Spicy Turkey Chili

Since the weather has turned slightly colder the last few days, Jeremy and I have started craving warmer foods.   I decided to make chili tonight and it hit the spot.  I have lots of leftovers... the pot ended up making what will become 9 servings of chili.  We ate 2, I have 3 in the fridge, and I have 4 in the freezer for sometime in the future.

This was nice and spicy and also had great flavor besides the heat.  If you don't like spice, you can omit or reduce the cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper flake, chipotles in adobo, or the serrano peppers.  It will still be very tasty.  Don't be intimidated by the long list of spices... most of them are pretty common and it's just a matter of having a measuring spoon next to the pot.

I usually make venison chili but since I'm out of venison we picked up some ground turkey at the grocery store.  It was really delicious and was a nice change from my normal chili.  I've also made vegetarian versions of chili just by adding more veggies and beans and leaving out the beef stock.  Still very tasty.

I always use similar combinations of spices but the amounts vary depending on what I feel like that particular night.  Chili is a great way to experiment with just throwing things at a pot (my specialty) since it's pretty hard to screw up.

I used dried beans for this and spent the early afternoon in and out of the kitchen as they simmered.  You could certainly substitute canned beans if you don't want to take the time cooking the beans.  I've been using more dried beans recently because they are so much cheaper and so much lower in sodium (since I don't salt them as they cook...).

I almost always make corn muffins to go along with chili - tonight was no exception.  I buy the cheap little boxes of corn muffin mix in the grocery store.  I've tried making my own cornbread but it's never as tasty.  And these are just too convenient.

Recipe:
2 1/2 lbs. ground turkey (93% lean)
1 c. dried red kidney beans
1 c. dried great northern beans
1 c. dried small red beans
3 medium green bell peppers, diced
3 medium onions, diced
3 serrano chiles, half the ribs removed, minced
1 1/2 tbs. minced garlic
3 tbs. chili powder
2 tbs. + 1 tsp. ground cumin, divided
2 bay leaves
1/2 tbs. paprika
1/2 tbs. garlic powder
1/2 tbs. onion powder
1/2 tbs. + 1/2 tsp. dried oregano, divided
1 tbs. dried parsley
1 1/2 tbs. minced chipotles in adobo
2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flake
1 1/4 c. beef broth
3 15 oz. cans of tomato sauce
1 6 oz. can of tomato paste
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper

1. Soak the beans in cold water overnight.  Cook the beans according to the directions on the package. Drain and set aside until ready to go into the chili.  (This can be done way ahead of time and reserved in the fridge.)
2. Heat a  large pot (mine was an 8 qt.) over medium high heat.  Add 2 tbs. olive oil.  Add ground turkey and break up with a wooden spoon.  Add crushed red pepper flake, salt, pepper, 1 tsp. ground cumin, and 1/2 tsp. oregano.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the turkey is browned.
3. Add garlic, green bell pepper, serrano chiles and onion.  Stir to combine and stir occasionally until veggies begin to get tender (about 5 minutes).
4. Add remaining ingredients, except the beans, and stir to combine.  Cover and reduce heat to medium low to maintain a simmer.  Simmer for 1 hour.
5. Add cooked beans.  Stir to combine.  Continue to simmer with the lid on for 45-60 minutes until flavors combine.  Enjoy! :)

Puffy Pancakes

So this morning I was craving pancakes.  I was trying to decide whether to make blueberry pancakes (with the frozen berries I keep in the freezer) or "puffy pancakes."  One of my cookbooks has a recipe for a puffy pancake.  I'd never tried it before so I decided to see what it was like. The cookbook said it served 2-4 people... I can't see this serving more than 2 unless everyone eating was under the age of 5.  But it was a decent breakfast for Jeremy and me.  We'll see how long it keeps us full. :)

It was really simple to make.  After melting the butter, all I had to do was pour the batter in the pie plate and let it go.  It puffed up like crazy in the oven.

I cut the finished "pancake" into quarters and gave each of us two. I poured some maple syrup over mine and just dusted Jeremy's with a little powdered sugar.  It was delicious! It was crusty on the outside but fluffy and chewy on the inside.  It was almost custard-y... like french toast. I will definitely be making this again... possibly with some chocolate sauce or berries. :)

My "pancakes"

Jeremy's "pancakes"

Recipe:
2 tbs. margarine
2 eggs
1/2 c. AP flour
1/2 c. skim milk
1/4 tsp. salt

1. Preheat oven to 400.  Put the margarine in a 9" pie plate and place in oven to melt.  When the margarine is melted, brush it over the bottom and sides of pie plate.
2. While the margarine is melting, beat the eggs lightly in a bowl.  Add flour, milk, and salt.  Beat until just mixed (don't over mix - lumps are ok).
3. Pour the batter into the pie plate and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes until puffy and golden brown.  Serve immediately.

