Turkey Sloppy Joes

Sloppy Joes are one of my go-to meals on busy nights. I know the sophistication factor is low, but I always take the time to use fresh ingredients. Manwich has its place, but it isn’t in my house.

I’ve made a particular Pampered Chef recipe so many times it’s burned into my memory. It’s mostly ground beef, with some onion, garlic, salt, pepper, brown sugar, ketchup, and mustard. It’s reliable. This time, though, I thought I’d try a turkey-based recipe - Turkey Sloppy Joes from the September 2007 issue of Everyday Food.

I started by heating 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. I added carrots, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper. After about 5 minutes, I added tomato paste and cooked the mixture for 1 minute. I added 3/4 pound of ground turkey and cooked that - breaking it up with a spoon - until it was no longer pink, about 5 minutes.

Next, I added canned crushed tomatoes, dark-brown sugar, cider vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce for the “sloppy” part of the sandwiches. I cooked the meat mixture for about 12 minutes until it had thickened and served it on whole-wheat rolls (with SunChips, of course!).

This recipe is simple, inexpensive, and definitely kid friendly. I think I may like my beef-based recipe a bit more (I’ll post it soon - promise!), but ground turkey is a nice alternative. This is a good way to sneak in some veggies, too.

Recipe link: Turkey Sloppy Joes

Apricot-Stuffed French Toast

I love breakfast foods, and I usually plan a “breakfast for dinner” meal at least once every few weeks. Last night, I decided to make one of my favorite breakfast recipes - Apricot-Stuffed French Toast from the December 2006 issue of Everyday Food.

This recipe isn’t posted on the Everyday Food Web site, so here’s what you’ll need:

1 loaf Italian bread (about 4 inches in diameter), cut into 8 1-inch-thick slices
3 tablespoons apricot jam
1/4 cup (2 oz.) reduced-fat cream cheese, room temperature
2 large eggs
1/2 cup low-fat (1% milk)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Maple syrup, for serving (optional)

I started by cutting my Italian bread into the 8 1-inch-thick slices. Then, I cut a horizontal slit in the middle of each slice of bread to form a pocket. (Make sure you don’t cut all the way through from one side to the next - start and end about a half inch in.) I stirred together the jam and cream cheese in a small bowl and put 1 tablespoon of the mixture into each pocket. I actually used black cherry jam (Dr. O’s request) instead of apricot jam, so my mixture is kind of purple.

I whisked together the eggs, milk and cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Next, I heated 1 tablespoon of butter over medium-low heat on my Calphalon griddle, though any nonstick skillet will do.

Each slice of bread needs 5 seconds in the egg mixture on each side. You could soak multiple slices at once and turn them at once, if you want. I usually just do one at a time - a 5-second soak on one side, a 5-second soak on the other side, and onto the griddle. I cooked the French toast about 4 minutes on each side until it was golden brown. I served this with a little syrup, sausages, and fruit.

This recipe is so quick and amazingly tasty. The bread is thick but soft, and cooking the toast in butter makes the outside of the bread just barely crispy. Mmmmm.

TIPS: If you plan to make all 8 slices, you’ll probably have to cook the French toast in two batches. Two batches would take about 25 minutes from start to finish; one batch only takes about 15 minutes. My griddle fits 6 slices (2 for me, 4 for Dr. O), so sometimes I just skip the last 2.

Make sure you let your pan or griddle heat up well; I’d recommend waiting about 5 minutes between turning on the heat and starting to cook. I used to be really impatient when it came to heating my pans, so I’d always end up with one golden brown side (the second side cooked) and one that looked like it hadn’t touched the pan (the first side). My French toast and grilled cheeses are much prettier now.

