ground turkey

April – Gluten Free Italian Meatballs
by

April – Gluten Free Italian Meatballs

There must be a thousand recipes out there for meatballs. This recipe is a little different. I was intrigued and inspired by an article in the NY Times for Spicy Meatballs with Chickpeas by David Tanis. I have a couple of his cookbooks and admire his simplicity. There is no bread in his meatball mix, he uses raw (yes, raw) arborio or white rice as a binder, so it’s gluten free.

The original recipe calls for ground lamb, which was not in my freezer, and North African seasonings. This is when you call on kitchen creativity and courage. I did have a pound package of bulk country sausage and one of ground turkey. It was sounding like my meatballs would be more Italian than North African.

This recipe is endlessly adaptable to whatever ground meat and flavorings you have on hand. The meatballs were juicy and delicious, the rice absorbing the flavors of the sauce and the meat.

Meatballs

Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE MEATBALLS:

  • 1 ½ pounds ground meat (ground beef, pork, turkey, sausage or a combination)
  • ½ cup raw arborio rice or any white rice, rinsed and drained
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • pinch of red pepper flakes
  • ½ cup finely diced onion
  • 3 garlic cloves, grated or minced

FOR THE SAUCE:

  •  Extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 quart of jarred Italian pasta sauce, whatever you have in your pantry or freezer
  • A couple of handfuls of chopped kale, chard or baby spinach, chopped (optional)
  • Grated Parmesan for serving
PREPARATION:
  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Make the meatballs: In a large bowl, combine ground meat, raw rice, salt, red pepper flakes, cumin, Italian seasoning, onion and garlic. Knead mixture well.
  2. Line with a sheet pan or roasting pan with foil for easier cleanup. Coat it lightly with olive oil. With wet hands, form mixture into 1-ounce meatballs and arrange in one layer on pan. Bake, uncovered, for about 15 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove and let cool slightly.
  3. Meanwhile, reheat your pasta sauce.
  4. Carefully add meatballs and adjust heat to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook for 30 minutes.
  5. Add the kale, chard or spinach and cook until just wilted.
  6. Serve with pasta (gluten free) and sprinkle with parmesan.

Of course you could make your own tomato sauce, that would be even more delicious.

The greens are optional, I was looking for a way to add some vegetables but you could leave them out if it’s the end of the week and your produce drawer is down to the last wilted scallion.

I found an almost empty jar of Kalamata olives and tossed them in, capers would be good, anchovies anyone?

Italian Meatballs

Italian Meatballs

November – Turkey Day Warm Up
by

November – Turkey Day Warm Up

Would you like something with all the flavors of Thanksgiving but none of the fuss? And what are your favorite parts of the holiday food? Mine are the turkey, stuffing (has to have sausage), and sweet potatoes. Look no further than this recipe to give you an easy introduction to the season with much less work. This could even be a midweek meal, it cooks in one skillet.

Thanksgiving Warm Up

Thanksgiving Warm Up

Thanksgiving Warm Up

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 2 stalks of celery, diced
  • 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 1 pound ground turkey
  • 1/2 pound chicken or turkey Italian sausage, removed from the casings
  • 1 rounded teaspoon poultry seasoning
  • 1 rounded teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • Shaved Brussels sprouts for garnish and cranberry sauce
  1. In a skillet, melt the butter over medium high heat.
  2. Add the ground turkey and sausage. Cook, stirring occasionally until no longer pink.
  3. Add the onion, celery, poultry seasoning, dried thyme, and chili flakes. Cook until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.
  4. Add the diced sweet potato. Cover the skillet and cook until tender.
  5. Taste for salt and pepper as needed. The sausage can be quite salty. Garnish with thinly shaved Brussels sprouts.

I had some cranberry aigre-doux in the pantry, it was perfect with the dish.

Cranberry Aigre-Doux

Cranberry Aigre-Doux

Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet with Cranberry Aigre-Doux

Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet with Cranberry Aigre-Doux

October – Turkey Meatloaf
by

October – Turkey Meatloaf

California is in the midst of a historic drought. Along with taking short showers, letting our lawns die, and passing on tap water at restaurants, our family is considering the water that is needed to produce the food we eat every day. Global agricultural production accounts for 92% of the water footprint, and in the U.S. meat alone is 30%. Doesn’t it make sense to take these facts into consideration when doing meal planning?