Roast Turkey with Sweet Potato Hash

So last night I made a Thanksgiving-ish meal.  I had a sweet potato left over from when  I made the gnocchi a couple of weeks ago so I decided to use up my sage and make something reminiscent of Thanksgiving.  I bought a boneless turkey breast from the grocery store (it came with its own gravy packet).  I just followed the directions on the package for that so I'm not writing it up here.  The gravy was a little salty... but overall good when poured over the turkey and the hash.

I wanted to incorporate a lot of the flavors of stuffing into the hash.  I used a bunch of herbs and if I'd had poultry seasoning around I probably would have added it.  The hash ended up taking longer than I expected to make so the turkey was done a bit before the hash.  But I just put some foil over the turkey to keep it warm until we were ready to eat.

I served this with some corn on the side. The whole meal was delicious and I'm really excited for the leftovers.  We have about half of the turkey breast (and a lot of gravy) left and a lot of hash.  It should be delicious tomorrow. :)

Hash:
1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 russet potato, peeled and diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
4 stalks celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 tsp. minced fresh sage
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried parsley
1/4 c. chicken stock
1 tbs. vegetable oil
1 tbs. margarine
salt and pepper

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place potatoes and sweet potatoes in a large glass bowl.  Cover with water and plastic wrap.  Microwave for 7-9 minutes until mostly tender (it will vary depending on your microwave...).
2. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat.  Add vegetable oil and margarine.  When the margarine melts, add bell pepper, celery, and onion.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Saute for 5-6 minutes until beginning to soften.
3. Add sage, thyme, parsley, and potatoes.  Mix until well combined.  Add chicken stock.
4. Put pan in the oven and stir occasionally while it cooks for 10-15 minutes. It's done when the potatoes are completely tender and the liquid is evaporated.

Venison Stew

The recipe below was what I wrote out this morning and sent to Jeremy.  I had a lot of work to do at school so I wasn't coming home early enough to make this.  Since he was working at home today, he made this stew and just had it simmering throughout the day.  

I make this a lot throughout the year.  My mom made something similar to this so it's a very comforting dish for me.  This was delicious - Jeremy is very good at following directions.  He made a loaf of sesame bread to go along with it.  We have plenty of leftovers for the next couple of days too.  Yum!  

I get venison from my parents and usually have some in the freezer.  (Mom, I need more... so come visit.)  It's such a lean delicious meat.  This cooks nicely and becomes very tender.  If you don't have venison, you can use beef but might need to drain fat after browning the meat.  

I serve this stew over steamed rice.  It's a very thin stew - not thickened like most.  I've also had potatoes in it... but I'm partial to rice and that's how my mom served it.  I just make a few servings of rice right before it's finished cooking. 

There's nothing better after a long day of work than coming home to a hot pot of stew and a fresh loaf of bread.  I have the best husband in the whole world. :) 

2 lbs. venison steak

2 medium to large onions

6-8 medium carrots (about 8" long)

2 bay leaves

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 tbs. dried parsley

2 qt. boxes of beef stock

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1. Clean the meat.  Cut off silverskin and fat.  Chop into bite-sized (about 1" square) pieces.

2. Heat a dutch oven over medium high heat.  Add 2 tbs. olive oil.  When the oil ripples, add the meat, season with salt and pepper.  Allow the meat to carmelize a bit on one side before stirring to brown on all sides.

3. While the meat is cooking, dice 2 medium to large onions.  (You want about 2 c. of onions when you're finished dicing.)

4. Add the onions to the meat (the meat doesn't have to be fully cooked).  Stir to combine.  Saute for 2-3 minutes until the onions begin to soften around the edges. 

5. Add 2 bay leaves, 1 tsp. dried oregano, 1 tbs. dried parsley.  Add beef stock.

6. Cover, reduce heat to medium low and simmer (you might have to drop it to low eventually to keep it at a simmer) for 2-3 hours.  Stir occasionally. (You may need to add more beef broth if it evaporates too much.)

