I do not know why this never occurred to me before. Need a way to get you kids to eat new foods or lots of veggies? Cover them in peanut butter!

A few weeks ago I was speaking to a co-worker while she was eating some Thai peanut sauce take-out from a nearby restaurant and Oh. My. Gosh. it looked amazing. It was almost (ok not almost) embarrassing how much I was staring at her plate of food. The next evening I got home and decided that I couldn’t go another day without figuring out a recipe for that delightful-looking meal. I figured that my kids would eat it, but necessarily with much enthusiasm so you can imagine my surprise when they cleaned their plates! Success!

Spicy Thai Peanut Chicken
printable recipe

Ingredients:
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
10 oz rice noodles
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red bell pepper, chopped into very thin strips
1 mild green pepper, chopped into very thin strips
1 cup chopped mushrooms
1 large carrot, peeled with a vegetable peeler into thin strips
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch of broccoli florets
2-3 scallions chopped, green and white parts divided
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup cashew or peanut halves

Direction:
Pour the olive oil into a large skillet, then sauté the chicken until golden and cooked through. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Adding a touch more olive oil if needed, sauté the peppers and the whites of the scallions until soft. Add the mushrooms, garlic, carrot strips and scallion greens to the pan and sauté until soft.

Pour the chicken broth into the pan and add the broccoli. Bring to a simmer until broccoli is steamed, then add the chicken back into the pan and stir in soy sauce, ginger, red pepper flakes, honey and peanut butter. Stir until smooth and combined.

Add in the cashews or peanuts and serve over rice or rice noodles.

Source: A Laura’s Recipe Collection Original

After several weeks of dessert posts (minus one indulgent Mario Batali pasta recipe) I was beginning to feel like we were getting a bit unhealthy around here. So, to combat that, I bring you: Veggies! And healthy food! Novel concept, no?

But, because I’m still me, and we don’t want to get too out of hand, first I have to indulge our sweet tooths (sweet teeth?) just a bit more to announce The Perfect Scoop cookbook giveaway winner!

Congrats, Ashley! Shoot me an email at LaurasRecipeCollection@gmail.com and this fantastic cookbook will be yours in no time!

Back to the food!

So, I’ve made this recipe several times. It seems that every time I was visiting the farmers market on the weekends, the quarts of snow peas were practically jumping off the tables into my bags, begging to be made into this delicious meal. It’s quickly becoming one of my favorite weeknight meals. It’s relatively quick to pull together, especially if you’re clever and prep the foods the night prior. I wish I could remember to do this more often. It would make my life so much easier.

Anyway, something about this slightly spicy, slightly sweet sauce over crunchy snow peas just does me right in. And even better still, it’s “lighter”, as in healthier. As in go ahead and eat a cupcake, Laura, you know you want to! I like that.

Lighter General Tso’s Chicken
printable recipe

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups long-grain brown rice
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 pound snow peas, trimmed and halved crosswise
4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated and peeled
3 tablespoons light-brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
2 large egg whites
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:

Cook the rice according to the package instructions.

In a large bowl stir 1 Tablespoon of the cornstarch with 1/2 cup of water until it is smooth. Stir in the ginger, garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce and red pepper flakes. Toss in the snow peas until well combined and set the bowl aside.

In a medium bowl whisk the egg whites with the remaining cornstarch, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss the chicken in the egg white mixture to evenly coat.

Pour the vegetable oil into a large skillet and set over medium heat. When the oil is heated, using a slotted spoon gently remove some of the chicken from the egg white mixture and let the excess egg white drip off. Cook the chicken until lightly golden and cooked through, about 6 minutes, cooking in batches if needed. Remove the chicken from the pan using a slotted spoon and set aside on a plate.

Pour the snow pea mixture into the pan and cook for 3-5 minutes or until the peas are tender and the sauce has thickened. Add the chicken back into the pan and toss with the snow peas. Serve with the rice.

Source: Proceed With Caution

While it may not be perfectly authentic, I absolutely love PF Chang’s. Unfortunately the closest location to us in Northern Michigan is more than 3 hours away, so we don’t get to go as often as we’d like, thus leaving me lettuce-wrap-less. Tragic, I know. Then a few weeks ago my new Food Network Magazine showed up in my mailbox. I opened it up and there was a recipe for lettuce wraps! Of course, we made them for dinner the following night. And, even less surprising, they were better than the original. No 3 hour drive required!

P.F. Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps
print this recipe

Ingredients:
For the chicken
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
1 large egg white
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
1 Tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry

For the Stir-fry sauce
2 Tablespoons oyster sauce
1 Tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 Tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons cornstarch

For the noodles
2 bundles cellophane noodles
peanut oil for frying

For the Stir Fry
4 Tablespoons peanut oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon minced peeled ginger
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
4 scallions; 2 minced, 2 cut into 1 inch pieces
Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2 lb shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and diced
3/4 cup diced water chestnuts

For Serving
Small lettuce leaves
Soy sauce, chili paste and/or hot mustard

Directions:
To make the chicken
In a small bowl whisk together the egg white, rice whine and cornstarch together. Toss in the chicken until coated, then cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

To make the stir-fry sauce
In a small bowl, combine the hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, soy sauce, rice wine and sesame oil. Add in the cornstarch and whisk together until the cornstarch has dissolved.

