Turkey Sliders

Looking for a family friendly dinner? I found this recipe while looking for low cost family meals. It's adapted from Italian Turkey Sliders with Honey Dijon Mayo. These are tagged as quick, and I mean they're quick! They actually baked for less time than the fries I cooked with them with.
These were a big hit at my house and healthier than ground beef, so I think they'll surface again. I think next time I'll bake my own slider buns as well.

Dinner Time! Sliders and Fries.

Turkey Sliders
You Need: (yield: 8-10 mini burgers)
10 ounces (250-300g) lean ground turkey

1 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

1 tbsp minced garlic

1/4 tsp dried basil

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp salt

freshly ground black pepper

8 dinner or slider rolls (I bought mine from Cobb's Bread)

Slider Patties

To Do:

1) Preheat oven to 350F. Combine ground turkey, cheese and all seasonings. Mix together well.

2) Shape turkey mixture into small (8-10) patties and place on baking sheet. 

3) Bake for 10-12 minutes or until cooked through. Do not overcook.Cool for one minute and serve on bun.

I served my sliders with stone ground mustard, fresh avocado slices, arugula and a pickle. They were totally tasty and a nice lean alternative. We also recently tried ground turkey with spaghetti which was new to me. Any lean substitution reader recommendations? Next time I plan on using cajun style seasoning instead of basil and oregano, so a nice pepper jack cheese or chipotle mayo may work as well. Happy cooking!

Potatoes Au Gratin

I've been reading The Pioneer Woman blog for years, and it's one of the greatest out there. I've finally gotten around to trying one of the recipes. It did not disappoint! Read on for a warm, hearty side dish. This bubbly beauty may become a favourite around your house, I know it quickly did in mine!

Hot and Melty Potatoes Au Gratin

Chopped and ready for sauce

You Need: (Yield: 8 servings) Adapted from Ree Drummond's Perfect Potatoes Au Gratin

7-8 clean red potatoes, skins on

2 tbsp. butter

1.5 c. whipping cream

1/2 c. 2% milk

2 tbsp. flour

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tsp salt

black pepper, to taste

1 c. grated cheddar cheese

Pre Cheese

To Do:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a medium sized baking dish or 6-8 individual ramekins.

2) Wash potatoes well and slice about 1/4-1/2 inch thick. Leave the skin on, it's tasty and that's where all the potassium is! Quarter the slices.

3) In a small bowl, whisk together cream, milk, flour, garlic, salt and black pepper.

4) Place 1/3 of the potatoes in the bottom of the baking dish or ramekins. Pour 1/3 of your prepared liquid over the potatoes.Repeat twice, ending with the cream mixture.

4) Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 20-25 more minutes, or until potatoes are golden brown and bubbly. Add grated cheese to the top of the potatoes and bake for 3 to 5 more minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly. Let stand 3 minutes and serve!

This recipe made a LOT of potatoes. However, you might be tempted to eat all 8 servings! They really are that good. If you're not cooking for such a large crowd, this recipe is easy to modify to 4 portions. You may want to try using individual ramekins if making a smaller portion, they add so much to presentation. I'd also suggest adding a foil baking tray to your oven (if you don't already have one) before you begin. I had a decent amount of bubble over in the bottom of my oven the next day! These potatoes heated up well as leftovers in the microwave (about 1 minute per serving) as well as in the oven (15 minutes at 400 C). I served them with a chipotle flavoured pork tenderloin and a spinach salad, and then ate them alone for lunch the next day! If cheesy doesn't fit your fancy, check out the rest of The Pioneer Woman - she has tons of amazing creative recipes just for potatoes. Thanks for reading!

Broccoli and Feta Pasta

And another month has gone by without blogging! I can't believe it. I still haven't had my computer fixed so that's my excuse (but not a very good one!). Now on with the recipe.
I was a vegetarian for several years, and have decided to do at least one meatless day a week and possibly eventually make the transition back. For this Meatless Monday, I tried a veggie pasta recipe I found on Women's Health Mag. The following recipe is adapted from that source. The broccoli was cooked perfectly and I would really recommend this method, it was quick and painless!