Beef requires 1,847 gallons of water to produce 1 pound, shocking isn’t it? Lamb needs 1,248 gal./lb., pork is lower at 718 gal./lb. Most efficient is chicken at 518 gal./lb. Eggs are a winner at 395 gal./lb. Because of these environmental facts, we are limiting the amount of beef and lamb we eat on a regular basis.

I was fine with those environmental limits until I saw a post by the blog The Frugal Housfrau for Steakhouse Meatloaf. I haven’t made a meatloaf in years and suddenly I had to have one! Just looking at her pictures made my mouth water. But, we are limiting beef consumption, remember? Could I adapt her recipe to use something less water hungry like turkey? Yes! My family judged it a success and it made wonderful leftover sandwiches. Turkey can be dry so I made some alterations to her original recipe. The Frugal Housfrau came to the rescue again, she had added ricotta to her chicken/turkey meatballs to keep them moist, and I had borrowed the same idea for my lamb burgers last March. Both of those recipes turned out very well, why not meatloaf which is really a big meatball or burger, right? And for an extra burst of nutrition, flavor, and moistness, I added a grated zucchini to the mix. After all, isn’t zucchini bread a vegetable?

Here goes.

Turkey Meatloaf

Turkey Meatloaf

Turkey Meatloaf

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 slices turkey bacon, diced
  • 1 large red onion, chopped
  • 2 shallots, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 cup ketchup, divided
  • 1 medium zucchini, coarsely grated on the large holes of a box grater
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 3 ounces of Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 2/3 cup of whole milk ricotta cheese
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 2 large eggs, whipped with a fork to mix
  • 2 pounds of ground turkey, dark meat preferred but either is fine

Topping

  • 1 cup of marinara sauce
  • 1/4 cup of ketchup
  • 1/2 teaspoon of hot chili sauce
  1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. In a large skillet warm 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, add the chopped bacon. Saute until the bacon is beginning to brown. Remove it to a large bowl.
  3. Add the second tablespoon of oil the the skillet, then add the onions and shallots. Saute in medium until softened, translucent, and just starting to brown and the edges. This will take about 10 minutes.
  4. Add the garlic to the skillet and continue to cook another minute. Add the contents of the skillet to the same bowl and let the contents cool.
  5. Add ketchup, grated zucchini, oregano, mustard, Parmesan cheese, ricotta, beaten eggs, salt and pepper to the bowl. Mix to combine.
  6. Add the ground turkey to the bowl. Mix gently to distribute the ingredients. I find this easier to do with well washed hands.
  7. On a foil lined baking sheet form the meat into a free form loaf.IMG_3637
  8. Bake the meatloaf for 45 minutes to an hour.
  9. Meanwhile mix the topping ingredients together. I was serving pasta with the loaf so used the same marinara I intended to use with my penne.
  10. Pour the topping over the loaf to cover the top. Continue to cook until the internal temperature is 160 degrees F. This took another 15 minutes.
  11. Let stand for at least 10 minutes before cutting into slices to serve.
Turkey Meatloaf

Turkey Meatloaf

It was delicious, moist and flavorful. My men folk made grilled cheese and meatloaf panini the following day, I’m sorry I didn’t get any pictures as I was out with some girlfriends.

This recipe is gluten free if you are watching that in you diet, also low carb if you don’t serve it with the pasta. Or use some spiralized zucchini instead of the pasta.

Sprialized zucchini

Sprialized zucchini

I am taking this to Fiesta Friday, I’m a day late but there will be leftovers and the party is still “a happening”, co hosting this week are Kaila and Mila.

Note 10/29/2015: ok everyone, where’s the meat? I forgot the turkey! I apologize if anyone tried to make this recipe. Use 2 pounds of ground turkey, I prefer the dark meat because I think it has more flavor. But, both will be fine. The recipe has been edited.