You are here: Home / Archives for Recipes / Main Dish

Cheddar and Chorizo Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes and a Giveaway!

December 8, 2011 by 56 Comments

The giveaway info is below the recipe, so make like a scuba diver and keep on going down!

Some of the best food is just not pretty. It’s gooey, gloppy, brown, and not even a little bit elegant. It looks like it’s not worth the paper plate it rode in on. But when the scent wafts to your nose, when you take that first bite and the inelegance of the whole thing gives way to an explosion of flavour, it suddenly transcends the need to be another pretty dish. You plate it how you want. Heck. Sometimes you just skip a plate if the spirit moves you. It doesn’t matter as long as you get the food to your mouth. How can this happen? Isn’t there the axiom about eating with your eyes before you eat with your mouth?  I’m working on a hunch about the phenomenon, though.

I call it my Frog in a Box theory.

Everyone remembers the Looney Tunes cartoon where the down-on-his-luck, unemployed construction worker finds a frog with the extraordinary ability to sing like an angel, right? The man hoards his new found, potentially lucrative critter in an attempt to make money off of it. He goes to a talent agent’s office, talks a big game, plops the frog on the desk where he promptly delivers a resounding, “Brrrrrrrrrrrr-ibbit!” The man and his frog are bounced out on their respective ears* and once the door is slammed shut, the frog sings an aria in the hallway. Oh the frustration! Darned frog!

*Do frogs have ears? I should know this. I feel a homeschooling unit coming on…

After a few more rejections the man takes matters into his own hands and rents a theater where he resorts to trickery to bring in a crowd. (Free beer and chicken, anyone?) He gets a full house, raises the curtain, shoves the frog on stage and once more, “Brrrrrrrrr-ibbit!” The crowd exits, stage left and the frog consoles the man by singing a few popular ditties.

So here’s the deal. This dish is my Frog in a Box. No matter which light, which plating, which lens and which toppings I used, these things just plain looked ugly. And every time I took a bite, I heard a glorious choir in my head. What was a gal to do?  I don’t give up as easily as our  poor Looney Tunes construction worker. I’m posting it anyway, ugly photos and all. That blasted frog was able to escape detection but these potatoes? They’re here for everyone else to try and enjoy. Make them. Try them yourself! Stick it to the frog!

The crispy potato shell holds a creamy Cheddar, chorizo and green onion studded mashed potato filling. Eat them for breakfast, second breakfast, lunch, snack or dinner. Plate them or hold them in your hot little hands while you eat them. Have them with a proper dinner or slap a platter of them on the coffee table for the ultimate hockey or football viewing snacks. You can even make these up to the point where you’d bake them and stash them in the freezer (minus their cap of shreddy-cheddy) until you want to serve them. Top with cheese as directed and bake. How neat is that?

 

Print
Cheddar and Chorizo Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes and a Giveaway!

Cheddar and Chorizo Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes and a Giveaway!

Crispy shelled, creamy Cheddar and chorizo and green onion stuffed twice baked potatoes are a great comfort food addition to your winter meal and snack repertoire. I've eaten these at breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack time and can promise they're one of the best game day snacks you could ever serve. All that and they're easy, too!

Ingredients

  • 6 leftover baked potatoes
  • 4 tablespoons softened butter
  • 1/2 cup room temperature milk or half and half
  • 4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
  • 2 1/2 cups cooked and crumbled Mexican style chorizo , divided
  • 6 green onions, cleaned and thinly sliced
    • Optional for serving:
  • sour cream
  • candied jalapenos
  • additional sliced green onions
  • salsa

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Halve each potato lengthwise. (Before halving each potato, pay attention to how it naturally lays on the cutting board so that after halving, they don't tip when placed skin side down on the pan.) Scoop most of the potato innards into a mixing bowl, just leaving enough in place to maintain the shape of the potato skin. (This means leaving about 1/4" of potato guts in place.)

Smash the potato guts together with the softened butter, milk or half and half, and 2 1/2 cups of the cheese in the mixing bowl until the potatoes are relatively smooth. Stir in the chorizo and green onions until evenly distributed.

Divide the potato filling evenly among the potato shells, spreading the filling to the edges of the potato skins. Sprinkle the remaining cheese evenly over the tops of the stuffed potatoes.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbling and the filling is hot all the way through. Serve as is or topped with sour cream, candied jalapenos , salsa, and sliced green onions.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/12/08/cheddar-and-chorizo-stuffed-twice-baked-potatoes-and-a-giveaway/

 

The Giveaway!