Perfect Broccoli

Broccoli and Feta Pasta (yield: 4 servings)

You Need:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 large can (28 oz.) diced tomatoes

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tsp dried basil

2 tsp dried parsley

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

12 oz eliche or other spiral pasta

1 lb broccoli

1/3 c. crumbled feta cheese (to taste)

To Do:

Simmering Sauce

1.Start boiling a large pot of lightly salted water. Chop broccoli into florets and discard stems.

2.Heat the oil in a medium sized pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook gently for 1-2 minutes. Add the can of tomatoes (unstrained), balsamic, basil, parsley and red pepper flakes. Increase the heat, and bring the sauce to a simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes or until thickened, stirring frequently. I consistently used my wooden spoon to mash the diced tomatoes, making for a more uniform sauce. (I would loved to have had a hand held blender on hand, the tomatoes were still a touch chunky for my preference.)

3.While the sauce is simmering, add the pasta to the boiling water. Cook pasta as directed, adding the broccoli to the pot 2 minutes before the pasta is set to finish. Boil the pasta and broccoli together for 2-3 minutes. This should really bring out the color on your broccoli.

4.Drain the pasta and broccoli and return to pasta pot. Add sauce, and toss well. To finish, sprinkle with feta!

As I mentioned earlier, the hit of this recipe for me was really the broccoli. It was such a simple way to add fresh veggies to pasta and the broccoli actually seemed to belong there.The recipe also worked well for leftovers, but portion size could easily be reduced to 2 (just buy a smaller can of tomatoes) if you're not a fan of leftovers. It also was my first time using eliche pasta which I enjoyed. I think the small noodles would lend themselves well to a pasta salad, so maybe that will come up sometime soon.

If you're looking for a healthier take on pasta dishes, check out this blog dedicated to whole wheat pasta recipes!

Oven Baked Salt, Pepper and Vinegar Potato Chips

My poor abandoned blog! Unfortunately my laptop is not working right now and the blog is paying the price. It's definitely in need of more attention so I'll be making a big effort to write more. I do have a birthday cake to make this week so that should be up soon.
I made these potato chips on a whim Saturday night. Salt and vinegar chips are my all time favourite, and I wanted to add the goodness of pepper. The bake time on these chips gives them a crispness and a slight chewiness that's just delicious. The base recipe was inspired by The Talking Kitchen. Follow the link for a crispier chip!

Served in a paper cone just like the waterfront!

You Need:

4-6 medium potatoes (I used russet, but any white/gold potato should work)
2-4 c. white vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

To Do:
1) Peel and slice potatoes. I used a mandoline but a food processor or chefs knife would also do the trick. Just remember they should be thin, like potato chips.
2) Place in a large bowl and add just enough vinegar to cover the potatoes and set aside for at least 2 hours. Extra soaking time = extra flavour.
3) After soaking, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Drain potatoes and toss with oil, salt and pepper.
Use excess oil from the potatoes to grease 2 cookie sheets (just dip a pastry brush in the bottom of the bowl). Place slices in a single layer on the cookie sheet. My five potatoes took about 3 1/2 sheets, so I baked in two batches.
3) Bake for 10-12 minutes and flip. Let cook for an additional 6-10 minutes, until desired crispness is reached. You can try different levels of crispness on different batches! Once crispy enough (feel free to snack on one as a tester!)  remove from oven and agitate chips so they don't stick. Let cool for 5 minutes and enjoy!

Soaking up that vinegar flavour

This was an easy and fun late night snack. I'd like to use the base recipe to make a rosemary chip in the future. What kind of flavours would you like to try?

Peanut Butter and Banana Dog Biscuits

Well, the dogs in my life sure are getting spoiled these days. A coworker was looking for items for a silent auction with a dog theme, so I thought it would be a great excuse to try a new recipe while helping out. Cubby and Sputnik didn't mind either! While searching for a popular flavour combo, I found this recipe from Whole Foods, adapted below.

Ready to be auctioned off!

