It’s FOOD REVOLUTION FRIDAY, and if you aren’t on board with Jamie Oliver’s campaign to change the way Americans eat, you can read all about it here.  Sign the petition.  Help our children have a healthy future.

This bright and fresh Thai Green Curry recipe is from Jamie’s Food Revolution cookbook (that has a ton of super-delicious recipes like this one).  It’s full of spring vegetables like asparagus and snow peas, and is covered with a flavorful homemade green curry sauce.  It can be made with shrimp or chicken, or even tofu.  Once again, brilliant.

Thai Green Curry

adapted from Jamie’s Food Revolution Cookbook by Jamie Oliver

serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 stalks lemongrass, outer leaves discarded, crushed
• 4 scallions, trimmed
• 3 fresh green chiles, halved and seeded
• 4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 1 large bunch fresh cilantro, some leaves reserved for garnish
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, crushed
• 8 fresh or dried kaffir lime leaves (optional)
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil or vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, or 2 chicken boneless, skinless fillets sliced into strips
• 1/2 cup snow peas
• 1 (14-ounce) can coconut milk
• 1 large bunch asparagus, julienned
• 1 lime
• Chopped red chile, for garnish (optional)
• Cooked basmati rice, for serving

Directions

1. Using the heel of your hand, crush lemongrass and add to the bowl of a food processor along with scallions, green chiles, garlic, ginger, cilantro, coriander seeds, and lime leaves. Process until finely chopped. With the processor running, add soy and fish sauce. Continue processing until a smooth paste is formed.
2. Heat a large skillet or wok over high heat and add peanut/vegetable and sesame oil; swirl to coat. Add shrimp or chicken and stir and cook until no longer pink;  add curry paste, snow peas, and asparagus and cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes. Add the coconut milk and stir to combine. Cook until heated through, about more minutes. Squeeze lime over curry and garnish with cilantro leaves and red chile; serve with rice.

PRINTER FRIENDLY RECIPE

My Mother-in-Law tells my children that she’s 35.  Once when my children asked how old I would be on my birthday and I told them, they said “Oh, you’ll be older than Granna!”  Ummm, I don’t think so!  I had to set them straight right away.

Having your turn come around to choose a recipe for everyone to make for the Barefoot Bloggers group is kind of like having a birthday.  Having to choose from all those delicious-sounding Ina Garten recipes is like having to choose just one gift to ask for!  After seeing this Caesar Club Sandwich, however, I really didn’t have to look much further.  This recipe is full of all of my favorite things – roasted chicken, homemade caesar dressing, sun-dried tomatoes, pancetta, parmesan cheese, and arugula – piled high on crispy ciabatta bread.  It sounded just perfect for the beginning of Spring.

And it was perfect.  All the layers of flavor melded together to make one fabulous sandwich (anchovy paste and all).  I even ate some of the leftovers the next day from the fridge, and they were still tasty.  Perfect for a picnic or party, I know I will be making this again and again.

Caesar Club Sandwich

from Barefoot Contessa at Home

Ingredients

• 2 split (1 whole) chicken breasts, bone in, skin on
• Good olive oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta
• 1 large garlic clove, chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste
• 1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise
• 1 large ciabatta bread
• 2 ounces baby arugula, washed and spun dry
• 12 sun-dried tomatoes, in oil
• 2 to 3 ounces Parmesan, shaved

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan skin side up. Rub the chicken with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until cooked through. Cool slightly, discard the skin and bones, and slice the meat thickly. Set aside.

Meanwhile, place the pancetta on another sheet pan in a single layer. Roast for 10 to 15 minutes, until crisp. Set aside to drain on paper towels.

Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until minced. Add the anchovy paste, mustard, lemon juice, and mayonnaise and process again to make a smooth dressing. (Refrigerate the Caesar dressing if not using it immediately.)

Slice the ciabatta in half horizontally and separate the top from the bottom. Toast the bread in the oven, cut side up, for 5 to 7 minutes; cool slightly. Spread the cut sides of each piece with the Caesar dressing. Place half the arugula on the bottom piece of bread and then layer in order: the sun-dried tomatoes, shaved Parmesan, crispy pancetta, and sliced chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and finish with another layer of arugula. Place the top slice of ciabatta on top and cut in thirds crosswise. Serve at room temperature.

Printer Friendly Recipe

Today I received an email from my best friend/college roommate saying she joined Facebook and that I should “get my butt on there, girl!”  Apparently, she has recently joined and reunited with all our sorority sisters, her high school graduating class, her first boyfriend in kindergarten – well, maybe not him (yet).

I have other friends who are on it, too, but I just can’t bring myself to put it all out there like that.  I know, I know, you can choose who can see your page, and refuse to be “friends”, but this is a Southern girl you’re talking to and we don’t like to hurt anyone’s feelings, you know?

For now I think I’ll just stay incognito while I cook and bake and share my kitchen here on my blog.  And this yummy Chinese Chicken Salad, chosen by McKenzie of Kenzie’s Kitchen, is another great recipe from Ina Garten and her Barefoot Contessa Parties! cookbook.  I was imagining a chicken salad with lettuce when I saw this choice, and didn’t realize it was actually ‘chicken salad’ until I got ready to buy the ingredients.  Instead of using a mayonnaise dressing, however, she makes a peanut sauce dressing for the chicken, which is also combined with red peppers, asparagus, green onions and toasted sesame seeds (yum).

This is similar in flavor to a satay with peanut sauce, which I LOVE, so it was right up my alley.  The husband wasn’t crazy about it, but he’s not a big fan of chicken salad anyway.  The kids?  They aren’t quite ready for their food to be mixed together, but I’m working on them.  Needless to say, I only made 1/4 of the recipe, and I did cheat by using a rotisserie chicken.  I had planned to cook the chicken as the recipe states – I think it would be tasty – but I was short on time.  The only other change I made was to roast the asparagus in the oven with a little olive oil and salt and pepper, so I could feed the rest to my family.

I thought this was a delicious recipe for when you’re in to mood for a little asian chicken with peanut sauce.  It would be great for a picnic.  So if you’d like to make this, click here for the recipe.  You can see what other Barefoot Bloggers thought about the recipe here!