Carly Comes!

My friend Carly visited this past week (along with Rachel). One of her favorite foods that I make is Sweet Potato Fries. Naturally, I couldn't let her down. So, on the night she arrived, she was welcomed with Grilled Mole Chicken/Tofu, Sweet Potato Fries with Peanut Sauce, and a Sesame Cucumber Salad.


Grilled Mole Chicken/Tofu
All we did for the grilled mole chicken was to coat the chicken in Trader Joe's Mole sauce and grill it up on the hot grill. And, I must give Adam all the credit for that. If tofu is more of your style, make sure to press it with a paper towel to release some of the moisture before grilling. But, other than that, it can be grilled just like chicken. Delicious!


Sweet Potato Fries with Peanut Sauce

This is, I have to say, one of my specialties. Sweet potatoes are so wonderful because they are chock-full of nutrients and taste fantastic--what could be better?

2 sweet potatoes (about 1/2 a potato per person), sliced into wedges
olive oil
kosher or sea salt

1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. milk

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Line baking sheets with aluminum foil for easy clean-up.
2. Arrange sweet potato wedges on baking sheets. Brush on olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
3. Bake for approximately 10 minutes. Flip the potatoes and sprinkle with salt again.
4. Bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until tender. If you want the fries crispier, continue baking until desired crispiness has been reached (you may even want to turn up the oven temperature to 450).
5. In the last few minutes of baking, prepare the peanut sauce. Heat a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. Brown the garlic in a tiny bit of olive oil. Add the peanut butter and melt slightly. Then, add the soy sauce and milk. Mix until the peanut butter has completely melded with the other ingredients. Add more peanut butter if the sauce looks too thin or more of the liquids if the sauce is too thick.
6. Dip your sweet potato fries in the peanut sauce with abandon!


Sesame Cucumber Salad (Cooking Light, August 2005)

Although we used all of the ingredients for the salad as Cooking Light suggests, we did not follow the exact instructions for assembly. We just combined all of the ingredients and let it sit while we completed the rest of the meal--and, it was absolutely fantastic! Here is the true recipe though, so you can decide for yourself whether or not to follow it.

1 3/4 cups (2-inch) julienne-cut English cucumber (about 1 large)
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup red bell pepper strips
2 Tbs. rice vinegar
2 tsp. grated peeled fresh ginger
2 tsp. dark sesame oil
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp. black pepper

1. Place cucumber in a colander; sprinkle with salt. Toss well. Drain 20 minutes. Combine cucumber and bell pepper in a medium bowl.
2. Combine vinegar, ginger, and oil, stirring with a whisk. Pour over cucumber mixture; toss gently to coat. Stir in crushed red pepper and black pepper.