Thai Pork with Peanut Sauce

This recipe is totally stolen from allrecipes.com. It was delicious.

1/4 c flour
1 t ground cumin
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t salt
2 T oil
4 boneless pork chops, about 3/4" thick
1/3 c chicken broth
1/2 c coconut milk
2 T peanut butter
1 T honey
1 t ground ginger
1/4 t salt
1/4 c chopped green onion
1/4 c sliced red bell pepper
1/4 c dry roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
1/4 c fresh cilantro, chopped

On a plate, combine the flour, cumin, cayenne pepper and and 1/2 t salt. Stir to distribute the spices. Coat the pork chops with the flour mixture, and shake off any excess.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place the pork chops in the hot skillet, and fry for about 4 minutes per side, until cooked through.
While the pork chops cook, stir together the chicken broth, coconut milk, peanut butter, honey, ginger and 1/4 t of salt. Remove the pork chops to a serving platter and keep warm.
Pour the peanut sauce into the skillet. Cook, stirring constantly for 2 minutes, or until thickened. Pour peanut sauce over the chops, and garnish with green onion, bell pepper, peanuts and cilantro.

Indian Chicken

Colby brought home this recipe the other day. Turned out wonderful.

2 medium mangoes, peeled and sliced, divided
1 (10 oz) can coconut milk
$ t oil
4 t spicy curry paste
14 oz boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
4 medium shallots, sliced
1 large English cucumber, seeded and sliced

Place half the mango slices into the bowl of a blender with the coconut milk. Blend until smooth and reserve for later.
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the curry paste and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the chicken and shallot; cook until the chicken is done and the shallots have softened, about 5 minutes.
Pour in the mango puree and cook until heated through. To serve, stir in the remaining mango slices and cucumber.

Asparagus Soup

I never liked asparagus as a child but I always loved the day after, when mom would make asparagus soup. Last night, I made asparagus and liked it (wrapped in prosciutto and roasted then goat cheese crumbled on top) and kept the ends that I had cut up for soup. I boiled the ends until they were tender then left them and the water for today.

2 T butter
2 T flour
2 c chicken broth/stock/water + bouillon
boiled asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 c asparagus water
milk, to taste
salt and pepper, to taste

Create a roux from the butter and flour. Add chicken broth and allow to boil. Add asparagus and the reserved water from boiling. Add milk to taste and allow to warm but not boil. Add salt and pepper and serve warm.

Pumpkin Cheese Pie

My friend gave me homemade pumpkin puree and I needed something to make with it. I decided on pie and found this on http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pumpkin-Cheese-Pie-2/Detail.aspx
Boyfriend said it was better than his grandmother's pie; I'd call that a win.

1 8-oz pkg cream cheese (I used neufchatel)
2 c pumpkin puree
14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
3 eggs
1 t pumpkin pie spice
1 9-in deep dish pie crust

Preheat oven to 350*.
Mix softened cream cheese with condensed milk until smooth. Mix in pumpkin, eggs and spice. Pour into pie crust and bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted 1" from the crust comes out clean.