I have a seriously fun giveaway that has me pretty excited. Okay, I lie. I’m stupidly excited about this. In the years I’ve been blogging here, you’ve gotten to know a lot about me; my book/movie/Doctor Who/music/bacon obsessions. It’s all true, but one of the biggest obsessions in my life is…

Wait for it…

Clothing. I love clothing. I love clothes far more than any woman who has carried and birthed five children has any right to be. I love all sorts of dresses- retro dresses, vintage dresses, modern, sleek, voluminous, old-fashioned, cute, sultry… Anything I can afford to buy and I can carry off I adore. I’ve long admired the selection over at Shabby Apple (you HAVE seen their website, right?) and I know from personal experience how their dresses are the kind of women’s dresses that make every woman feel like an old-fashioned movie star- glamourous, sexy, and oh-so-put-together.  Unlike my pauvre potato recipe, their designs look good in any light, any situation, and any lens that catches them.

When Shabby Apple contacted me and offered to give away a dress from a list of dresses to one of my readers I jumped on it. I might’ve even squealed a little bit. I’m telling you honestly their dresses are squeal worthy. In other words, I said yes.  Do you want to see the dress I picked to give away? Hmm? Yes? Are you excited yet? I know I’m not the only dress nut out there. Feast your eyes on this!

 

Image used courtesy of Shabby Apple

Isn’t it gorgeous? Shabby Apple describes the dress as being “Plum-colored folds of soft jersey fabric dip from the shoulders into a ruched waist that runs from bust to hip on this flouncy, ballet-inspired dress.  Perfect for traveling, this dress sports a V-neck and fully lined skirt for extra coverage, so whether at the office or on the road, you’ll feel comfortable and beautiful.” So, so true.

Anyway, let’s get down to brass tacks. To enter for a change to win this incredible dress (think holiday parties and beyond! Dress it up with a jacket and some tall boots for the office or church or a dinner date!) just head over to Shabby Apple’s Facebook Page and like them. (That’s easy enough with to-die-for dresses like that!) Then scoot back over here and leave me a comment saying you did it.

And the nice folks over at Shabby Apple don’t want anyone to feel left out. They’ve issued a coupon code just for Foodie with Family readers: foodiewithfamily10off . This code is good through January 7th, 2012, so get a-shopping. Then you can stand around in your splendid Shabby Apple dress eating one of my Frog in a Box Chorizo and Cheddar Stuffed Potatoes looking magnificent. Maybe the potatoes will even look prettier next to that dress!

The contest fine print: Shabby Apple is providing a dress for the giveaway, but all opinions about their company and their wares are my own.  With apologies to my global friends, this contest is open to US residents only. Winner will be selected using random.org on December 15th, 2011.

 

 

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Breakfast Foods, Comfort Food, Freezer Pleaser, Getting Creative With Leftovers, Giveaways!, kid food, Main Dish, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Snacks, Stretching your dollars Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

One Pot Tex Mex Pasta Toss

November 22, 2011 by 2 Comments

Yesterday, I banged the drum for playing with your food and above is my proof of why that is a virtuous kitchen activity. You are looking at a creamy tomato pasta with chorizo, black olives, cilantro, sour cream and candied jalapenos. …And scene.

No. It doesn’t really end there, although since we are two days away from Thanksgiving, I will keep this short and sweet.

If no one ever played with their food there would be no such things as Buffalo wings, nachos, baked potatoes, lentil soup, pickles, jam or olives (among other things.) Seriously. Have you ever tasted an unbrined olive? Big, fat, alum-laden ew. The point is, someone did it.

Someone has to do it.

You don’t have to go whole hog and start developing recipes from the ground up. Just tinker. Substitute one herb for another, try shallots instead of onions or vice versa, use Greek yogurt in place of sour cream… Look at what’s similar. What makes it similar? Is it texture, flavour, smell? Think of cooking as a puzzle where you’re fitting different things together in the best possible way. But here’s where it’s better than a puzzle. A puzzle can only be put together in one way. Foods have a nearly limitless number of combinations. Isn’t that a great thought? There is a perfect dish out there for everyone. It’s just up to us to find it!

This dish was borne of playing with the dish I posted yesterday. If you make them both you’ll see that while they are two dishes that use the same method and have textural similarities, that they are two completely different meals!

… Now before I share this with you and scoot off to make pies and whatnot I want to lay a little homegrown truth on you. I appreciate each and every one of you who visits here on a daily, weekly, monthly, yearly basis. Your presence and feedback makes Foodie With Family such a rewarding project for me that I can’t imagine what I’d do without you all. For each of you, I am grateful. Thank you for making this so fun for me. May your Thanksgiving Day be as wonderful as you hope!

With love,

Rebecca

 

Print
One Pot Tex Mex Pasta Toss

Ingredients

  • 1 pound Mexican style chorizo
  • 1 onion, peeled and diced
  • 5 cloves of garlic, peeled and diced or pressed
  • 1 dried arbol chili pepper, whole
  • 1 can (14-ish ounces) tomatoes (You can use diced, crushed or puree.) ~or~ 1 1/2 cups chopped, diced or crushed tomatoes
  • 1 cilantro stem, whole
  • 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 5 cups chicken stock
  • 1 pound uncooked dry shaped pasta (I used Campanelle. Other good choices would be small shells, cellentani, fiori and rotini, or any other pasta with hollows to hold sauce and meat.)
  • 1/4 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
  • 4 ounces (half of an 8 ounce brick) cream cheese or neufchatel cheese, cut into squares
    • Optional for garnish:
  • Minced fresh cilantro
  • halved or chopped black olives
  • chopped sweet onions
  • sour cream
  • candied jalapenos

Instructions

Break up the chorizo into a stockpot over medium heat, stirring and breaking up further with a sturdy spoon. Cook until chorizo is cooked through (browning is not necessary... just cook it through!), then use a slotted spoon to move the chorizo to a plate. If you are using a homemade, lean chorizo, you will need a little additional fat for the next step. If you are using a fattier chorizo, you can use the drippings in the next step.