 

You Need: (yield: about 3 dozen)

1 banana, peeled
1 & 1/4 cup whole wheat flour (can use oat flour for a gluten-free biscuit)
2/3 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup dried parsley
3 tablespoons peanut butter
1 egg, beaten

To Do:

The extra 1/4 cup of flour makes these biscuits easy to roll 

1) Preheat oven to 300°F. In a large bowl, mash banana thoroughly (use a potato masher or a fork). Add flour, oats, parsley, peanut butter and egg and stir well to combine. (I started my mix with a wooden spoon but finished with my hands to really work the flour in.)
2) Roll out mixture with a rolling pin to about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thickness and use cookie cutter to cut into shapes. Place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and bake until firm and golden brown on the bottom. 40 to 45 minutes. Set aside to let cool completely. 

Peanut Butter and Banana - this could be a treat for Elvis's Pooch!

These treats are vegetarian, low sodium and dairy free, if your pet has special dietary needs. Also, as noted above, it's very simple to make this recipe gluten free. I'm fortunate that I'm just dealing with a chubby dog - and one picky one! If you have a picky dog as well, you can experiment a lot with this base recipe. Mint (helps with breath) and oregano can be swapped for the parsley, or you can try applesauce, pureed pumpkin or even peach instead of mashed banana.
This combination was another hit with my dogs though, and hopefully your furry friend as well!

Candy Corn Cookies

I love holiday baking, and when I saw this Land O Lakes recipe on Pinterest, I just couldn't resist making these candy corn cookies. Although the layers are slightly labour intensive, don't let that sway you from trying these treats! They're very simple and the result is so cute. I split a few dozen between mine and my boyfriend's workplaces, and they didn't last long. This is also a super tasty and easy base sugar cookie recipe. 

 Layered Candy Corn Sugar Cookies

You Need:
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. sugar + 1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp. orange juice
2 tsp. freshly grated orange zest
1/8 tsp. salt
3 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
Yellow and orange (or red) food coloring

First Layer Pressed in Pan

To Do: (Adapted from Sparkling Candy Corn Cookies, link above)
1) Line a shallow loaf pan with wax or parchment paper and set aside.
2) In a large bowl or mixer, combine butter and 1 cup sugar. Beat at medium speed until creamy. Add egg, orange juice, orange zest and salt. Continue beating until well mixed. Reduce speed to low and add flour and baking soda.
3) Divide dough into thirds. Press one-third of plain dough evenly onto bottom of paper covered pan. To the next third,  add a small amount of orange food coloring (2 drops each yellow and red if you don't have orange) and mix until color is well blended. Press orange dough evenly over white dough in pan. Add small amount of yellow food color to the remaining dough and mix until color is well blended. Press yellow dough evenly over orange dough in pan. Cover with plastic wrap or towel and refrigerate until firm. The original recipe suggested to refrigerate for at least 2 hours, but I found my dough was firm enough after a little more than an hour.
4) Preheat oven to 375°F. Place 1/2 cup sugar in a small bowl and set aside. Remove dough and paper from loaf pan and place onto cutting surface. Cut loaf crosswise into 1/4-inch slices using sharp knife, trimming edges to make even, if necessary. Cut each slice into wedges (Like this /\/\/\/\/).  Place wedges 1-inch apart onto ungreased cookie sheets and bake for 7 to 10 minutes (until edges are firm and bottoms are very lightly browned). Cool 1 minute and one by one, roll each cookie into sugar until coated. Place sugared cookies onto wire rack to cool and enjoy!

Oh geez my pan looks bad! Focus on the cookies!

I really did not get the orange flavor from this cookie, but I used mandarin oranges which are a bit milder. I imagine if you used orange juice from concentrate from the fridge you might notice a bit more. Despite that, these were delicious and just way too cute for words. They are a must try!

Asian Inspired Chicken Salad

I love variety in a salad. Crispy noodles, crunchy almonds, creamy brie, sweet strawberries, buttery avocado - I love it all. With this in mind, I decided to try an asian-inspired salad for dinner last night with a few different textures and homemade dressing. This recipe is for four servings and they are some easy instructions in the recipe to pack it for leftovers without everything getting soggy and unappetizing.

Excuse the picture quality, I was hungry!