Update: Mediterranean Tuna-Noodle Casserole

I pulled the Mediterranean Tuna-Noodle Casserole that I froze back in October out of the freezer last night, so I thought I’d report on its fresh taste vs. its frozen taste. It was still good, but it didn’t touch the first time around. I think the biggest problem is that it was pretty crusty on the bottom of the dish, probably because it had to bake in the oven (covered) for 2 hours in order to fully heat the center of the casserole. The crustiness *may* be the consequence of freezing the casserole in a glass dish, though. Maybe stoneware or metal would’ve produced different results. It does earn major bonus points for keeping the kitchen clean - one baking dish, two plates, and two forks isn’t much of a mess.

Here’s the breakdown:

First time around - Perfect for casual company
Second time around - Keep it in the family

Maple-Nut Tart

My dad loves nuts. Pecans are his favorite, but he’ll take them all - pistachios, almonds, walnuts, you name it. I knew we needed to have something in the pecan pie vein on our Thanksgiving table, but I didn’t have 7 1/2 hours to make an actual pecan pie. The Maple Nut Tart recipe from the November 2007 issue of Everyday Food was a great alternative.

I started by making a pie crust using the Our Favorite Pie Crust recipe from the same Everyday Food issue. I combined flour, salt, and sugar with a pastry blender and then cut in a stick of butter. When that resembled course meal, I added 2 tablespoons of ice water and worked the dough until it was crumbly but moist enough to hold together when squeezed. I formed the dough into a 3/4-inch-thick disk, wrapped it in plastic wrap, and let it firm up in the refrigerator for an hour. (I used the time to make the cranberries and stuffing.)

After the hour had passed, I rolled my crust dough into a 12-inch circle on some lightly floured parchment paper. I carefully lowered the crust into a 9-inch removable bottom tart pan (one of my favorite pans) and then used a rolling pin to cut off the excess crust.

Next, I whisked together some eggs, brown sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. I added pure maple syrup (no Mrs. Butterworth’s!), and then stirred in 1 1/2 cups of pecan pieces and 1 1/2 cups of walnut pieces. I put the tart pan with the crust on a pizza pan and poured the nut filling into the crust. Here’s what the tart looked like pre-oven:

I baked it for 55 minutes at 350 F and let it cool for about 90 minutes. Here’s the post-oven result:

The last line of the recipe says “Remove tart from pan before serving.” With a removable bottom nonstick tart pan, this should be the easy part, right? Not so much. I suspected I might have a problem when I saw that some of the filling had seeped out of the bottom of the pan and it was baking into what was essentially maple syrup glue. I’m not sure if seeping was expected (the baking sheet under the pan is usually a clue) or if I had a small hole in my pie crust. Anyway, after 15 stressful minutes of rubbing the bottom of the pan with hot water (to dissolve the “glue”) and prying with a paring knife, I was able to get the tart out in one piece. Whew.

I really liked this tart. It was kind of like pecan pie but without the jelly-like filling. It was really popular with my family members, too. It only took about 3 hours total, which is less than half the time a homemade pecan pie would’ve taken me. I’ll probably make this one again next year, but I’m hoping for much, *much* better luck getting it out of the pan on my second try.

TIPS: Be careful not to stretch the crust dough when you’re placing it in the tart pan. If you stretch it, it will shrink when you bake the tart. If you’re afraid you might have stretched the dough, let it rest in the pan in the refrigerator for 20 - 30 minutes before proceeding with the recipe. This has worked well for me in the past.

Also, I used only 2 tablespoons of water when making my pie crust, though the recipe said you could use up to 4 tablespoons. I may try 3 next time to see if the extra moisture makes the dough a bit easier to handle.

Recipe link: Maple-Nut Tart (The two recipes - Maple-Nut Tart and Our Favorite Pie Crust - are about midway through the page.)

Slow-Cooked Tex-Mex Chicken and Beans

The Thanksgiving leftovers are just about gone, so it’s time to head back to the kitchen. Slow-Cooked Tex-Mex Chicken and Beans from the November 2007 issue of Everyday Food is a great “Thanksgiving recovery” dish - it’s pretty healthy, it requires minimal effort, and there’s no turkey involved.

