond Muffins

adapted from Stasha Wampler

Yields: 2 dozen

Ingredients:

3 c. flour

2 c. sugar

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

3 eggs

1 c. canola oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 medium ripe bananas, mashed

1 c. flaked coconut

1 can (8 oz.) crushed pinapple, drained

1 c. almonds, whole (coarsely chopped) or slivered

Directions: 

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.  in another bowl, combine the eggs, oil, and vanilla.  Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.  Fold in the bananas, coconut, and pineapple.

Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full.  Sprinkle with nuts. (Be generous.)  Bake at 375 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Don't wait to make these!  You won't regret it.

Coconut Tres Leches Cake

One day, as I was looking for something yummy to make, I stumbled upon a recipe for coconut tres leches cake.  The pictures looked so delicious that I couldn't stop thinking about it.  I've been waiting for a reason to make it and finally, yesterday I decided to make it to take to a potluck Utah/BYU football game party.  There were not many supporters of our Alma Matter (we were 3 out of 18), but this cake was so good that even those die hard Ute fans were willing to stain their mouths with the blue frosted tres leches cake.  They even appreciated the Y made out of bananas on top (which I forgot to take a picture of).  The fact that BYU lost miserably probably helped in their desire to eat it.  Good thing, or they would have missed out.  It was amazing.


Coconut Tres Leches Cake
adapted from: www.melskitchencafe.com


Cake
1 white cake mix made according to package directions


Milk Syrup
1 can (15 oz.) cream of coconut*
1 can (12 oz.) evaporated milk
1 c. heavy whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla


*cream of coconut is NOT coconut milk.  You find it in the mixer section of your local grocery store.  It is in a small, skinny can.


Sweetened Cream Topping
2 c. heavy whipping cream
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 banana, sliced
1/4 c. shredded coconut, toasted (you can do this in a frying pan, on med-low heat, stirring constantly.  It takes just a couple of minutes) 


Make the cake according to the package directions and let it cool about 1 hour.  After the cake has cooled, in a blender combine the cream of coconut, evaporated milk, whipping cream and vanilla and blend it until it is smooth.  Once the cake has cooled, poke it all over with a fork.  Now here is a little tip on this: while you do need to poke it all over, don't poke all the way to the bottom of the pan.  Based on the pictures on the other websites I looked at, it looks like they left a very little un-poked cake on the bottom.  This allowed theirs to retain some shape.  While mine tasted muchos delish, it was definitely your typical tres leches, falling apart all over the place.  I wouldn't leave a lot of space on the bottom (like maybe less than 1/8 inch) (ha ha!  Like you can really tell how close you are to the bottom of the cake!).  Forget it, just do your best!  It will taste heavenly, even if it does begin to resemble cake soup.   

Back to our milk syrup:  once the cake has cooled, and been stabbed all over, pour your milk syrup smoothie all over it.  Pour a little at a time, allowing the syrup to sink down into the holes before you add more.  Otherwise it splashes out onto your shirt and floor.  Trust me.  Save just a tiny little bit for you to drink directly out of the blender, because it is soooo delicious.  Trust me, again.  

Cover the cake loosely and pop it in the fridge until all of the syrup absorbs into the cake, about 2 hours.  One website said to let it refrigerate overnight, and that could be a good idea.  It may set up a little more that way.  After your cake has chilled to your desired chilliness, pour the 2 c. heavy whipping cream into a glass bowl (preferably chilled, also) and beat it on high with an electric mixer for 1 1/2 minutes until it begins to thicken.  Stop the machine and add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat it on high again until stiff peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes longer.  Spread it on top of your cake.  This makes quite a bit of frosting, so you may end up with a little left over.  Or, just pile it all on.  Top the cake with sliced bananas and toasted coconut.  Feel free to put your bananas in the shape of whatever letter you choose.  It doesn't have to be a Y.  It just tastes better that way.        

Hawaiian Waffles with Pineapple and Coconut and Coconut Syrup

Why is it if I make a new recipe, we always end up eating on princess dishes?  I made this waffle recipe tonight and I'm not going to lie to you, it wasn't our favorite.  It was a pretty normal waffle, even with the added ingredients and it was also slightly flimsy.  We like ours a little more fluffy and firm.  The flavor was fine though.  I probably wouldn't have put it on here except for the recipe for the coconut syrup on top was so wonderful!  I thought it would have been amazing on pancakes, french toast, ice cream, drinking it from a cup (kidding. mostly.).  I made a few changes in the waffle recipe, which should help some of the issues we had, so please don't let my negativity scare you off.  And if nothing else, make the coconut syrup!  You will definitely not regret it.


