Spicy Watermelon Jalapeno Margaritas

Recipe from Skinnytaste.  
Eric didn't really like it - well, he doesn't like spicy drinks, so will likely not make again, but I thought it was pretty good.  

Notes - Eric liked it better when I strained the watermelon through strainer, too.  A lot of waste of pulp though.

Ingredients:

-4 cups of cubed seedless watermelon

-1 TBSP sugar (optional)

-4 jalapenos, with seeds and membranes, roughly chopped

-2 limes, juiced

-8 oz clear tequila (2 oz per drink)

Directions:

1. Place watermelon (and sugar) in a blender and process until smooth.  Keep chilled in pitcher in fridge.

2. Place jalapenos in blender with 2/3 cup of water and puree until smooth.  Strain through a mesh sieve.  Add lime juice and keep chilled

3. When ready to serve, fill a tall glass to top with ice, pour 2 oz tequila in each tall glass, then add water melon juice filling 3/4 of the way, about 1/2 cup, then top with jalapeno juice.

*drinks

Gordon Ramsay's Malaysian Chicken Curry

Recipe taken from food.com

--For red chiles, I used 3 garden salsa chilis from the garden and 1 serrano.  I got scared and took out seeds from a few, but because I'm cooking them, it wasn't hot enough! So next time, keep the seeds.

--First time using the lemongrass from the garden, but I wasn't sure on how to harvest and likely didn't take enough. To harvest, I had to slice them lengthwise to find the soft part and discard the tough parts and any tough outer layers.

--could try using diced chicken breast instead of chicken thighs next time

--I suggested using cubed bell peppers and onions instead of green beans, but Eric and Jasmine said they liked it the way it was cooked

--Didn't see where I used the turmeric again in the recipe

--I had to buy the shallots and kaffir lime leaves from Tim's Oriental Market

Ingredients for curry paste:

-5 garlic cloves

-4 to 5 long red chilies (don't take out the seeds)

-2 lemongrass

-5 cm piece fresh ginger root

-4 shallots

-1 tsp ground turmeric

-2 Tbsp oil (used avocado)

Ingredients for curry dish:

-Chicken thighs (1.5-2 lbs) cubed--> try chicken breasts next time

-1 Tbsp oil

-1 tsp ground turmeric

-2 onions, peeled and thinly sliced

-4 kaffir lime leaves

-1 cinnamon stick

-3 star anise

-1 can of light coconut milk

-100 mL chicken stock

-1 tsp palm sugar (or soft brown sugar) - I actually used dark brown sugar all I had

-2 Tbsp light soy sauce

-2 Tbsp fish sauce

-green beans (800 g in recipe - I used about 1.5 lbs

-salt and pepper

-cilantro for garnish

-avocado for garnish

Directions:

1. Cut chicken, and salt/pepper - set aside

2. Cut onions and green beans - set aside

3. Combine chicken stock (to 100 ml), coconut milk, sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce - set liquid aside

4. Set aside dries: lime leaves, cinnamon stick, star anise

5. Make curry paste - Combine garlic, chillies, lemongrass, ginger, shallots in Cuisinart

6. Heat oil in large pan with med heat --> add curry past + 1 tsp ground turmeric

7. Add onions and stir for 5 min

8. Add chicken in pan and stir to coat

9.  Add liquids and dries and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to simmer and cook gently for half and hour to an hour until chicken tender (about 30 min fine - cooked rice and washed dishes during this time)

10.  Skim off any excess oil on the surface (wasn't much)

11.  Add beans and cover for another few min until beans tender (Eric likes his beans crunchy)

12. Serve with cilantro, avocado, and jasmine rice.

*Asian, Malaysian, Thai