Thai Chicken Satay with Spicy Cucumber Salad

{the finished product}

{the spicy cucumber salad}

{parental hint #3,591 - if you want your kid to eat something, just put it on a skewer!}

I love it when I rediscover a cookbook! When I'm seeking inspiration for the kitchen, I almost always turn to the internet. Cooking blogs are such wonderful sources for new recipes, but every now and then (i.e. when Finley takes a longer than average nap), I'll curl up on the couch with a cookbook. This week I grabbed the Neiman Marcus Cookbook because I remembered being really excited when I received it for Christmas last year. I found several great recipes that I can't wait to try out soon - hopefully they'll make an appearance on the blog soon!

Now for the first recipes I tried - Chicken Satay with Spicy Cucumber Salad, which I served with a simple side of peanut noodles. The whole family loved this meal! The chicken was flavorful and moist and paired wonderfully with the salad. The meat had a good curry flavor, which I really liked, but if you aren't partial to curry you may want to scale back on the amount. To me the true stand out of the meal was the salad. It only had a few ingredients so it was truly simple to make but it tasted divine with the chicken and the peanut noodles. This recipe has a couple of unusual ingredients but don't let that stop you. I was able to find them all on the international food aisle of my local grocery store. And they weren't expensive either. This was an excellent meal that I can't wait to make again soon.

Thai Chicken Satay with Spicy Peanut Cucumber & Carrot Salad

adapted from the Neiman Marcus Cookbook by Kevin Garvin

for the marinade & the chicken

1 c unsweetened coconut milk

1/4 c smooth peanut butter

1 1/2 T mild curry powder

1/2 T Thai red curry paste

2 T sesame oil

1 T soy sauce

1/2 lime, juiced

4 chicken breasts

skewers (if using wooden ones, soak in water for at least 1 hour prior to grilling)

for the salad

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely diced

1 c carrots, finely diced

1/4 c dry roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped

3 T sweet chili sauce

1 small shallot, minced

1/4 c cilantro, chopped

For the marinade, add coconut milk, peanut butter, curry powder, curry paste, sesame oil, soy sauce and lime juice in a bowl and whisk to combine. Cut each chicken breasts lengthwise into six or seven thin strips. Add chicken to marinade and toss to completely cover chicken. Wrap bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Prepare and preheat the grill. Remove chicken from marinade and let drain in a colander so that no excess marinade remains. Thread chicken strips on skewers. Place skewers on hot grill and cook 2-3 minutes per side or until chicken is no longer pink.

For the salad, prepare it just before serving. Place cucumbers, carrots, sweet chili sauce, peanuts, shallot and cilantro in a bowl. Toss to combine. Keep refrigerated. Serve with satay.