Hawaiian Waffles with Pineapple and Coconut
adapted from allrecipes.com


1 1/4 c. flour
1/2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg yolk
3/4 c. sour cream
1/4 c. coconut milk
3/4 c. chopped fresh pineapple (I used canned)
5 Tbsp. butter, melted
2 egg whites, beaten (somehow I missed that beating part until right as I'm typing this.  That may have helped the flimsiness)


In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  In another bowl, combine the egg yolk, sour cream, coconut milk, pineapple and melted butter and mix it well.  If you don't want chunks of pineapple in your waffles, you may want to consider pureeing it before you add it in.  My kids were disgusted by the chunks.  I thought they added a fruity kick.  Add your flour mixture to the wet mixture and mixture it well (ha ha).  Gently fold in the egg whites.  Cook on your waffle iron like you always do.


Now for the really good stuff:


Coconut Syrup
from allrecipes.com


1 can coconut milk
1 c. shredded coconut
3/4 c. brown sugar


In a heavy saucepan, combine all the ingredients and mix well.  Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Transfer to a blender and puree' it until it is smooth.  Serve it immediately.  

Sweet Chicken Curry

I was looking for a new curry recipe tonight and the ones that sounded good were all sweet curries. I must be needing sugar in my system (always). I combined what sounded good in a couple of them and ended up with a sweet, mild, yellow curry that tasted great. We love curry around our house. Even my children will eat curry. When we were still in school we had a neighbor from Nepal and we still love to reminisce about her yummy food and the way they ate the food with their hands. Tonight Ryan ate this in the true Nepalese style.

Sweet Chicken Curry

by Carolyn

2 Tbsp butter

1 can pineapple tidbits, drained

1 onion chopped

1/2 tsp. minced garlic

3 Tbsp. curry powder

4 Tbsp. flour

3 chicken breasts

14 oz. can of chicken broth

1 can of coconut milk

2 Tbsp. sugar

4 potatoes

salt and pepper to taste

Cut your chicken breasts into strips and your potatoes into chunks and set them aside (separately). In a large skillet, melt the butter and saute the onion, garlic and pineapple over medium high heat. I added my garlic the last couple of minutes because I am always burning my garlic. And that stinks. Literally. Add your curry powder and cook it for one minute. Then add your flour and cook that for one minute. Throw the chicken in (not literally) and cook it with the curry mixture until no pink remains. Stir in the chicken broth and coconut milk until it is well combined. Add the sugar, salt and pepper and potatoes and let it simmer for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Serve it over rice.

This picture may be confusing because, as you can see, there are apple chunks in it. One of the recipes that I adapted this from called for apples, which I used, and one called for pineapple, which I also used. The apple gave no flavor at all, but the pineapple was great, so I'm saving all of you the trouble of cutting up the apple and instead I am putting pineapple only in the recipe. Your welcome.

Michelle's Magic Bars

This is my sister-in-law, Michelle's, recipe, and the whole family loves this tasty dessert.

1 cube butter
1 1/2 cups crushed graham crackers (1 pkg)
1 cup chocolate chip cookies
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
1 cup coconut
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees

Melt butter to a liquid and stir in the crushed graham crackers.  Press this into the bottom of a greased 9" x 13" baking pan.  Sprinkle the chocolate chips (and nuts if you like them) over the top.  Pour the sweetened condensed milk over the whole pan, sprinkle the coconut over that, and then gently press the coconut into the milk.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes

Allow to cool before serving.   They're magical!

Coconut Pecan Chicken

I tried this recipe last night along with Carolyn's Thai Coconut Rice (that I added below) and it was so good. The chicken was so close to being wonderful, even after my tweaks, but we both thought it needed a little something to make it worth eating again- and we found it! Make this recipe along with this peanut sauce and it will be an amazing and easy dinner!

• 
• 
  
• Coconut Pecan Chicken
• adapted from allrecipes.com

1 1/2 c. plain fat-free yogurt or sour cream

1/4 tsp. curry powder

2/3 c. sweetened coconut flakes

2/3 c. panko (Japanese-style bread crumbs)

2/3 c. finely chopped pecans

garlic or garlic powder to your liking (I used about 1-2 tsp. garlic powder)

1 1/2 lbs. chicken breast, cut in 1-inch wide strips

Directions:

1- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2- Put yogurt or sour cream in a small bowl and mix with curry powder, set aside. In a shallow pie plate, combine coconut, panko, pecans, and garlic.

3- Dip chicken strips in yogurt or sour cream mixture to cover, then roll in panko mixture. Place strips on an oil-sprayed baking sheet. Spray top of chicken.

4- Bake 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350, and bake 15 more minutes. Check that coating browns but does not burn. If desired, broil 2 minutes for an even crunchier top.

Thai-Style Peanut Sauce with Honey

1/4 c. honey

1/4 c. smooth peanut butter

1 tbsp. crunchy peanut butter (optional) (I used all crunchy)

3 tbsp. soy sauce

2 tbsp. rice vinegar (I used a little less so it wasn't as vinegary. If you use all of it, let it sit in refrigerator for a little while to mellow out the flavor.)