7. Once the meat is tender, peel and slice the carrots.  Add to the stew and simmer for 30-45 minutes until the carrots are nice and tender.

8. Adjust seasonings and serve.

Vegetable Lasagna

When Jeremy and I visited The Point Restaurant a couple months ago, I had a lasagna filled with eggplant, roasted red peppers, spinach, and cheese.  It was amazing.  I decided to try to recreate it tonight.  This wasn't exactly like their lasagna... but it was delicious.

It took a little time to put together but I got some work done while it was baking so it wasn't too bad.  Jeremy even loved this lasagna... and he's not a huge eggplant or squash fan.

I used some leftover marinara that I had in the freezer and some jarred sauce I had in my pantry.  The combination worked fine so whatever sauce you like will work.  This lasagna was probably a bit thick so I might cut back on the veggies next time to make it fit in the pan better.  It bubbled over the pan a little as it cooked.

I cut this lasagna into 8 servings.  Jeremy is currently on another half of a serving... but we'll still have a lot of leftovers.  We had this with a whole wheat challah bread that Jeremy made in our bread machine. Nice and crusty and delicious.

Recipe:
24 oz. part-skim ricotta cheese
2 c. shredded mozzarella
1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1 eggplant, cut into 1/4" slices
1 yellow squash, cut into 1/4" slices
1 cup frozen chopped spinach
5.5 oz. jarred roasted red peppers, drained
5 c. marinara sauce
1 package no-boil barilla lasagne (or equivalent lasagna noodles cooked according to package directions)

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees.  Coat the eggplant and squash in olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Spread on an even layer on a baking sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, turning halfway through, until tender and slightly browned.
2. Reduce the heat on the oven to 375 degrees.
3. In a 13"x9" lasagna pan (I have fiestaware), add 1 c. of sauce to the bottom.  Add 4 lasagna sheets, overlapping slightly.  Add 1/4 of the ricotta and 1/2 of the parmesan, spread evenly.  Add 1/3 of the eggplant and squash, in one layer.  Top with the roasted red peppers in a single layer.  Add 1 c. sauce and 1/4 of the ricotta.  Top with 4 lasagna sheets.  Top with 1 c. sauce and 1/4 of the ricotta. Add another 1/3 of the eggplant and squash.  Top with spinach. Add 1 c. sauce and 1/4 of the ricotta and 1/2 c. mozzarella.  Top with 4 sheets of lasagna.  Top the remaining eggplant and squash and then 1 c. sauce and 1/4 ricotta.  Top with 4 lasagna sheets.  Cover with remaining sauce, the rest of the mozzarella, and the rest of the parmesan.
4. Cover pan with foil.  Bake for 50-60 minutes until hot and bubbly.  Remove foil and bake for 10-15 minutes until slightly browned on top.
5. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes.  Slice and serve.

Pork Egg Rolls

I've made these egg rolls before and posted about them.  But since I've tweaked the recipe... and remembered to take pictures, I decided to post them again.  I make a big batch and freeze them.  The egg roll wrappers I buy come in about 20 wrappers per package - so that's how many I make.  Then as we want them, I can reheat a couple in the oven.  By reheating them in the oven, they stay crispy.  Usually I would make a stir fry to accompany these... but inevitably the night I make them they become the whole meal. :)

I usually make these with ground pork.  But I've also used ground turkey and ground chicken.  Any ground meat will work and it could be substituted for other veggies or tofu if you wanted a vegetarian option.  

I always buy egg roll wrappers for this.  I find them near the tofu in the produce section of the grocery store.  They wrap up really well and so far I haven't been adventurous enough to try to make my own.  It seems like it would be a LOT of work.  

I made the filling for this in the middle of the afternoon.  That way it had plenty of time to cool before I wrapped the egg rolls.  These egg rolls were baked in the oven.  They're a little easier that way... and healthier.  I have used my deep fryer to fry the egg rolls before but since we discovered that they were pretty good baked, I usually bake them.  They aren't quite as crispy as when they're fried, but the improvement in healthiness more than makes up for that in my opinion.  

The dipping sauce that I make to go along with this is rather spicy... but it can be toned down by omitting/cutting down the sriracha sauce.  (Same goes for the filling... omit/cut down on the crushed red pepper flake and sriracha if you don't want it spicy.)

I think the hardest part is waiting for them to cool enough so that we don't burn ourselves... it's painful... both the wait, and the burn if you don't. :)

The Filling - As it cools. 

