Basil

Life has been crazy.  I've been running around since April and I can't believe it's already August.  I've got lots of big plans for things to blog about, it's just going to be a matter of finding time.  For now creativity fits under the food category and food is whatever is blooming in the garden.  So we have Basil.

Thanks to my mother we have a monster patch of Basil plants blooming.    

Basil is the best.  And here we must digress to all the wonderfulness of Basil: It's green - my favorite color; it smells wonderful; it's easy to grow (or at least my mother makes it look that way); it makes the best Thai food ever and I love Thai food.

Somewhere between visiting Utah, camping and California, my sister Maddie and I commandeered the kitchen to make some Thai Basil Chicken

I call this my "Imitation Thai Dinner" and if you've had authentic Thai, this does taste different but the fresher your basil the closer it tastes to Thailand.  This is also known as the company dinner around here, it's just so simple to whip up and everyone loves it.  Or at least I love it.

Thai Basil Chicken

I know I originally found the recipe online but I can't remember where!  

Serves 4-6

2 T. Sesame, Peanut or Vegetable Oil

1 lb Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast

1 Red Bell Pepper, Cut into 1/4 Inch Strips

3-4 Garlic Cloves 

1 Serrano Pepper (or more if you want more spice)

4 T. Hoisin Sauce

2 T. Thai Fish Sauce

1 t. Sugar

1/4 Cup Water

1 Cup loosely packed Basil Leaves

Jasmine Rice

In a wok or skillet heat stir fry chicken for 4 minutes in hot oil.  Add red bell peppers, garlic, and serrano.  Cook for 2 to 3 minutes.  Add hoisin, fish sauce, sugar and water.  Throw in basil and toss until it wilts.  Dump it on a bed of rice and enjoy.

This recipe really is delicious with these exact ingredients but I've fudged countless times.  Plus it's high summer and seems such a shame to only use peppers in a stir fry, so we threw in zucchini and used some fresh peppers from the garden instead of serranos (I don't know what kind they were?  They looked like banana peppers).

Enjoy