For my food prep, I started by sorting and rinsing 1 cup dried pinto beans. Next, I trimmed excess fat from 8 chicken thighs and chopped up 2 tablespoons canned chipotle chiles in adobo, 1 red onion, and 1 red bell pepper.

I lined my slow cooker with a Reynolds slow cooker liner (a true mess saver!) and stirred together the beans and chiles along with 1 jar (11 oz.) salsa, 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, and 1 cup water. I seasoned the chicken with salt and pepper and placed it on top of the mixture, and then sprinkled the chopped onion and bell pepper on top of the chicken.

After 8 hours in the slow cooker on low heat, I removed the chicken thighs from the stew, shredded them into large pieces with two forks, and stirred them back in. A dollop of sour cream and a bit of cilantro finished off each bowl of stew.

This was really tasty and ridiculously easy. It would be perfect for a weeknight if you wanted to throw it together in the morning before work. I’ll definitely make it again.

TIPS: When working with dry beans, make sure you never dump them straight from the bag into your cooking dish. There are usually small pebbles and bits of dirt mixed in with the beans, and you want to make sure you sort out anything you’d rather not eat (or serve to someone else) before rinsing the beans.

Also, canned chipotle chiles in adobo pack quite a spicy punch. This recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of chopped chiles. If you’re not really into spicy foods, you might cut the amount down to 1 tablespoon. If you’re going to feed this to picky kids, you might drop it down to 1 teaspoon for a hint of flavor, or leave it out altogether.

I couldn’t find this recipe on the Everyday Food Web site (again - sorry!), but I’ve given you exact recipe amounts and cooking times. I believe this issue is actually still on the newsstands, if you want to snag the recipe there instead.

Leftover Turkey?

Who doesn’t love leftover turkey? (And stuffing, and potatoes, and cranberries…) Whether you have a lot left over or a little, here are a few day-after-Thanksgiving recipe ideas.

Quesadillas with Chutney and Brie - These quesadillas incorporate leftover turkey, cranberries, and brie. Feel free to substitute any kind of cranberry relish if you don’t have cranberry chutney.

Stuffed Pork Chops - Dress up pork chops with leftover stuffing. The recipe calls for cornbread stuffing, but any kind will do.

Turkey with Two Salads - Leftover turkey sits atop a delicious salad of spinach, mushrooms, dried cranberries, lime, and Israeli couscous. This one might be my favorite.

Turkey Salad Wrap - These simple wraps combine leftover turkey with mayo, honey mustard, white wine vinegar, lettuce, and carrots.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! I wish each of you a peaceful day full of friends, family, and fabulous food.

I’ve spent the morning cooking up a storm… Mushroom Stuffing, Cranberry Grape Compote, Maple Nut Tart, and Pecan Pumpkin Butter Bars are all on the menu. I’ll post pictures and recipes next week when I’m back in my own kitchen.

I would love to hear about YOUR favorite Thanksgiving dishes. Post comments and tell me what you enjoy most!

Sweet Party Mix

As my last pre-Thanksgiving post, I’d like to share one of my very favorite game day snack recipes. This is a big weekend for football, and I’d hate for you to go hungry.

I received the recipe for Sweet Party Mix from a dear friend who went to dental school with Dr. O. This mix is addictive, truly. The recipe makes enough for about 12 people (maybe more), so I try not to make it unless we’re going to have some help in the eating department.

For ingredients, you’ll need:

1 stick butter
1/4 cup corn syrup
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 12-oz. box Crispix
1 bag of pretzels (I use half of a 12 - 15 oz. bag)
2 cups peanuts
M&Ms (I use one medium bag of peanut M&Ms)

Microwave the butter, corn syrup and brown sugar in a medium bowl for 2 minutes. Stir well. Add vanilla and baking soda. Stir. Pour Crispix into a brown paper bag. Pour butter mixture over the top of the cereal and shake well. Microwave the mixture in the paper bag for 1 1/2 - 2 minutes. Add pretzels and peanuts. Shake together and cool on wax paper. Add M&Ms if desired.