Drain all but about 1 tablespoon of the drippings from the pan (if using lean chorizo, add 1 tablespoon of peanut oil or canola oil) and return the pan to the heat, dropping the temperature to low. Add the onion and garlic and whole arbol chili and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, or until the onions are translucent and soft.

Pour in the chicken stock and tomatoes then raise heat to medium high, bringing the mixture to a boil. When it is fully boiling, stir well, then add in the noodles and half of the reserved chorizo and the cilantro stem, oregano and cumin, using tongs to toss it until the noodles soften enough to be submerged. Add the lid, drop the heat to low again, cover tightly, and simmer for about 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the noodles are al dente (cooked mostly through with just some resistance in the center when bit.) Remove the pan from the heat.

Stir in the grated cheese and the cubed cream or neufchatel cheese, cover again and let stand for 5 minutes. When the 5 minutes are up, toss the noodles in the sauce until the cream cheese is melted and the sauce is thickened.

Serve the noodles garnished with the remaining chorizo, and chopped fresh cilantro, black olives, sweet onions, sour cream and candied jalapenos, if desired.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/11/22/one-pot-tex-mex-pasta-toss/

Filed Under: Comfort Food, Comfort Food, kid food, Main Dish, Meat, Pasta, Rebecca, Recipes Tagged With: , , ,

Taco Black Bean Burgers

October 24, 2011 by 8 Comments

 

It’s time for another installment of ‘Tasty Penance’, wherein I give you something tasty and healthy to make up for, oh, I dunno, maybe fried bologna sandwiches? If compensating for every marginally bad thing we ever did was as delicious as these Taco Black Bean Burgers, we’d all be apologizing and making things right all the time.

First of all, how can you possibly go wrong with taco flavours? Hmmm? You can’t!* Second of all, it’s a burger which is an automatic win. Third, it throws and is cooked in about fifteen minutes. That’s good and fast. Fourth, it has avocados and lettuce and tomatoes and onions and hot sauce. Enough said, right? And fifth…

*Unless you’re putting taco toppings on a bowl of fudge brownie ice cream. I can see how that would be problematic.

Fifth is the most important for me right now. It is made without the use of the oven.  Why would that be so important to the baking queen (that’d be me)? Because my oven. She is dead. Again. I am murder on baking ignitors, apparently. This is the fourth (or is it third? I don’t know. I just know it’s been more than two and less than six) ignitor I’ve blown out on my oven since getting it a little less than ten years ago.  Darnit.

I really hope that part shows up by midweek because I have a Pampered Chef party this weekend and because I want to get baking some of these five bushels of apples I got for experimenting. I’m a patient person. I’m a patient person. I’m a patient person. If I keep saying it, it’ll be true.

Luckily, the cook top is still working so pan frying is still an option and these burgers do not make me feel like I’m missing anything by not baking (except maybe a freshly baked bun, but I digress…) Now. Another word or several about these burgers.

  • They’re cheap. Super cheap. That makes me happy since I’m buying a new baking ignitor. Not that I’m bitter or anything…
  • Remember my Pizza Black Bean Burgers? I laid out all the reasons why I love my version of bean burgers there, so I won’t rehash it here, but I do have to say this.  The world seems to be divided into two clear camps when it comes to vegetable burgers. There’s the “Woohoo! Veggie Burgers!” contingent and the “Why a veggie burger when I can have a meat burger?!?” crew. As I am feeding a couple representatives of each of the aforementioned groups, I feel qualified to say that these not only pass muster on both sides of the fence, but are received enthusiastically. When I say enthusiastically, I mean they are hoovered at light speed. This is what I call a serious win.*
  • Leftovers make incredible snack food for late night movie viewing. I have demolished a plate full of cold taco black bean patties with hot sauce solo.

*Confession: I leave a couple little patties free of corn for the ONE hold out on sweetcorn in my crew. Stinker. He’ll come around eventually, but in the meantime, I’m still getting him to eat a vegetable burger. I’m not sweating the sweet corn.

I’m grateful that all my kids love beans. I have to tell you, though, that it wasn’t always that way. A couple of them required convincing. And while I’m not proud of how I managed it, I’m going to share my technique with those of you looking for a way to entice your children to love beans.

