Turkey Meatballs

I do enjoy spaghetti and meatballs. It is so simple but again something that I don't add to the rotation to often, more of a good backup plan in a pinch. And on that I have played around with a few recipes always feeling like they are missing something. So tonight I made a great meatball. A few of my old favorites all combined. Yum!

I made a LARGE batch- I feel with these, may as well go big so we can have leftovers. So now happily in my freezer are about 16 meatballs already and rolled for another nights dinner.


Turkey Meatballs, My Way

Prep- 10 minutes
Cook - 20 minutes + simmering time
Serves - this will make about 30+ average sized meatballs

2 lbs ground turkey, I used 1 lb light and 1 lb dark
2 eggs
1 bunch parsley, chopped very fine
1/3 cup milk
2 slices bread
2 tablespoons tomato paste
5 tablespoons parmesan cheese
1 large onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper

option- ricotta cheese. I would add about a 1/2 cup. I love ricotta and wish I had some when I was making these. They would just add some more awesomeness to these awesome meatballs.

Add 1 tbs of olive oil to a skillet. Saute your onion and garlic. While sauteing add a good heaping teaspoon of salt to your onions. That helps them sweat.
While those are sauteing about 5-7 minutes go ahead and soak your 2 slices of bread in the milk. You may need a bit more milk- but you want the pieces to to be "covered" not soaking. Give those a good 4 minutes or so in the milk.
While you are sauteing and soaking go ahead and start tossing all your other ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
When you onions are done, give them a few minutes to cool down then add them.
Take your bread, gently squeeze out any excessive milk. Then crumble your bread up into your bowl too.

Now get to mixing. You can try doing this with a spoon, but really what's the point. Get your hands in there and mix it good.

Turn oven on to 400.

Get a baking sheet and start plopping meatballs. You can put them pretty close together because it's not like they are going anywhere.

If you want to freeze some too get a plate out and fill up your plate. I stuck the ones for the freezer in my freezer on the plate for about 15 minutes to firm them before putting them in a freezer bag.

Once your baking sheet is as full as you would like them throw them in the oven for about 20-25 minutes. Now, I simmered mine which I will explain in a second- if you plan on doing this I would say pull them out even if they aren't "cooked" all the way because you will be cooking them more. If not doing it this way cut one open and make sure they aren't pink and are cooked all the way!

If simmering go ahead and get your sauce ready and water on for your pasta to boil. Place meat balls in your pot with your sauce and get the heat on a medium-low. I simmered mine in the sauce for about 30 minutes.

I served these over whole wheat spaghetti and a loaf of homemade Italian bread!
It's amore!

Better than your moms Chicken Noodle Soup!

Ahh, really what is better than a warming bowl of chicken noodle soup. It warms you from the inside out and delights every bit of you! Served when your sick, on a nice fall day as the leaves turn or today when this snow hasn't stopped falling since the night before!

I love chicken noodle soup. It is budget friendly, healthy and so delicious! ok, ok here is my recipe!

Chicken Noodle Soup

prep- 2.5 hours includes making stock
cook- 25 minutes
serves- A lot!

Stock w/ chicken (recipe below!)
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
4 Carrots, sliced
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 stalks celery, chopped
Chicken broth, optional
Egg noodles or any other fun pasta shape you have in your pantry
Dried basil
2 bays leaves


Stock:
Carcass of your roasted chicken
Vegetable peels - carrots, onions, garlic (I keep a bag in the freezer full of peels from previous meals- makes making stock easy!)

Place your carcass and all the pan drippings in your stock pot. Add vegetable peels to this and a bay leaf. I would also add about 1/2-1 tablespoon of salt.
Cover with water and bring to a boil. I let this simmer for a few hours on my stove. I love how it makes the entire house smell yummy! You can cook over medium-high for about 45 minutes to an hour if you don't have time. But for this I would recommend making the time. So good.

After a few hours you should have this dark broth in your pot. Ok get out a very large bowl and your strainer. Strain you broth, throwing out the vegetables but NOT the carcass, just yet!
Cooking it slow and low see how the meat is falling off the bones. I am not one to like dark meat, picking bones etc but for this soup I would do it anytime!
I pick through the carcass getting all of the meat off of the bones and adding it directly back into my broth. I normally can get a good amount of chicken from the carcass.

