* Chili-Lime Mango Chicken Skewers AND Coconut Sticky Rice*

So much for my resolution to post 3 times a week, eh? These past few weeks have been a blast...not. Both of my kids were hit with the week-long flu and then both got awful colds a week later! It's been fun, let me tell you. And after dealing with miserable, coughing, sickie kids all day AND night (because you know they can't sleep well when their sick either), I've been pretty awful about making dinners and taking pictures. I'm sure you all missed me (the 4 of you that read this). Well, you're in luck--cause I'm BAAACK!

I found this recipe for Chili-Lime Mango Chicken Skewers on Our Best Bites and we had to try it. If you look at the recipe link, you'll see that they serve their skewers with coconut rice (not the recipe I used...I found mine here).

We really liked these but I have to admit that it would've been better if I had know how to cut up a mango. Because I didn't know, my mango chunks ended up all uneven and small and the mangos cooked faster than the chicken and ended up a bit burnt. On the Our Best Bites link above, they have a link to a tutorial. Before you try this out, learn how to cut up a mango. It's harder than you might think...it has the wierdest pit! Anyways, my sister made these a few days after us but she did not thread the chicken and mangos on skewers. She just grilled them and their family loved it.

Oh and about the Coconut Sticky Rice...we made our own coconut milk using our fresh coconut. Oh My! What a lot of work. Buy the canned coconut milk...SO MUCH EASIER!

*Chili-Lime Mango Chicken Skewers*
6T olive oil (I used vegetable oil because that's all I had...)
¼ cup fresh lime juice (about 3 limes)
Zest of 1 lime
1 t chili powder
¼ t cayenne pepper (double that if you like spicy things!)
½ t salt
1 T sugar
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 ripe but firm mangoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

If you're using wooden/bamboo skewers, make sure to soak them in water for 20-30 minutes before you use them. Otherwise they'll fire right up on the grill!

In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, lime zest, chili powder, cayenne, salt and sugar. Place in a zip-lock bag and add the chicken and mangoes, stirring gently to coat with marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.

Prepare grill (or indoor grill pan)

Remove the chicken and mangoes from the marinade and thread onto skewers, alternating the pieces and dividing them evenly.

Arrange the skewers on the grill and cook, turning until the chicken is nicely charred and cooked through, 6-10 minutes. Serve immediately.

*Coconut Sticky Rice*
3 cups rice
2 cups canned or fresh coconut milk
3/4 cup palm sugar, or substitute brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
4 ripe mangoes, or substitute sliced ripe peaches
(I halved this recipe)

Cook the rice until tender (I used my handy-dandy rice cooker).

Meanwhile, place the coconut milk in a heavy pot and heat over medium heat until hot. Do not boil. Add the sugar and salt and stir to dissolve completely.

When the rice is tender, turn it out into a bowl and pour 1 cup of the hot coconut milk over; reserve the rest. Stir to mix the liquid into the rice, then let stand for 20 minutes to an hour to allow the flavors to blend.

Meanwhile, peel the mangoes and slice into chunks. Serve over the top of coconut sticky rice. (This was my hubby's favorite part of the meal.)

(I was pretty proud of myself for using 3 Bountiful Basket ingredients in one meal--mangoes, coconut, and asparagus. By the way, any tips for making yummy asparagus?)