The method is simple and it has one step:

  1. Teach them the song.

You know which song I mean, right? The song about beans’ musical properties? Teach it to them. With gusto! And inform them that the song is correct then sit back and watch them eat. Be sure to remind them of the rules about where and when beans can be, um, played or suffer the consequences. I do believe you’ll find this to be a very effective way to encourage bean consumption whether or not you have five sons. We parents have to stick together. Go, Team Big People, right?

Have you ever done something you swore you’d never do to get your kids to try something?

Print
Taco Black Bean Burgers

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Gorgeous deep brown and crunchy on the outside, tender and bursting with taste, studded with corn, topped with avocados, tomatoes, lettuce onion and hot sauce, and served on soft buns, these meat-free Taco Black Bean Burgers pleased even the most entrenched picky eater in my house.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups (or 2 cans) black beans, drained and rinsed well, then drained again
  • 1 jalapeno, stem and seeds removed and roughly chopped
  • 3 tablespoons roughly chopped onions
  • 1-3 cloves of garlic, according to preference, roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons tomato sauce
  • 1 cup (or more) plain breadcrumbs
  • 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro or parsley (or 1 teaspoon dried cilantro or parsley flakes)
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • canola or peanut oil for frying
  • lettuce leaves, for
  • avocado slices, for topping
  • hot sauce, for topping
  • soft rolls, for serving

Instructions

Add the pepper, onion and garlic cloves to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade.

Put the lid in place and pulse, stopping to remove the lid and scrape down the sides of the bowl, until the ingredients are finely chopped.

Add half of the black beans, all of the seasonings, salt and tomato sauce to the food processor and pulse, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary, until the mixture resembles the consistency of guacamole (slightly chunky but a cohesive paste.)

Scrape the bean and vegetable mixture into a mixing bowl and stir in the remaining beans and corn, then the egg and breadcrumbs.

Test the consistency of the mixture. You should be able to roll the mixture into a ball and flatten into a patty without it sticking to your hands. If you cannot, add one extra tablespoon of breadcrumbs at a time, stirring and checking the consistency after each addition until it does what it should. The goal is to add enough that the mixture ceases to be sticky but not so much that it becomes crumbly. I found that in each of the batches I made, I needed significantly different amounts of breadcrumbs to hold the patties together, but I never needed less than 1 cup.

Roll balls of the bean mixture according to the size of the burger you'd like: golf ball size for sliders, peach size for standard burgers, navel orange size for mega-burgers.

Place a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat and pour in enough oil to cover the bottom by about 1/8-inch. When the oil is shimmering, flatten each ball into a patty that is about 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick and slide it into the oil. Do this with as many patties as you can comfortably fit into the pan without crowding. Fry for about 3-4 minutes on each side, or until deep brown and crunchy on the outside.

Transfer the patties to a paper towel lined platter.

To serve:

Stack one patty on lettuce on the bottom half of each bun, avocado slices, hot sauce to taste and finally add the top half of the bun.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/10/24/taco-black-bean-burgers/

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Comfort Food, Happy Healthy and Wise, Healthy Foods, Main Dish, Rebecca, Recipes, Stretching your dollars, Vegetarian

Slow-Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

September 2, 2011 by 55 Comments

Update with a correction: In the recipe, I accidentally forgot to include the whole jalapeno pepper that I simmered with the sauce. It will be good without it, but it’s great with it. I have modified the recipe to reflect the correction.

This plate of Chicken Tikka Masala (because that’s what it is) represents a giant victory sixteen years in the making. We are talking about a serious case of I-told-you-so mixed with a pretty solid  I-was-right-and-you-were-wrong combined with a decade long desire for Indian food thwarted by… my husband.

I love that man of mine -love him dearly, bigger than the bay and to the ends of the earth- but he has sworn up one wall and down the other for the duration of the time I have known him that he despises Indian food.  He has blamed heartburn from the curry (okay, I can buy that), muddy flavours (that I blame on just plain bad take-out food) and unattractive presentation (because my husband is -and I’ll bet you didn’t know this- Frank Bruni, New York Times Food Critic. I’m kidding. He’s Darth Vader. But anyway.)  Like I said, though, I loves ‘im… and you don’t deliberately serve food to your loved ones that will make them unhappy, right?

Then I got a good deal on some chicken thighs and I had a thought. I busted out two slow-cookers. In one, I decided, I would make chicken taco meat: easy, delicious, well-loved by the husband. In the other? I was going to be a wild woman, throw caution to the wind and not only make *GASP* Indian food, but I was going to make my own version of the classic Chicken Tikka Masala. When I live dangerously, whew, I do it up right*.

*Look. I have five kids. At the moment? This is living dangerously. Just go with me on it, please, so I don’t feel pathetic. Tell me I’m crazy. Now.

I browned the yogurt and spice marinated chicken thighs in a saute pan with butter then tossed it into the slow cooker. Next up, I browned the onions, garlic and ginger, and spices, deglazed with the sauce ingredients then scraped those (minus the cream, which was added at the end to prevent curdling) and let it go for a few hours while the taco chicken cooked in a separate cooker. Simmer, simmer, simmer; that’s what the dueling crockpots of chicken did.

