Turkey Day Tonight

Cooked Meatballs

Decadent Pan Sauce


Voila!

Thanksgiving is my favortie holiday. It not only marks the beginning of the Christmas season but it's also a day filled with wonderful food that I generally don't eat the rest of the year. I once again found myself with an abundance of ground turkey as it was on sale. In an effort to keep it interesting in the kitchen, I decided to make turkey pasta with all the great flavors of Thanksgiving.

Ingredients:

1 pound spaghetti
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
3 cups low sodium chicken stock
1 pound ground turkey breast
1 medium Granny Smith apple, peeled and diced
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 small Spanish onion, diced
1 T Herbs de Provence
1 egg
1 package cremini mushrooms
2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp ground thyme
2 T unsalted butter
2 to 3 T all purpose flour
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce (I so cannot pronounce that word)
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 chopped, flat leaf parsley (for garnish)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil for drizzling/cooking
Salt & Pepper to taste

Method:

Bring water for pasta to a boil and set aside but keep warm.

Place ground turkey in a mixing bowl and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add celery, onion, apple, herbs de provence, lemon juice, bread crumbs and egg and mix until combined. Don't over mix or you'll have dry meatballs. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and form meat mixture into meatballs using your hands and place on parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil and cook in a 425 degree, preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes. You want them firm and browned.

Add salt to the pasta water and drop the pasta. Cook according to package directions and drain when done.

In a large skillet, add 2 tablespoon of olive oil over medium/high heat. Add mushrooms and thyme and cook until tender. Season with salt & pepper. Move mushrooms to the side of the pan creating a small circle in the middle. Add butter into center and whisk in flour to melted butter. Cook for about 1 minute and slowly whisk in stock until there are no lumps. Add the Wocestershire sauce. Reduce heat and simmer until sauce thickens.

Toss the pasta with sauce & cheese. Serve with meatballs on top and fresh parsley.

Bon Appetit!

For the Love of Lemon Curd

My love affair with lemon curd began during a trip to London. I'll never forget High Tea at Harrod's where the tart perfection was served slathered over euphoric scones and biscuits giving me my very first culinary high. Upon returning from Britain, I began searching for this most delicious treat and had luck at my local specialty grocer. I found out real quick that store bought curd (all 5 different versions) just wasn't the same as homemade. What a tease! So, I began searching for recipes and learned that these too are all different and most of them just don't do the real thing justice. I actually saw one that used margarine. Seriously? Margarine? Blach!

After making many batches of lemon curd, I've finally found a recipe good enough to make me feel like I'm at least in the neighborhood of Knightsbridge. Though let's be honest, not quite as good as Harrod's. Perhaps curd just tastes better across the pond? Whatever the reason, I'm just happy eating it!

Lemon Curd Recipe

5 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
4 to 5 lemons, zested and juiced
1 stick butter, cut into pats and chilled

Heat about 2 inches of water in a large stock pot. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. In a medium sized metal bowl, combine egg yolks and sugar and whisk until smooth, about 1 minute. Measure citrus juice to reach 1/3 cup. Add juice and zest to egg mixture and whisk until smooth. Once water reaches a simmer in the stock pot, reduce heat to low and place bowl on top of saucepan. (Bowl should be large enough to fit on top of saucepan without touching the water.) Whisk constantly (you must not stop) until thickened, approximately 10 minutes (this also doubles as a workout), or until mixture is light yellow and coats the back of a spoon. Immediately remove from heat and stir in butter one piece at a time, allowing each addition to melt before adding the next (this regulates the temperature). Place the curd in a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap by placing a layer of plastic directly on the surface of the curd. Refrigerate. This will stay fresh in the refrigerator for to 2 weeks.

Serve curd on just about anything, including grilled chicken (just heat it up first)! I regularly use it on french toast, ricotta pancakes, pound cake, berries and drizzled over ice cream.

Long live the lemon!