Ok leave that in your bowl.
Put your stock pot back on your stove, I don't even rinse it.
Add about 2 tbs olive oil to your pot and turn heat on medium. When that is hot go ahead and add your onion. Saute for a few minutes then add your garlic. Add a heaping teaspoon of salt to this now and listen to it sizzle!
Next add your carrots and celery cooking for about 5 to 8 minutes.
Once everything looks nice and sauteed, onions are translucent go ahead an add your broth with the chicken. Add your bay leaves.
Now, you can leave this as is and save for another day or keep it cooking for dinner that night!
If you are planning on eating go ahead and bring to a boil- taste it, see if it needs more salt. Sometimes if the broth doesn't taste "chickeny" enough I will add a cup or two of chicken broth.
Once it is boiling go ahead and add your pasta- about half a bag.
Once your pasta is done EAT IT!

Serve in nice big bowls making sure to get all the veggies, chicken and noodles!

Basic Roast Chicken for my Valentines!

Ahh, Valentines Day! A day for lovers, friends and family! We don't really "celebrate" it but I do use it as an excuse to make an extra special dinner AND a reason to ask for my one treat that I LOVE! Lake Champlain Chocolates! Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels! WOW! These make me happy. I savor every one. Goodness these are good!



One thing I love to cook is a basic roasted chicken. After talking to many mamas about roasting a chicken and how simple it is, I found out that many don't know how to do it! I can get 2 meals out of a roasted chicken which makes it even better!

So for Valentines Day, I am making an Herb Roasted Chicken, Roasted Vegetables and a Chocolate Coconut Pudding!

Here is one of my valentines, my boy Camden. He keeps me on my toes! He likes to talk, draw and is an excellent big brother!


He likes my chicken too, so that's a good thing!

Basic Roast Chicken


prep- 15 minutes
cook- 1.5 hours
serves- easily a family of four

1 Roaster or Fryer Chicken, 3-4 lbs
Salt and Pepper
3 - 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
Olive Oil
2 tablespoons butter, optional
Dried Herbs, I like thyme, oregano, basil, rosemary is yummy too!
1 Apple or Lemon, Optional

Pull out any parts that are on the inside, I toss them others may use them for stock etc. Rinse you chicken good under cold water. Pat dry and put in your pan, breast side up. I use a glass dish, nothing fancy.
If using an apple or lemon go ahead and stick it right in the birds rear end. Yep, stick it right in the booty of the bird! This will help keep your bird moist and tender and give it a nice little flavor. No need to cut it or anything just stick it right in.
Take a knife and cut 2 slits in each of the breast and stuff your garlic in there.
If using butter go ahead now and rub it all over your bird.
Take olive oil now and drizzle it on top of your chicken. This will help your herbs stick and produce a nice crispy skin on your chicken.
Salt, salt, salt! So good Salt and pepper your chicken really good. Again I use the Celtic Sea Salt! yum!
Sprinkle your herbs on really good. I just shake each one all over my bird, on at a time until the top of my bird looks nice and covered. Probably about 1 teaspoon of each.

Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Yep, no need to preheat your oven. I have actually heard that it doesn't matter to preheat unless you are baking. So wait to turn it on until you are ready to use it!

Stick your bird in the oven. Bake it for about 1 -1 1/2 hours. It will bake for about 20 minutes per pound. I normally watch for my legs to start to pull apart from the body and clear juice to run out if I pierce it! Let it rest for about 15 minutes before cutting it!

AND don't throw that carcass away- tomorrow Chicken Noodle Soup!




Here are my other Valentines! Jimmy and Rosalee Sage!

Fantastic Shrimp Friday!

Well, today has been semi productive. Lets see, I broke one of my favorite bowls, I burnt a batch of graham crackers and my back is in some serious pain. Woohoo. But on a positive note I have these pull apart rolls rising on the stove as we speak. Some of my favorite friends are also chopped for tonight’s dinner. Ahh and I forgot pictures tonight because it was just that kind of day! Hope you enjoy this dish!

Sauteed Shrimp in a Ricotta Parmesan Sauce with Peas

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, sliced

1 lb pasta, I normally like shapes but this sauce is good on fetticune

1 lemon, will need just a squeeze

Parmesan Cheese

2 tablespoons butter

1-2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tub of ricotta cheese, my favorite is the amazingly creamy and so delicious ricotta made in Vermont

1 cup of frozen peas

1 cup of chicken broth

1/2 cup of pasta water

Shrimp, enough for your family. I say that because tonight this meal is going to feed 5 people and I am defrosting about 15 shrimp which are large enough to cut in half. This dish can be made with what you have on hand.