When, after a few hours, I stirred the heavy cream into the saucy, fragrant chicken, I was thrilled. It was beautiful, it was delicious, it was done. I tasted it and was *this close* to weeping tears of joy.  It wasn’t even close to dinner time yet, but I had wanted to get a jump on the evening. There was no way I was going to wait another minute. I piled a giant amount of rice cooked with peas and butter onto the plate. I ladled an enormous amount of the Chicken Tikka Masala over it, and tossed an industrial-sized fistful of chopped cilantro over the top and snapped a picture.

Then I looked into the camera again to snap another. Something was a bit off…

“Hey guys?” I called as I turned around to find three of my sons and one of their friends standing silently at the ready. With forks. “Um, would you guys like to be my guinea pigs?”

They polished that plate off in short order.  They wanted more. My three boys (including one from the no-green-stuff crowd) and their buddy loved it. The buddy asked me to give the recipe to his mom.

That was one obstacle cleared with daylight between me and the hurdle. The big question, however,  remained. What would my Indian cuisine averse beloved think?

I put together the most exquisitely plated dish of Chicken Tikka Masala that I possibly could and stuffed it into his hands while he sat at his computer working on a program. My husband knows better than to question a plate of lovingly offered food whatever the hour may be and he dutifully laid into it.

“If you don’t like it, you don’t have to eat it. I have taco meat going in another slow-cooker.” I disclaimed…

“Mmmm! Sgood!” he said.

“So, you like it?” I asked.

“Yeah! Sreallygood!” he said, mid-bite.

“So, you really like it??” I asked. And then he looked at me funny. Then he looked at the plate and then again at me and said,

“Yeah! Sreallygood. Thank you?”

And I’m sorry to say this, but I am fairly certain I smirked. I am an adult, but I am human. I got a hold of myself before I continued,

“Oh sure, honey. Eat up! If you’d like more, there’s plenty.” I walked away happy.

Victory. It tastes sweeter when defeat tastes great, too.

Print
Slow-Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 5 hours, 30 minutes

This classic Indian dish is sure to win over even the pickiest eaters with its creamy, rich, complex comfort food bona fides. This dinner is the perfect fall or winter warm-me-up and it reheats like a dream.

Ingredients

    For the chicken:
  • 9 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon ground coriander
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 cup yogurt
  • 4 tablespoons butter
    • For the sauce:
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1 large onion, peeled and diced
  • 6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 large piece of ginger (2-3 inches in size), peeled and grated
  • 3 tablespoons garam masala
  • 4 cups crushed tomatoes
  • 1 tablespoon raw sugar (or granulated white sugar)
  • 1 whole jalapeno, washed, stem removed and pierced several times with a sharp knife
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch or cleargel
    • To Serve:
  • Hot, buttered, cooked rice with peas (see recipe below)
    • Optional:
  • Cilantro

Instructions

Cut the boneless, skinless chicken thighs into 1- 1 1/2 inch pieces. Sprinkle the coriander, cumin and 1 teaspoon salt over the chicken, then stir in the yogurt until all the pieces are evenly coated. Cover lightly and let sit for 10 minutes before proceeding.

Melt 1 tablespoon the butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Raise the heat to medium high and quickly brown about 1/4 of the chicken. Transfer browned chicken to the slow cooker as it is finished, using 1 tablespoon of butter per batch, and repeat until the chicken is all in the slow-cooker.

Return the pan to the heat and melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter over medium high heat. Add the onions, garlic, and the 1 tablespoon of kosher salt, then stir. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions begin to lightly brown around the edges.

Stir in the garam masala and ginger and cook until fragrant (about 1 minute) before raising the heat to high and adding the crushed tomatoes and raw sugar. Stir well, scraping the caramelized bits from the bottom of the pan and bring to a boil. Pour over the chicken in the slow-cooker and add the jalapeno pepper.

Cover and cook on LOW for 5 hours, or until the chicken is very tender.

Use a fork or whisk to stir the cornstarch or cleargel into the heavy cream until smooth. Pour into the slow-cooker and stir gently until the colour is even. Replace the lid and let cook for 10 minutes or until bubbly around the edges.

Serve over hot rice topped with a generous amount of chopped cilantro.

