a recipe

we just made this saturday night & it is fabulous. try it!

thai satay chicken skewers

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp water
3/4 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk
1 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
4 green onion, cut into 1 inch pieces

1. slice chicken crosswise into 3/ inch wide strips; place in shallow glass dish.
2. combine soy sauce, lime juice, garlic, ginger, & red pepper flakes in a small bowl. reserve 3 tbsp mixture; cover & refrigerate until preparing peanut sauce. add water to remaining mixture. pour over chicken, toss to coat well. cover; marinate in refrigerator at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
3. soak 16 wooden skewers in water 20 minutes before using to prevent from burning. prepare grill.
4. meanwhile, for peanut sauce, combine coconut milk, reserved soy sauce mixture & peanut butter in small saucepan. bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. reduce heat to low & simmer, uncovered, 2-4 minutes or until sauce thickens. keep warm.
5. drain chicken; reserve marinade from dish. weave 3 or 4 pieces accordion style onto each skewer, alternating with green onion pieces placed crosswise on skewer. brush reserved marinade from dish over chicken & onions. discard remaining marinade.
6. place skewers on grid. grill skewers on uncovered grill over medium-hot colas 6-8 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center, turning halfway through grilling time. serve with warm peanut sauce for dipping.

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delicious! i recommend serving with steamed jasmine rice with cilantro & lime juice & grilled pineapple.

this is from 100 best appetizer recipes cookbook. we have found many yummy recipes from this cookbook so i highly recommend it!

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amelia fell asleep in the swing outside this afternoon & adeline is in her room, hopefully sleeping. dear, wonderful, amazing judy crawford has offered to bring us dinner tonight! whhhaa--aat?! yes, that's what friends are for? we are so tired. it's been quite awhile since i've been sick & working off of barely 5 interrupted hours of sleep.

in other news: the GINORMOUS groundhog living under our backyard neighbor's screened-in porch had babies. 4 of them. & apparently wes' grandma has given us word that groundhogs can eat plants (similar to what just happened to us a few weeks ago). we are soooo putting up more of the fencing at the bottom of our fence now! crazy little groundhogs are going to be crawling all over the place if we don't. grrrrrrr.... this is one of the few times when i haven't found a baby animal to be cute. all i could think when i saw them was, "die, little ones, die". do you feel the hair on your neck go up? that's right. die babies, die. lol. & in more detailed news, we have ants in the house. again.

time to watch a mind-numbing show online (cupid? castle? those are shows on abc, in case you are a cable person).

chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe!

chewy chocolate chip cookies ...(these are so good & a staple at our house)

1 cup softened butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

3 cups oats
1 cup chocolate chips (i use 1 1/2 cups!)

cream butter & sugars together until very fluffy & light, about 4-5 minutes on a medium/high mixer setting. beat in eggs, 1 at a time, each for 1-2 minutes or until fully incorporated. add vanilla & beat for another minute.

mix flour, baking soda, & salt in separate bowl. stir into butter mixture until just blended.

stir in oats & chocolate chips until blended. drop by spoonfuls onto cookie sheets. cookies are done baking when they are still slightly 'gooey' b/c they harden a bit when cooling.

bake in a 325 degree oven for approx. 12 minutes.

dunk in very cold milk.