You Need: (yield: 4 meal-size salads)
Salad
3 cooked (grilled or baked is best) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 green onions
8-10 c. spring mix
1/2 cucumber
2 mandarin oranges
1/4 pkg (1/4 lb.) chow mein noodles, boiled and baked or fried, per directions on package
Sesame Ginger Dressing (Modified from this base recipe)
1/4 c. olive oil
1/8 c. sugar
1/2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. fresh grated ginger
1/2 tbsp. sesame seeds

To Do:
1) Chop chicken, cucumber and oranges into bite size pieces. Finely dice green onions. Chop cooked chow mein to desired size.
2) Combine all dressing ingredients (oil, sugar, soy sauce, red wine vinegar, ginger and sesame seeds) and mix well in a small bowl or dressing/oil and vinegar container. Can keep for a few days if refrigerated.
3) In a large bowl, toss salad ingredients with dressing and serve.

Optional: If splitting the 4 salads into 2 dinners and 2 lunches. In step 3, combine only half of salad and dressing ingredients.
With remaining ingredients: (for tomorrow's lunches)
Line 2 Tupperware containers with lettuce and top with chow mein noodles. Wrap portions of chicken breast in plastic wrap, place on top and seal with lid. Put onions, cucumber and orange in a ziplock bag and pack separately. Bring dressing in a separate reusable container. Combine at lunch!! Sounds like a lot of work but worth it for a crisp, restaurant quality salad.

This recipe is similar to a prepackaged one I pick up at Safeway, with the added benefit of not having anything I don't like (I'm looking at you, red onion) and a dressing I know exactly what went into. I also had many of these ingredients at home, making for an easy meal. Even the non-vegetable loving boyfriend enjoyed this dish, so it's definitely a make again. I would reduce the sugar in the dressing slightly, but besides that it's good to go. Enjoy!

Tomato and Parmesan Dog Biscuits

I adopted a new dog last month! I've had my first dog, Sputnik, for almost 9 years and he needed a friend. Enter Cubby, a 10 year old pomeranian from the Vancouver Animal Shelter. Cubby is super sweet but a little overweight, so he's been on a diet. Solution - homemade treats!  It gave me a great excuse to bust out a cookbook my sister gave me recently from Hug-a-bull Pitbull Rescue  - a worthy cause. It's mostly human food but there's a section in the back for dog treats. The link goes to their blog if you want to help support the dogs they foster. This recipe is adapted from Nick's Top Tomato Treats.  Enjoy!

Homemade, low calorie dog treats

You Need: (Makes 3-4 Dozen)
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 tbsp. oregano
1 packet yeast
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1 egg, separated
2 tbsp. parsley
1/4 c. broth (I used chicken, but I'm sure most dogs would love beef as well!) 
1/4 c. tomato, mashed
parmesan or pecorino cheese

These babies don't spread very much, so you don't have to worry about spacing

To Do:
1) Preheat oven to 350 F. Stir together flour, yeast, oregano, garlic and parsley. Add egg yolk, warm broth and tomato, mix well.
2) Roll dough to about 1/2 of an inch thick and cut with cookie cutter. Brush tops of cookies with egg white and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
3) Bake for 30 minutes, then reduce heat to 200 F. Let dry in oven for one hour. Cool and feed those dogs!

Cubby sneaking a treat

When these treats first came out of the oven, I thought they were too hard. Then I actually fed them to my dogs and realized the texture was perfect. It's comparable to a milk bone. Cubby will eat anything, so the pickier Sputnik was the true test. He loved them! I would definitely make these biscuits again. I'm still trying to convince Eric to eat one so I can let you know how they taste...

Gingersnaps with Orange Rind

Autumn is just around the corner! Gingersnaps definitely remind me of the season and they're my all-time favourite non-chocolate cookie. These are a lighter gingersnap than I'm used to but they sure are delicious! My old roommate's mom made excellent gingersnaps (if you're reading this Wendy, please bake me some cookies) that were the more traditional, molasses based variety. I still love that classic but the orange rind in the recipe that follows adds a neat twist on this great cookie.