1 lb. ground pork (90/10)
10 oz. shredded carrots
2 lbs. green cabbage, shredded
3 green onions, sliced
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 tbs.. corn starch
4 tbs. light soy sauce
3 tbs. sriracha sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
3 tbs. rice wine vinegar

1. Heat a wok over high heat.  Add 2 tbs. vegetable oil.  Add crushed red pepper flakes and garlic and mix until fragrant (be sure not to burn the garlic).  Add pork and break up with a spoon or spatula.  Cook until browned through.
2. Add cabbage, carrots, green onions, soy sauce, sriracha, sesame oil, and rice wine vinegar.  Put a lid on the wok and cook until the cabbage and carrots are beginning to get tender.  Remove lid and add cornstarch.  Mix well to combine so the cornstarch begins to thicken the remaining liquid.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.
3. Heat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray.  (I needed 2 sheets for the 20 egg rolls this made... so plan accordingly depending on the size of your baking sheets.)
4. Add approximately 1/4 c. of the filling to each egg roll.  Wrap by folding in 2 corners, wet the edges with a little water, then roll from the bottom corner to the top.  Repeat for each egg roll.  Arrange on the baking sheet.
5. Spray the tops of the egg rolls with non-stick spray.  Bake for approximately 20 minutes until golden brown and crispy.  Flip the egg rolls after 12 minutes and rotate pans if necessary.

Dipping sauce:
1/4 c. light soy sauce
1/4 c. chicken stock
1/4 c. rice wine vinegar
1 tbs. sriracha sauce
2 tbs. brown sugar
2 tsp. sesame oil
1-2 tbs. sliced green onion (I used only the green part because that's what I had left.)

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Mix well.  Serve with the egg rolls. 

Sweet Potato Gnocchi in Sage Butter Sauce

Last night I decided to make gnocchi.  I've never made them before but decided to give it a try.  Since we were going grocery shopping, I picked up a few sweet potatoes and some ricotta since I'd had my eye on a recipe on foodnetwork.com.  I changed it up a bit so it was a little less sweet (no cinnamon or maple syrup).  I served these in a sage butter sauce.

I probably made these a little too big... and I'll add a little more flour next time as the dough was probably a bit loose.  But they had great flavor.  I will certainly be making more gnocchi in the future.  They took a bit of time but were worth it.

I baked the potatoes early in the day so that they were completely cool when I skinned and mashed them.  I love making meals like this on the weekend when I can take a good bit of the day to make dinner.  I just spend some time in the kitchen during breaks from doing work on the couch.

Jeremy said that these seemed like they would make an amazing Thanksgiving side dish.  I may just have to try that.  I think it would be possible to make them well in advance and just reheat them for dinner so that could be a possibility... otherwise it may be a bit too much work for one dish.  These definitely did make the kitchen smell like Thanksgiving thanks to the sage. :)

Gnocchi:
2 lbs. sweet potatoes (the orange kind)
2/3 c. ricotta cheese (part skim)
1 1/4 c. AP flour (plus more for dusting the work surface)
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1. Heat oven to 425.  Pierce the sweet potatoes several times with a paring knife.  Bake on a cookie sheet lined with foil for 40-50 minutes until tender.  (The time will depend on the size of the sweet potatoes.) Remove from oven and allow to cool.
2. Peel the sweet potatoes and move to a large bowl.  Mash with a potato masher.
3. Add ricotta, salt, black pepper, and nutmeg.  Mix well to combine.
4. Add flour, 1/2 c. at a time, until a soft dough forms.
5. Roll out onto a floured surface and divide into 6 portions.  Roll each portion into a 1" rope and cut into 1" pieces.  Roll each piece across the tines of a fork.  Place on a floured baking sheet until ready to boil.
6. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook the gnocchi in 3 batches, about 5-6 minutes.  The gnocchi are cooked when they float to the surface.
7. Remove from the water as they float and put into the sage butter sauce until ready to serve.

Sage Butter Sauce:
2 tbs. olive oil
2 tbs. margarine
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 tbs. minced fresh sage leaves

1. Place a large frying pan over medium low heat.  Add olive oil and margarine until margarine is melted.  Add crushed red pepper flake and sage.
2. Continue heating until the oil turns slightly orange (from the pepper flakes) and the kitchen smells like sage. (You can keep the sauce on medium low to low heat while the gnocchi are in it until they are all cooked and ready to serve. Just mix occasionally.)