Try not to gloat.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/09/02/slow-cooker-chicken-tikka-masala/

Print
Buttery Rice and Peas

Buttery rice and peas is comfort food at it's easiest. If you want to serve this with Chicken Tikka Masala and make it most authentic, use white basmati rice. If basmati is not easily available, you can substitute another long-grain white rice so long as it is not quick cooking or instant.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups long grain white rice
  • 4 tablespoons of butter
  • 4 cups of water
  • 1 cup frozen sweet peas

Instructions

To Cook in a Rice Cooker:

Add rice, butter and water to the rice cooker and program for the regular cycle. When it is complete, open the lid, stir in the peas, and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

To Cook on the Stove top:

In a mid-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the butter, water, and rice and bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as the water comes to the boil, cover the pot tightly, and drop the heat to low. Simmer for about 12-15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed and the rice looks fluffy. Fluff the rice with a spoon, stir in the frozen peas, and let sit, partially covered, for 10 minutes before serving.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/09/02/slow-cooker-chicken-tikka-masala/

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, kid food, Main Dish, Rebecca, Recipes, slow-cooker Tagged With: , ,

Fancy-Pants Bacon Jam, Spinach, Egg and Asiago Breakfast Pizza and a Giveaway!

August 16, 2011 by 84 Comments

Updated 8/19/11: Winner announced below the contest rules!

Sometimes you just know something is going to be good. Sometimes you have to pat yourself on the back. Today’s lunch was one of those moments.

While digging madly through the cupboards to find fast lunch ideas for my already starved* children, I realized I was out of bread, cheese, tortillas, apples, and all sorts of other things I rely on to fill their hollow legs quickly.

*Or so they said repeatedly and loudly while clinging to my legs.

Thankfully, a perusal of the refrigerator revealed a big bucket of my special no-knead semolina pizza dough and some leftover cooked spinach. Serendipitously, they were resting right next to a fresh jar of bacon jam and a dozen fresh eggs from our chickens. I knew I had the ingredients to make a great lunch but what I didn’t know was just how epic and satisfying that lunch would turn out to be.

I found that I was on auto-pilot setting when I noticed I automatically pre-heated my oven to four hundred and seventy five degrees without thinking after setting the bucket of dough on the counter*.

*That is the temperature at which I cook all of my pizzas, but this is the subject of an upcoming post. Oooh, spoilers! A tease and a Doctor Who reference all in one sidebar. I’m not proud.

Apparently I was making pizza for lunch. Well, why not? I decided to go with the auto-pilot. I rolled out the dough, spread on a little bacon jam and topped the jam with spinach that had been squeezed dry, topped it with a little grated asiago and slid it into the hot oven. Four minutes into cooking, I gently slide a cracked egg on top of the spinach. When the egg was set, I removed it from the oven…

…showered the top generously with more asiago and shook an indecent amount of hot sauce over the whole thing. I cut it in half, paused for a quick picture, admired the runny yolk, and there was a knock at the door.

Sigh.

Half an hour later, I was able to dig in. I can honestly tell you this tastes incredible at room temperature… I’m equally certain that it would taste most amazing hot, but at least I can tell you it’s better than just okay when cool.

The pizza crust has a crackling crisp underside due in part to the (hubba hubba) semolina flour in it. The insides are chewy. The upper crust takes on a deep golden brown and then we get to the bacon jam. Oh, bacon jam. Do you guys remember my bacon jam recipe? I didn’t think it was possible to love it more than I already did when I wrote that post but I was wrong. Every single way I’ve used it has made me love it better.*

*I guess maybe that one time I tried to use it as perfume didn’t work out really well… But everything else? Golden.

The salty, smoky, meaty, sweet, perfect umami bacony goodness that is bacon jam on pizza crust topped with spinach (hello, lover), an egg that I just took out of the coop this morning and a shower of finely grated asiago cheese? You could say this auto-pilot lunch was inspired. So, I thanked the source of all inspiration and blessings and ate my really excellent cold lunch pizza.

Pssst. I’m sharing my pizza dough recipe with you here today so you can get it in your refrigerator and use it both for this recipe and upcoming ones. This is a big hint. BIG HINT.

Now. Another giveaway! And hoo-doggy it’s a hot one. The generous folks at Smuckers offered to send one of Foodie with Family’s readers a pretty amazing gift basket. And when I say pretty amazing I mean four seriously pretty pink and green striped ice cream REAL (as in not plastic) bowls, an ice cream scoop, some of their new ice cream toppings (Blueberry and Hot Caramel) some of their classic toppings (Hot Fudge), some sweetened condensed milk (Used to make their dead easy 3-ingredient ice cream for which they include the recipe!) and -wait for it- a $75 gift certificate to Cooking.com.

So what does this have to do with a fancy-pants breakfast pizza? What goes better with pizza than a milkshake, I ask you? Not a thing, as far as I’m concerned.  And if I accidentally dolloped some of that caramel sauce into the blender with my ice cream and milk then I might have accidentally really loved it, too. I highly recommend accidentally doing that. Happy, happy day.

What do you need to do to enter this contest? This is one of my patented super complex entries. Leave a comment. Tell me what you like to eat with your milkshakes, what you would do with the $75 gift certificate, what your favourite ice cream topper is (Smuckers or otherwise), about the time you poured Magic Shell over your brother’s head, or what you like on your breakfast pizza. That’s it! Not too shabby for a chance to win all those goodies, eh? The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced here on Friday, August 19th.

