Turkey Burgers

These burgers were really good.  The recipe calls for a tablespoon of Asian chili paste but I left that out so that the kids would still eat them.  I also left the water chestnuts out because I didn't feel like using them, and I didn't use the cilantro because I forgot to buy it, but I'll try that next time.  But feel free to try it with them and let me know what you think. :)
I'm not sure that I would add the water next time.  After I mixed everything together the burgers were really wet and I wasn't sure that we could even cook them on the grill.  So I added 1 egg and some bread crumbs to help out a little.  And then we ended up not eating them til the next day and I think that helped to let the bread crumbs soak up and everything worked fine.  :)  So anyway, I had to play around with this recipe a bit but it was yummy.

Turkey Burgers

Ingredients

Burgers:
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
Kosher salt
2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely chopped
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon Asian chili paste, optional
1 -inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
One 8-ounce can water chestnuts, drained and coarsely chopped, optional
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped

Optional Garnishes:
4 slices Cheddar
4 seeded burger buns
1/4 cup mayo mixed with 2 teaspoons Asian chili paste (or just plain mayo)
4 slices beefsteak tomatoes
4 slices raw red onion
Butter lettuce

Directions

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F to keep the first batch of burgers warm.
For the burgers: Coat a large saute pan with olive oil. Add the onions, season with salt and bring to a medium-high heat. Cook the onions until they are soft and very aromatic, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and let cool.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the turkey, soy sauce, sambal oelek, ginger, water chestnuts, cilantro and the cooked onions and garlic. (Reserve the onion pan to cook the burgers in later.) Add one-quarter to one-half cup water; this will help the burgers stay nice and moist. Using your hands, squish everything together until they are really well combined.  Form the mix into 4 equal size patties.
Coat the saute pan with new olive oil and bring to a medium-high heat. Place the burgers in the pan. Be sure not to crowd the pan, if you need to work in batches go ahead! Cook the burgers for 5 to 6 minutes on each side. Place the cheese, if using, on the burger and cook for 1 more minute.

Alternatively, grill on medium-high heat until cooked through.
Toast the buns in a broiler or toaster, or on the grill. Add desired garnishes and enjoy!


Recipe altered slightly, from Food Network  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/anne-burrell/turkey-burger-recipe.print.html?oc=linkback

Summer Grilled Pork Chops

This recipe originally called for 1 1/2 C. honey but that's a lot of expensive honey, so I did half honey, half brown sugar.  But feel free to use all honey if you'd like.

Summer Grilled Pork Chops

1 1/2 C. lemon juice
1 1/2 C. honey  (or 3/4 c. brown sugar, 3/4 C. honey)
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp dried basil
4 pork chops
salt and pepper to taste

Mix the lemon juice, honey, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and basil together in a bowl .  Pour about half the marinade into a ziploc bag; place the pork chops in the bag.  Squeeze out the air, seal and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (overnight is best).  Refrigerate remaining marinade for basting.
Preheat grill for medium-high heat, and lightly oil the grate.
Remove the chops from the bag and season with salt and pepper, if desired.  Grill until the chops are browned and the meat is no longer pink inside, 20-25 minutes.
Baste frequently with the reserved marinade, being sure to let the mixture cook on to the chops.  An instant read meat thermometer inserted in to the center of a chop should read at least 145°F.

Recipe from allrecipes.com

Tomato Soup

With our lovely cold, rainy day yesterday, I thought it was the perfect day for soup!  This soup was tasty and really easy.  The original recipe calls for everything to be done on the stove top but after I cooked the onion and garlic, I threw everything in a crock pot and let it slow cook for several hours.  I'm sure the stove top version would be great, too.  I also added Italian seasoning and some basil but I didn't measure it.  I made French bread to go with it and we topped each bowl with a little bit of cheese it was tasty...Jeff even liked this and he's not a fan of tomatoes.  Hooray!

Tomato Soup

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 med. onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 C. vegetable or chicken broth
1 can (28 oz.) peeled tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp butter
Italian seasoning and basil to taste
Croutons to top each serving, if desired (or fresh bread)
Cheese to garnish, if desired

In a 5-to 6-quart saucepot, heat oil on med.  Add onion and cook until a light golden color.  Add garlic and cook for another minute, being careful not to let the garlic burn.  At this point you can add everything to a crock pot, except for the butter, bread and/or croutons, and let it cook on low for 3-4 hours.  If you prefer the stove top, add the broth to the onion/garlic mixture.  Add tomatoes, bay leaves, Italian seasoning and basil, and salt.  Heat to boiling on high.  Reduce heat; simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove and discard bay leaves.  Stir in butter.  In batches in a blender, or with an immersion blender, blend soup until smooth.  Serve topped with croutons of fresh bread on the side.
Serves 4

Recipe altered slightly from Good Housekeeping magazine

Baked Gingerbread Oatmeal

This is totally the wrong season to post this, but if I don't do it now, I may never remember! I love this oatmeal served with milk!

Also, I finally started buying gallon jugs of molasses. I just bought one from Amazon because I got tired of running out after 1 or 2 recipes with the little jars. I've had mine now for almost a year and I'd estimate that there's between 1/3 to 1/2 left. (I also use it for making bread, so I use it a lot). Just thought I'd pass along that idea!

Baked Gingerbread Oatmeal

2 c. oats
1/4 c. ground flax seed or wheat germ, or some of each
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1-2 tsp. ground ginger (2 is too much for me!)
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 c. molasses
1/4 c. maple syrup
2 c. milk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 c. chopped dates or raisins, optional (I've never tried them)

Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients. Add the wet to the dry and mix. Fold in the dates, if using.

Spray an 8x8 inch pan or line with parchment paper. Pour batter into pan, and bake for 25-30 min or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (If doubling, a 9x13 pan takes more like 40 minutes to cook.)

Serve with milk, maple syrup or egg nog. Or serve with whipped cream!

From: monicaswanson.com

Rosemary Crackers

You know that the Wrights have a thing for rosemary, so it caught my eye when I saw the recipe for these. (Unfortunately, I neglected to note where I got it. Whoops!) We think they taste great! They're similar to wheat thins, but they don't have any sweetener so the flavor is a bit different. And the best thing about them: they're so easy! I'd never tried making my own crackers before. Now I want to try more...

Also, if you're not big on rosemary, you could try a different herb that you like.

Rosemary Crackers
2 c. flour (I do half wheat, half white)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2/3 c. warm water
1/2-1 T. dried crushed rosemary (we use 1 T.)
1/3 c. olive oil
Kosher salt, for sprinkling

Heat oven to 400.

Combine the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Add the wet ingredients and mix until a thick dough forms. (The original recipe said to knead it, but mine wasn't thick enough). Let rest for 5-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, grease two large cookie sheets. Divide dough into 2 equal parts and roll onto the cookie sheets, all the way to the edges. Try to make sure you get it evenly spread so it will cook evenly.

Sprinkle lightly with salt and use a pizza cutter to score into squares. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until crackers are lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

Store in an airtight container. If you live in a humid place you can sprinkle some dry rice on the bottom of the container to help keep them crisp. Mine stayed perfectly crisp without it in our dry state though!