To make the noodles
Place a medium saucepan over high heat and fill with 3/4 inch of peanut oil. Heat the oil until it reaches 380 degrees. While the oil is heating pull apart the bundles of noodles. Place a handful of the noodles into the heated oil for 5-10 seconds or until they puff up. Remove from the oil and place them on a plate covered in paper towel, then repeat in several batches for the rest of the noodles.

To make the stir-fry
Place a large skillet over medium heat and coat in 2 Tablespoons peanut oil.  When the oil is hot add the chicken and sauté 2-3 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside. Add the remaining 2 Tablespoons of peanut oil to the skillet and heat. When the oil is nearly smoking add the garlic, ginger, jalapeño, minced scallions, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the sugar. Stir together and sauté for 30 seconds.

Add the mushrooms, water chestnuts and scallion pieces to the pan and stir-fry for 2 minutes.

Pour the stir-fry sauce and chicken into the pan and cook for 1 minute.

To serve place the noodles on a platter and top with the chicken mixture. Place on lettuce leaves and soy sauce for dipping.

Source: Food Network Magazine

Ingredients:
3/4-1 lb pork, cut into bite sized pieces (I also use chicken, as in the photo above)
4 cloves of garlic, minced
vegetable oil
1/2 C soy sauce (I recommend lower sodium. otherwise this gets salty)
1t. ginger
1 t. sugar
2C water
4 slightly rounded T. cornstarch
1 head of broccoli

Directions:

Saute the pork and garlic in vegetable oil until the pork is no longer pink.

While the pork is cooking, mix together the soy sauce, ginger, sugar, water, and corn starch. Mix in with the pork and bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, steam the broccoli. Add into the pork mixture and serve over rice.

Source: My mother in law- original source unknown

Just a note when you’re making it: Hot oil does not look hot. I learned this last time I made this by throwing the chicken into the hot oil thinking it “didn’t look that hot, but hot enough (what does that mean, exactly, Laura?) and consequently the hot oil spit up out of the pan at me and scorched one of my fingers. Ow. Comfy. So use caution around hot oil

Ingredients:
1 bunch scallions
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs (I use chicken breast)
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
3 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 ½ tbsp. finely chopped peeled fresh ginger (or 1 ½ tsp. dried)
¼ tsp. roasted red pepper flakes
¾ cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 ½ tbsp. soy sauce
1 ½ tsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. sugar
½ cup salted roasted whole cashews
cooked white or brown rice for serving

Chop the scallions, keeping the green and white parts separated. Chop the bell pepper, garlic and ginger and set combine with the white ends of scallions, then set aside.

Heat the oil in a wok over medium-high heat.

Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and pat dry. Coat with salt and pepper. Once the oil is heated, add the chicken to the pan and cook completely until no longer pink in the center. Remove the chicken from the pan and transfer to a plate. Set aside.

Add the bell pepper, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes and scallion whites to the pan and cook until the bell pepper is tender.

Mix the soy sauce, chicken broth, sugar and corn starch together in a medium bowl, then pour into the wok over the vegetables. Stirring occasionally, simmer until the sauce has thickened.

Add the chicken back into the pan with the cashew and green portion of the scallions and mix everything together, then serve over rice.

Source: Annie’s Eats

Ingredients:
3 whole boneless chicken breasts
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry sherry (I skipped this since I didn’t have any)
1/8 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp water
6 tbsp corn starch, divided
1 tsp vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
1 cup chicken stock or broth
2 tbsp dark soy sauce (I didn’t have dark soy sauce so I used regular)
1/2 cup vinegar
2 tsp chili sauce with garlic (I think next time we’ll a touch more)
1 large clove of garlic, minced
1 tsp rice vinegar
3/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp sesame seeds
4-6 cups oil for deep-frying

Directions:

Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Combine the soy sauce, rice wine, sesame oil, flour, baking soda, baking powder, water, 2 tbsp cornstarch, and vegetable oil. Marinate the chicken in mixture for 30 minutes.

Mix together, in a medium bowl, 1/2 cup water, chicken stock, dark soy sauce, vinegar, chili sauce with garlic, garlic clove, rice vinegar, sugar and 4 tbsp cornstarch to make sauce.

Heat oil in wok to 350°. Deep-fry the marinated chicken until golden. Remove chicken from wok and set aside on paper towels.

Meanwhile, simmer the sauce on medium heat.

Raise the oil temp to 400°. Re-fry the chicken until deep golden brown.

Bring the sauce to a boil, then pour over the deep-fried chicken.

Garnish with sesame seeds. Serve with rice.

Source: Num Yummy Recipes