Our winner is:

TiffH Well here in Oklahoma I love me a Strawberry milkshake with crinkle cut fries from Braum’s Ice Cream. And as far as cooking gift card I would get the ice cream maker I’ve been wanting (cuz I don’t have one) and use it with all that spiffy Smucker’s ice cream toppings and bowls… yeah! Can you overnight me some of that pizza because it looks delicious, and the egg on top genius!

TiffH, email me your mailing address and whatnot and I’ll send that right onto the folks at Smuckers!

Oh, and do me a favour? Since they’re being so generous, show them a little love and head on over to their website. They have some pretty fine dessert recipes posted!

Print
Fancy-Pants Bacon Jam, Spinach, Egg and Asiago Breakfast Pizza

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

This inspired breakfast pizza is topped with the salty, smoky, meaty, sweet, perfect umami bacony goodness that is bacon jam on pizza crust, spinach (hello, lover), a fresh egg, and a shower of finely grated asiago cheese. While it looks and tastes like a big deal, it's incredibly simple to make.

Ingredients

    Per Pizza:
  • 1 navel-orange sized piece of Semolina Olive Oil Dough (see following recipe) or favourite pizza dough
  • 2 tablespoons Bacon Jam warmed to slightly over room temperature
  • 1/4 cup cooked spinach, squeezed to remove most of the liquid
  • 2 tablespoons finely grated asiago cheese, divided
  • 1 egg, cracked into a shallow bowl or measuring cup
    • Optional for serving:
  • hot sauce

Instructions

Preheat oven to 475°F with a pizza stone in place (if you have one.)

On a clean, floured surface, roll or press out pizza dough until it is about 1/4-inch thick in the center and slightly thicker around the edges.

Gently spread the bacon jam from the center of the dough to within 1/2-inch of the edges, taking care not to stretch the dough. (Heating the jam ahead of time helps it to spread more easily.)

Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the asiago over the bacon jam and scatter the spinach over the top.

Sprinkle semolina or cornmeal over a pizza peel (if using a pizza stone) or a baking sheet (if no stone is available.) Transfer the dough, carefully, to the dusted peel or pan. If using the stone, slide the pizza directly onto the stone, if using the sheet, slide the sheet directly into the center of the oven.

Bake for 4 minutes then open the door of the oven and pour the cracked egg directly into the center of the pizza. This is easiest if the bowl or measuring cup is held right next to the pizza to minimize the egg running.

Bake an additional 8-14 minutes or until the egg is done to your liking. I pulled mine when the whites were firmly set and the yolk was still mostly runny.

Transfer the pizza to a cutting board, sprinkle with the remaining asiago cheese.

Serve hot or cold with hot sauce, if desired.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/08/16/fancy-pants-bacon-jam-spinach-egg-and-asiago-breakfast-pizza-and-a-giveaway/

Print
No-Knead 10-Day Semolina Olive Oil Pizza Dough

Prep Time: 15 minutes

This is, without a doubt, the best pizza dough I've ever made and eaten. The fact that it is no-knead and incredibly simple to make adds to its already ample charms. It bakes up as a beautifully crisp bottomed, chewy pizza crust but can also be made into pita bread and focaccia. It's like the bass-o-matic of pizza doughs!

Inspired by Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Zoë François and Jeff Hertzberg.

Ingredients

  • 5 1/2 cups room temperature water
  • 3 tablespoons instant yeast
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 2 tablespoons sugar (raw or granulated)
  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 11 cups (2 pounds, 15 3/4 ounces by weight) all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups (11 ounces by weight) semolina flour

Instructions

Mix the yeast, salt, sugar, olive oil and water in a 12 quart capacity bucket. (This recipe can be halved if you do not have a large enough container.)

Stir in the flour until no dry pockets remain. You do not have to knead it, but I find the easiest way to have it thoroughly mixed is to wet one hand and forearm and use that one to mix it in completely.

Cover lightly (Do not put a lid on tight. Trust me.) and let rest at room temperature until the dough has doubled and collapsed. (Or at least until dough is very, very puffy.) This takes a less than 2 hours in warm weather and more than 2 hours in cool or cold temperatures.

You can use the dough immediately. If you have leftovers, you can store them in the container, lightly covered (again, do not use a tight lid!) for up to 10 days. If you need to store the dough beyond that time, divide into individual pizza sized servings. Freeze in re-sealable plastic bags that have about a teaspoon of olive oil smeared around inside each for up to 3 months.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/08/16/fancy-pants-bacon-jam-spinach-egg-and-asiago-breakfast-pizza-and-a-giveaway/

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Bread, Breakfast Foods, Main Dish, Rebecca, Recipes, Snacks, Stretching your dollars Tagged With: , , , , ,

Korean Style Teriyaki Beef Lettuce Wraps and a Giveaway!