Lighter in color and flavour

You Need: (yield: 2 dozen cookies)
2.5 c. flour
pinch of salt
1 c. sugar + separate 1/4 c. sugar in small bowl
1 tbsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. baking soda
9 tbsp. butter (and a little extra to grease the pan)
1/4 c. golden or dark corn syrup (if you only have white, you can mix 1 part molasses with 3 parts white corn syrup for a substitute)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp. grated orange rind

 A caramel butter and corn syrup mixture

 
To Do:
1) Preheat oven to 325 F. Lightly grease two 9 large cookie sheets and set aside.
2) Sift together flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, ginger and nutmeg into a large bowl. Set aside, and add corn syrup and butter (chopped into chunks) into a small saucepan. Heat slowly (2-3 on your burner), mixing with a wooden spoon until butter has melted and you have a uniform liquid. Let cool for two minutes.
3) Pour corn syrup mixture into dry ingredients. Add beaten egg and orange rind. Mix well with a wooden spoon. Use hands to complete mixing and roll dough into small balls. Coat each dough ball in sugar by rolling in small bowl and put on greased cookie sheet. You should be able to fit 12-15 cookies on each sheet. Push down each cookie lightly (see above image) and bake for 18-20 minutes. Cool on wire rack.

A beer and a cookie! Snack of Champions

On a beer note, I tried a bottle of Rickard's Cardigan Ale while I was baking these today and it made for a perfect pair. They were both spicy autumn tastes. I love seasonal beers and the colder seasons have the best varieties. I'm definitely planning on picking up some Russel Cranberry Wheat Ale for our turkey dinner this year. Do any readers have a seasonal favourite?
Ah, I'm getting distracted from the cookie. This was a quick one to whip up and I think it could be appreciated by cookie lovers everywhere. The taste is mild and would be nice with a hot tea or cool glass of milk. When the air is crisp and the leaves are turning orange, the ginger and hint of citrus in the cookie feel just right.

This recipe was adapted from the 446th listing in the book to the left (1001 Cupcakes, Cookies and other Tempting Treats by Susanna Tee). I received the book for my birthday this year (everyone was thinking of my blog for gift ideas!) and this is my second go at a sweet treat from it. When a book promises 1000 recipes I can be a bit skeptical, but there's more than enough content to make this one worthwhile. My only complaint would be it contains some of the same recipes from '1 Mix, 100 Muffins' which I also received as a gift at one time. Nevertheless,  I think I'll be trying a pistachio and almond cookie next. Flipping through this book's pages also reminded me for the millionth time I need a madeleine pan. They're just too cute.

Sweet Hawaiian Rolls

The last long weekend of the summer called for a picnic, and I had a potluck in the park with my family. There was roast beef, strawberry spinach salad, sausage rolls, cupcakes, san pelligrino... it was quite a spread! My contribution was this sweet Hawaiian bun. The recipe is adapted from BakeSpace, a new website to me.

 A sweet roll for a summer picnic

You Need: (Yield: 18-20 rolls)
1/2 c. lukewarm water (105 to 115 F)
2 tbsp. (about 2 packets) yeast
2/3 c. + 1 tsp. sugar
3/4 c. pineapple juice
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
6 c. all purpose flour
1 extra whole egg and sugar for brushing over/glazing the rolls before baking

Warm, tropical juice

To Do:
1) Add yeast and 1 tsp. sugar to warm water in a small bowl. Mix well and let stand 5 to 10 minutes or until bubbly.
2) In a small saucepan, heat pineapple juice on high, with 2/3 cup sugar and butter until butter is melted. Once melted, reduce heat to low and add eggs, salt, ground ginger and vanilla.
3) Place 3 cups flour in large mixing bowl (I used my KitchenAid) and mix in dissolved yeast and pineapple mixture. Beat until blended. Stir in enough remaining flour (2-3 c.) to make a stiff dough.
Knead on floured surface (or use dough hook in the mixer) until dough is smooth and elastic.
3) Let dough rest in lightly oiled bowl, turn to coat and cover with a plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled in volume,  about 1 and half hours. Punch dough and let rise about an hour more. Portion into 18-20 rolls and put into 9x13 greased pan. (I had to put 4 extra in a cake pan.)
4)  Brush rolls with beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 350 F in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.

Connected, but they pull apart so easily

I let my buns go a little bit too long (about 5 minutes extra) because they didn't look completely cooked. Don't make that mistake! My bottoms were definitely a little browned as a result. They were still super tasty though. I used mine as a side with butter, as a sandwich bread with roast beef and havarti, a quick breakfast with blackberry jam and my diabetic grandma said she used the slightly sweet bun as a dessert. These will be a make again for me for sure. Anything for those wonderful memories of Oahu!!