On Friday night my husband and I decided to have a proper date night at home.  Even though we’d been on vacation, after coming back to work for a few days and being sick most of those days, it was nice to hang out and enjoy a delicious meal together!  We also watched “Prince of Persia” after dinner, which was fun because we saw parts of it being filmed when we were in Morocco just over 2 years ago!  In an effort to use what we had in our cupboards/fridge, but also try something new, I tried my hand at a couple of new recipes…

“Date Night Chicken”:

• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp of curry powder
• 1 tbsp. ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 2-3 tbsp. coconut oil
• 2 lbs. chicken thighs
• 1/2 large red onion, diced
• 1 large apple, diced
• 1 cup of dried apricots
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 cup of dried, pitted dates

Place the chicken in a bag and add in the spices.  Shake well to cover the chicken evenly.  Make sure both sides are generously seasoned.  Meanwhile, in a large frying pan, heat the coconut oil until it’s sizzling a bit on medium-high heat.  Add the chicken.  Fry on each side until each piece is browned.  Set aside.

In the same pan, add the onion, apple and apricots to the pan and cook until soft on medium heat.  Add in the chicken stock and honey.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and return the chicken to the pan.  Cover and simmer for 25 mins. until the chicken is cooked.  Add the dates, and cook for another 5-10 mins. until the dates are softened.

Serve the chicken on a bed of spinach and couscous, topped with all the “goodness”!

Pumpkin Cheesecake:

Crust:

• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup spelt flour
• 1/4 cup oats
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (or cinnamon)
• 5 tbsp. melted butter
• 1 tbsp. of honey

Mix dried ingredients together in a blender until finely ground.  Melt butter and honey together in a saucepan.  Mix together dry and wet ingredients.  Press into the bottom of a springform pan.  Bake for 5 mins. at 350F.  Set aside.

Filling:

• 3 8 oz. packages of cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 cup honey
• 1 tsp. maple syrup (or vanilla)
• 1 cup canned pumpkin (or fresh!)
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (or 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, 1/4 tsp. all spice)

Combine cream cheese, honey, and maple syrup (or vanilla) in a large bowl.  Mix until smooth.  Add in pumpkin, eggs, and spices.  Beat until smooth and creamy.  Pour onto the crust.  Bake for 60-70 mins. at 350F or until the top of the cheesecake turns a bit darker.  Remove from the oven and allow it to come to room temperature, then refrigerate.  After it has chilled, remove the pan sides and cut and serve!

*Note: due to making the cheesecake with honey you might get some darker spots on the top of the cake which taste just fine, not burned.  However, if you want to make it more visually appealing when serving it, you can put some whipped cream on top!  Although, I just served it as is.  :)

This post is linked to: Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Table.