Peanut Lime Chicken with Yellow Squash and Zucchini Cakes
One day a package of chicken met a jar of peanut butter and made this little baby. What a crazy match they were. I mean, they barely knew each other and now they had just jumped into this life-long commitment together? Well it wasn't that long of a life because I ate them. Quickly. There's something shockingly magical about the combination of sour lime and creamy peanut butter. And, summer squash in all of its forms is a fabulous. PLUS, this is great way to sneak extra protein and veggies into your family's diet!
Start by heating up 2T of coconut oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Coconut oil has a mild flavor, and I've always found that it smells more like coconut than it tastes like it. I get more hints of vanilla than I do coconut. Try to get the virgin, cold pressed kind if you can. Next, slice 5 chicken breasts lengthwise into 1/2 inch strips. I use a meat cleaver, but if you don't have one, you can use any non-serrated knife. Trim any fat left on the meat. Season with salt and pepper and toss in the pan.
Then dice 6 small garlic cloves as small as you can get them. Throw half of the chopped garlic into the pan with the chicken, and reserve the other half for your squash batter. Cook the chicken for about 8-10 minutes, or until almost cooked. When the meat is still slightly pink in the middle, add 1c peanut butter. I used creamy because it's what I had, but chunky works just as well, and would add an ever better texture. (TayTip: if you or your family/friends have a peanut allergy, there are a variety of other nut butters out there that will work. If you end up using walnuts or brazil nuts, add 1T of honey to the sauce to cut the bitterness.) Work the peanut butter around the chicken. It will take a couple minutes to melt and smooth out. To keep it from burning in the pan, add 1c chicken broth; this sauce will seem runny at first, but will reduce and become thicker. Depending on the type of peanut butter, you might have a lot of the separated oil from the peanuts. Skim that off the top if that's the case. Lastly, add the zest of 1 lime; about 2T. Cover, reduce the heat to low and simmer for another 15 minutes.
Now onto make your yellow squash and zucchini cakes. This is a variation on a meal that is very close to my heart and reminds me of my childhood. My great-grandparents had a farm in Petersburg, VA, and had a fairly expansive garden. PaPaw made breakfast every morning, and I can't tell you how many times I woke up to the smell of zucchini fritters frying in the pan. He'd pick 'em straight from the garden, and make us eat vegetables for breakfast, and everyone loved them. Hotz family cousins, you know what I'm talking about! So these cakes are like his, but a little different. It's important to not think of these as a vessel for the chicken. They have to tell their own story and depending on the direction you want to take your meal, have to have the ability to stand on their own. Start by grating 1 medium zucchini and 1 medium squash. You can use a food processor with the grater plate, or use a box stand grater like I did. (TayTip: the rule of thumb--pun intended--when hand grating is to stop when there's about a 1.5 inch stub. It's not worth losing the finger. Plus now you have something to munch on while cooking!) Now add your reserved garlic from earlier, 1/2 chopped white onion, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese (Remember when I said here that there was a time for the kind with the green lid? This is that time), 2c whole wheat flour (obviously use whatever flour you typically use for allergies or your lifestyle, but check the conversion chart if going gluten free), 1/2c cream, 2tsp salt, and 2tsp pepper. Depending on how much water was in your squash and zucchini, you may need to add more flour to balance the batter. It should be thicker than pancake batter; kind of like muffins. Now turn the oven to 350 degrees F. It's important to not preheat your oven for this cake. I've found that it makes a moister cake if you let the cream and water from the squash slowly bake and come up to temperature, rather than shocking them in a scorching oven. Butter and flour a 9x9 baking pan, add your batter, and sprinkle a little more cheese on top. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, just like brownies or cupcakes.
While your cake is baking, take the lid off your chicken and add the juice of 2 limes to the pan. The sauce will be quite thick, so this helps to rejuvenate it. Once the cake is done, cut it into 9 rectangles and serve the chicken on top.
I consider this a kid-friendly meal; the cakes are great for snacks, and there aren't too many complex ingredients or conflicting flavors. When you taste them, you'll know what I'm talking about. The chicken is tender has a little bit of the original crust from searing it. The zest gives the initial intense lime punch, but it's softened by the peanut sauce, which is surprisingly balanced, and not too heavy. The polish of lime juice at the end perks up the whole meal. You could also use the chicken in a multitude of other ways: inside a wrap with your favorite veggies, tossed with pasta, on top of a salad, or maybe in an Asian stir fry with bean sprouts/corn/broccoli. For me, yellow squash and zucchini go together like PB&J, and the cakes are dense on the inside, and have a perfect crust on top. They stick to your ribs a little! They're not too overpowering when served with the chicken, but definitely could stand on their own. Plus, if you're dealing with picky eaters, you could always do what my mom did to make me eat my vegetables: say they're getting cookies, but they're really cucumber cookies ie. sliced cucumber. Tell them it's cake (not squash cake) and see if they complain!
Comment below and tell me what you think! Did you make this recipe? Any allergies or dietary needs/restrictions and need more suggestions for substitutions? Let me know and we can brainstorm. Buon appetito!
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