Go ahead and put your pasta water on. In a large skillet put butter and oil in and melt together. Add onion and garlic and a nice pinch of salt.

My favorite salt...

Ok there, a picture. I needed a picture and well it is my favorite salt. I actually just made some peanut chocolate chip cookies I then topped off with this salt! YUM!

Ok Ok back to the pasta. I like the heat medium as I am sauteing, a little lower if you are as absent minded as I am sometime and doing 12 other things.

Saute those until your onions are nice and limp. Next I threw in a few cherry tomatoes because they needed to be used up. I sauteed those in with my onions and next put in a nice big squeeze using half the lemon.

Add shrimp and saute. My shrimp were cooked so I just needed them warm.

Add your peas now. Pasta should be done so go ahead and drain, reserving some water.

Ok, so here goes the rest of this yummy dish.

Add you pasta to your skillet, if it is big enough. If not put pasta back in pot and add the sauteed veggies and shrimp to the pasta pot.

Add your chicken broth, keeping your heat on low. Add pasta water.

Stir it all up, I use a pasta fork or spoon or whatever that big pasta thingy is and another big wooden spoon to help.

Now, get out that yummy ricotta cheese and add about half the container, I would say that is about 3/4 cup to 1 cup. Stir it all around really nice, adding more broth/water to get it to a nice consistency that isn’t so thick.

Plate it, eat it, love it.

We love this dish, I love the ricotta and that splash of lemon that makes me want spring even more. I do believe that lemon really livens up the dish and quite often add it to many of my pasta dishes for a little more love!

Needless to say everyone here loves this. We had friends over who brought a salad, vanilla bean ice cream and apple pie! It was quite a feast we enjoyed tonight!

xo

rach

Buffalo Pot Roast

*Please note this is my first recipe post, and it may not be perfect yet still trying to figure out the picture thing!

Lets start with Buffalo. If you eat red meat and have never tried buffalo – GO get some NOW! It is a great cut of meat and very lean. It doesn’t taste gamey either, if that is what you were wondering. I also got the meat on sale this week at our local Whole Foods Market- so it was an easy addition to our menu for the week.

Ingredients

2-3 lb Buffalo Pot Roast

5-6 yukon gold potatoes, roughly peeled (meaning I quickly ran a peeler over the potatoes and so yes there is still skin on some!) You can use other potatoes if that is what you have on hand. I like yukon golds as they taste like butta!

4 carrots, cleaned off and sliced. I don’t peel ‘em just rinse um good as the skin is the best!

2 yellow onions, sliced in half then quarter the halves

3 cloves garlic, chopped

4 cups beef broth

3 tbs flour

2 bay leaves (optional)

Alright, first thing is first. Get out some salt and pepper and cover your pot roast really good. I like to use the celtic salt, those really nice big chunks. Cover the top, bottom and sides. Turn your cast iron skillet on- this is where it gets fun and smelling good! Put about 2 tablespoons of oil in your skillet- get it really nice and hot. Then take that nice hunk of meat and stick it in your skillet-

Hear that sizzling...

hear that sizzle… That seals in all the juices on the roast.

You want to end up with a nice golden brown crust all around your roast.

See the nice golden crust its getting..

After that is finished go ahead and set that in your crock pot. Now if your cast iron is big enough you can add your carrot s and potatoes to it to soak up a little of your oil that you cooked your roast in, if not no worries just throw them on in the crock.

However I would go ahead and add your onion and garlic to the pan, saute those for a few minutes. While they are cooking in the oil (add a few more tablespoons if you need to) go ahead and add your flour. Stir that up really good in the oil, onions and garlic. Once that is mixed good really good and you have a nice little simmer going on turn off your stove and empty your skillet right into your crock pot.

See how nicely it fits in there!

Feel free to add a bay leaf or two now, if you like them. I like them but just forgot them and that is ok! See how it all fits in there so nicely!

Turn the heat on high and cook about 6 hours or on low for 8 to 10 hours.

Yum

Ok, now get out your big pretty bowl and scoop out those vegetables and some broth. Get your meat out and put right on top, careful that meat is so tender it just falls apart and you don’t want to leave any behind.

If you are feeling up to it you can make a gravy with some of the juices from the crock. I added 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons of flour into my cast iron and mixed them well. Then just ladled in some sauce and kept stirring and adding more juice til I got it the consistency that I wanted. Add a few good shakes of salt to this too!

I also made Whole Wheat Buttermilk Rolls to help sop up some of those juices, but thats for another day!

This served 4 with a small container of leftovers.