2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 tbsp. sesame oil (I used 1 tbsp. sesame seeds fried in some of the olive oil)

2 tsp. minced fresh garlic

1 tbsp. minced fresh ginger root

1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (I omitted this for a sweeter sauce)

Directions:

Stir all ingredients together in a small bowl. (Easy enough)

Thai Coconut Rice
2 c. rice
2 c. coconut milk
1 3/4 c. water
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. dry shredded coconut

1 bunch cilantro
1/4 c. coconut

Directions:

Cook in rice cooker until liquid is mostly absorbed. Stir occasionally if necessary because the milk settles at the top and the bottom may burn. While your rice is cooking, put a small amount of oil in a frying pan and lightly toast your 1/4 c. coconut over medium heat. Chop up your cilantro. When you serve the rice, serve the toasted coconut and cilantro on top.

Coconut Almond Bars

Here is it again, that ingredient that I just can't seem to get enough of lately: coconut. I ate these at my book club and they were so good that I made them a few days later for a little get together at my house. They are really easy and really yummy. My kids loved helping sprinkle all the different ingredients on. If you are not a huge coconut fan, you will probably still like these. There are enough other flavors going on that the coconut is actually not super strong.

Coconut Almond Bars

adapted from: Shannon Wright

1 cube margarine, softened

2 c. graham cracker crumbs

1 1/2 c. coconut

3/4 c. chocolate chips

3/4 c. butterscotch chips

1 c. chopped almonds

1 1/4 c. sweetened condensed milk

Mix together the margarine and graham cracker crumbs until it resembles cornmeal. Press into the bottom of a greased 9X13 pan (like a crust-and so it is). On top of that, sprinkle on in layers your coconut, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips and then chopped almonds. Drizzle the sweetened condensed milk (I could hardly stop my children-and myself-from licking this right out of the can. Mmmm.) over the top. The recipe I was given actually says to add a half a package of both chocolate and butterscotch chips, but I misread it and thought it said 1/2 c. And I thought I was being naughty by adding a little more chocolate yumminess! I put it on here as 3/4 c. because I thought they came out great with what I had put on, but if you want to add a little more, it can never hurt to add more chocolate. Bake it at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. I did mine for 30 minutes, and the almonds and coconut were well toasted. It actually still tasted great, but I would check yours after 25 minutes and see what it is doing. Cut it in squares after it has cooled and enjoy!

Chocolate Coconut Ice Cream

I thought it would be funny to put this recipe in right now, with all the other coconut food I have been adding recently. I actually used my leftover coconut milk after making the Thai Coconut Rice. I loved the hint of coconut that the ice cream had. It would be especially yummy with some sliced almonds on top (kind of like an Almond Joy). I used the recipe for chocolate ice cream that came with my Cuisinart ice cream maker and tweaked it just a bit.

Chocolate Coconut Ice Cream

1 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

2/3 c. granulated sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 c. whole milk

3 1/4 c. heavy cream

1 Tbsp. vanilla extract

1/2 - 3/4 c. coconut milk

Stir together the cocoa powder and sugars. Add the whole milk and mix with a hand mixer on low speed until the cocoa and sugars dissolve, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla, then stir in the coconut milk. If not freezing immediately, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Pour into your ice cream maker and mix until the ice cream has a soft creamy texture.

Sticky Coconut Chicken

If you don't like coconut, you probably haven't been too pleased with the recent recipes I have been adding. Apparently I am loving all things coconut right now. This recipe actually is supposed to have the chicken grilled, but my little grill wouldn't support the amount of chicken we were making. Instead, I fried the chicken on the stove and served it with rice. It got rave reviews this way, but I am sure it would be excellent grilled, too.

Sticky Coconut Chicken

Adapted from: http://www.sweetluvininthekitchen.blogspot.com/

4 boneless chicken breasts

1 c. canned coconut milk

1/2 Tbsp. ground ginger

1 tsp. fresh ground pepper

1 tsp. chili powder

Glaze

3/4 c. rice vinegar

1/2 c. sugar

3 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. chili powder

Marinate chicken in coconut milk, ginger, pepper and red pepper flakes for at least an hour. I did mine all day, and the chicken was very tender and flavorful. Put a small amount of oil in your frying pan and fry the chicken until no pink remains. While mine was cooking, I had some of the marinade in with the chicken, but before I glazed it (see next step) I poured most of the marinade out.

While chicken is cooking, combine rice vinegar, sugar, soy sauce and red pepper flakes in a medium saucepan and stir over medium-high heat, until mixture is reduced and thickened, about 8-10 minutes.

When it really begins to thicken, take it off the heat and immediately glaze it on your cooked chicken (it will firm up pretty fast once it is off the heat).

Enjoy!

*Note: The original recipe calls for red pepper flakes in place of the chili powder. I have never used the red pepper flakes until the last time I made it. It adds A LOT of kick to this dish. If you like a lot of spice and a little sweet, use red pepper flakes. If you like a little spice and a lot of sweet, use chili powder.