B's Mini Meatloaf Muffins

When I think of meatloaf two things come to mind, my grandmother and the movie A Christmas Story. My grandmother because I have fond memories of helping her prepare dinner and meatloaf was in the regular rotation. A Christmas Story because I just LOVE the scene where Randy (Ralphie's younger brother) has been reprimanded for playing with his food and enters his protest, "Meatloaf, smeatloaf, double-beatloaf. I hate meatloaf." I suppose for some people the term meatloaf brings up memories of a dry hunk of meat that meant you would definitely be eating dinner at your friend's house! This was not he case at my grandmothers. Mawmaw's meatloaf was always moist, full of flavor and without leftovers. Unfortunately, mawmaw's meatloaf was also always full of fat and salt (not to mention time consuming).

I've been working on a recipe to capture that retro goodness found in my grandmother's cooking that doesn't require me to spend an extra 3 hours on the treadmill tomorrow. Finally!

Mix all ingredients

Into the muffin pan

Remove and glaze

Plate and enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 small yellow onion diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T finely chopped cilantro
zest of 1 lime
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped
1/2 bellpepper (any color) diced
2 chipotle peppers (canned) in adobo sauce, finely chopped
1 tsp celery salt
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
2 egg whites
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt (I use Kosher)
1 pound ground turkey breast

Topping:
1/4 cup ketchup
2 T chipotle pepper adobo sauce (reserved from can)
1 T brown sugar

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray 8 muffin tins with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine turkey, onion, bellpepper, jalapeno, cilantro, garlic, chipotle peppers, lime zest, celery salt, kosher salt and pepper until mixed. Next add in the oats and egg whites and combine. Fill each muffin cup to the top (makes about 8 muffins) pressing down lightly. Bake for 20 minutes.

While it cooks, combine ketchup, adobo sauce and brown sugar and set aside. Remove meat from oven after 20 minutes and spoon the sauce over the top of each meatloaf. Return to oven and continue cooking for 10 minutes (or until 160 degree center). Let meatloaf stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Per Mini Meatloaf - 110 calories, 1g fat, 6g carbs, 16g protein and 1 gram fiber.

Buon Appetito!

Apricot-Sesame Chicken

I had some leftover apricot-jalapeno jam that I made and used that to create a completely new recipe. I love the apricot-jalapeno jam and recommend you try it on toast, biscuits, pork, chicken and even vegetables.

Apricot-Sesame Chicken

1 pound boneless/skinless chicken breast, sliced into bite-sized pieces
1 Tablespoon Honey
5 Tablespoons B’s Apricot-Jalapeno Jam - recipe follows
(You can substitute apricot preserves.)
1 teaspoon ginger
2 Tablespoons Sesame Seeds
3 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
2 Garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 Shallots, thinly sliced
Salt & Pepper
1 crown of broccoli, thinly sliced
Cornstarch
Peanut or Sesame Oil (vegetable oil will work but offers less flavor)

Combine honey, apricot-jalapeno jam, ginger, sesame seeds and soy sauce and set aside. Season the chicken with salt & pepper. Pour enough cornstarch in shallow dish and lightly dredge the chicken in the cornstarch. Heat oil in a large skillet or wok over med-high heat and cook the chicken until golden brown on both sides in two batches, giving the chicken enough space to cook. Remove from pan and repeat. Next add more oil if necessary and cook the red pepper flakes for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add in the shallot, garlic and broccoli and saute for 5 minutes, stirring often. Add sauce mix to vegetables. Return chicken to skillet and toss in sauce to coat. Let simmer for 3 to 5 minutes while the sauce thickens. Serve with brown or white sticky rice.

B’s Apricot-Jalapeno Jam

10 to 12 fresh jalapeno peppers, stems removed and seeded
1 large red bell pepper, stems removed and seeded, cut into chunks
2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup dried apricots, chopped into equal small pieces
6 cups granulated sugar
3 ounces liquid pectin (found on the baking aisle)

Place jalapenos and red bell pepper in a food processor or blender and pulse until chopped with small chunks of pepper remaining. In a large stockpot, combine pepper mixture, vinegar, apricots and sugar. Bring to a boil and let it boil rapidly for 5 minutes keeping watch to make sure it doesn’t boil over. Remove from heat and skim off any foam that is on top. Let the mixture cool for 3 minutes and add the pectin. Stir well. Place into glass container. Refrigerate to congeal and serve.

This will keep in the refrigerator for approximately 2 weeks. It can also be placed in sertilized jars for longer shelf-life.

Bon Appetit!