This mix is soooo good. The Crispix is really the best part. Dr. O is constantly leaving the pretzels and peanuts behind because they don’t soak up as much of the yummy goo. Shame, shame.

TIPS: You’ll need a grocery-size brown paper sack for this recipe. I always just ask for an fresh one when I go through the checkout line at the store. You’ll want to shake the heck out of this to make sure the ingredients are well-coated, and a large sack will give you the room you need.

For cooling the mix, I cover my dining room table in wax paper and spread it out. You’ll need a decent amount of space! Also, make sure you don’t add the M&Ms to the mix until it has cooled. Otherwise, the M&M colors will run.

Cranberry Grape Compote

Since Thanksgiving is getting so close, I had to throw another cranberry recipe in the mix. Cranberries aren’t for everyone, but if you like sweet-tart flavors, you should give Cranberry Grape Compote from the November 2006 issue of Everyday Food a try.

This may be the easiest recipe I’ve posted so far. I just combined a package (12 oz.) of fresh cranberries, 3 cups of seedless red grapes, 1 cup of sugar, and 1/2 cup of water in a saucepan.

I brought that to a boil over medium-high heat, reduced the heat to medium, and simmered the mixture for about 15 minutes. It’s finished when most of the cranberries have popped and the grapes are falling apart. I removed it from the heat and stirred in 1/8 teaspoon of salt. The compote thickens as it cools, and it’s supposed to be served at room temperature.

The best part about this recipe may be that it keeps for 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Dr. O doesn’t really care for cranberries, but I know I can polish this off myself within that period of time. This is an ideal Thanksgiving side as well.

TIPS: It’s fine to use fresh *or* frozen cranberries with this recipe. Fresh cranberries are easy to find in the grocery store during November and December, but a summer cranberry craving may require frozen berries.

Recipe link: Cranberry Grape Compote

Creamy Spinach Ravioli

We’re going to stray from the norm today and take a look at a recipe that isn’t from Everyday Food, if you can believe it.

I had my very first (teensy-tiny) kitchen when I was a junior in college. Not that I had any idea what to do with it. What I did know was a kitchen = no cafeteria meal plan = time to learn to cook, at least minimally.

My first recipes included some easy hand-me-downs from Mom (like basic chicken and noodles), those from the “classic” book Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen, and a few I dug up here and there online. Then I found Pampered Chef. I was drawn to Pampered Chef because there were pictures with every recipe and the instructions and techniques were extremely simple. I felt like if I could read (and I can!), I could cook.

One of my favorite Pampered Chef recipes is Creamy Spinach Ravioli from Pampered Chef’s It’s Good for You cookbook. This is a recipe I consistently go to on evenings when time is short.

I started by cooking two packages of refrigerated (not frozen) light cheese ravioli. I always buy Buitoni near the dairy section. While that cooked, I heated a large skillet over medium heat and sprayed it with nonstick cooking spray. I added some mushrooms, onion, bell pepper, garlic and pepper. The recipe says to “cook and stir 3 - 4 minutes or until vegetables are tender and all liquid is absorbed.” It consistently takes me 6 - 8 minutes to get to this point.

Next, I turned the heat down to low and added some cream cheese and evaporated milk to make the sauce. I stirred until the cream cheese melted and the sauce was smooth, and then added a package of thawed frozen creamed spinach. I simmered that for about 2 minutes until it was heated through and then poured the sauce mixture over the drained ravioli. I served it in pasta bowls with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.

This recipe only takes 20 minutes from start to finish, and it tastes a lot more indulgent than it is. I’d highly recommend it as a way to get your creamy pasta fix.

TIPS: Pampered Chef recipes always incorporate Pampered Chef tools into the directions. While the company does make nice kitchen tools, you absolutely do not need these specific products to make Pampered Chef recipes. I must say they make the best garlic press I’ve ever used, though, and I love their stoneware collection.

Recipe link: Creamy Spinach Ravioli