August 11, 2011 by 54 Comments

A couple months ago I was contacted by Back To The Roots, a company that sells grow-your-own-gourmet-mushroom kits using composted coffee grounds. Before I even got two sentences into the email from them I had hit reply with a message that went something like this:

“Yes! Whatever you’re asking me, yes! I love mushrooms. LOVE ‘em. What do you want me to do? I’ll do it!”

And then I sensibly went back and read the rest of the email.

As it turned out, my original response was entirely suitable to what they had asked me. They offered me my own oyster mushroom kit, a kit to give away to my readers (that’s YOU FOLKS!) and a ten-percent discount code for the rest of you to use so you can order your own kits from Back To The Roots. (Discount code: mushrooms4me10 ). And let me tell you, I was pretty impressed with the company.

I waited until I got back from the ranch to start growing my mushrooms and it’s a good thing I did because eight days in, BAM. I had about a pound of giant, gorgeous oyster mushrooms shooting out of my kit. I got so excited that I sliced them all off and cooked them before it even occurred to me to take a picture. Ahem. I was excited. Did I mention I like mushrooms a lot?

Thankfully, the instructions told me  how to get a second crop from the kit and I wrote myself many little sternly worded notes about taking a picture before cooking the mushrooms. This was my second crop:

I had never noticed before just how pretty mushrooms are. They’re so delicate and lovely that it was almost a shame to slice them up and cook them.

…Almost a shame. Not quite. No. Not really at all. I carried on and sallied forth and made one of the best summer meals we’ve had this year. Korean-Style Teriyaki Beef Lettuce Wraps*.

*If this beef looks familiar, it’s because it is. This is a very gently adapted version of my Jangsanjeok recipe but served over garlicky oyster mushroom soba noodles and wrapped in lettuce.

Don’t let the length of the ingredient list freak you out. The recipe is incredibly simple to pull together. Both the beef and noodles can be prepared as much as a day in advance of serving, making it a great solution for summer entertaining on steamy evenings. Substantial but not heavy, flavourful and exotic, these lettuce wraps are a crowd-pleaser. Alternatively, you could skip the crowd and eat it all yourself. Not that I’ve done that. I’m just saying.

So, this contest. You want the rules? Leave a comment. Tell me what you would do with your oyster mushroom bounty. Tell me how cool you think it is that they grow in composted coffee. Tell me you’d give this kit to your Aunt Marge because she loves mushrooms. Just tell me something!  The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced here on Monday, August 15th. Good luck everyone!

Update: Our winner is lucky comment #50: Janis who will be naming her burl Roger :-) Please email me your mailing address, Janis and happy mycelium tending.

A free mushroom kit was sent to me and one is being provided for this giveaway by the generous folks at Back To The Roots but all opinions and experiences discussed here are my own. What can I say? I’m enthusiastic about this product.

Print
Korean Style Teriyaki Beef Lettuce Wraps

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 60 minutes

Yield: 8 servings

Spicy, sweet, garlicky, gingery Korean-style teriyaki simmered beef patties on a bed of garlic oyster mushroom noodles get the fresh leaf lettuce wrap treatment for the ultimate summer meal. This is the stuff of cravings. Best yet, everything can be done ahead of time and chilled, making this a great fit for entertaining on warm evenings.

Ingredients

    For the Beef:
  • 2 pounds lean ground beef
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 tablespoon finely minced green onion
  • 1 tablespoon finely minced (or pressed in a garlic press) garlic
  • 4 tablespoons raw sugar (can substitute white granulated sugar if necessary)
  • 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
    • Ingredients for Simmering Sauce:
  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons water
  • 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon unsweetened apple or pear juice
  • 6 tablespoons raw sugar (can substitute white granulated sugar if necessary)
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 10 cloves of garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1-1/2? piece of ginger, thinly sliced*
  • 3 whole small dried red chilis (can substitute 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, can also reduce to suit heat preferences.)
  • 2 whole green onions, ends trimmed
    • For the Garlic Oyster Mushroom Noodles:
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1-2 cups oyster mushrooms
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
  • 6 tablespoons raw sugar
  • 8 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon gochujang (Korean chili paste) or Asian chili-garlic sauce
  • 1 pound soba noodles, cooked 1-2 minutes less than package instructions, drained and rinsed with very cold water
  • 6 green onions, sliced
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
    • Additional ingredients for serving:
  • 12-20 large leaves of lettuce (Bibb, leaf or romaine, preferably) rinsed and air dried
  • sliced green onions
  • toasted sesame seeds.

Instructions

To Prepare the Beef:

Preheat oven to broil (High Broil if your oven allows you to differentiate) with the oven rack between 6 to 8 inches from the heating element. (Alternately, you can heat your gas grill to High or lay a bed of hot coals in your charcoal grill.)

Combine beef with all the other patty ingredients in a medium size bowl. Mix well with your hands until the ingredients are evenly distributed. Divide the meat into two portions. Pat each portion into a square or rectangle that is about 1/2? thick on a rimmed baking sheet. The patties do not have to be shaped perfectly, but try your best to get them evenly thick in order to promote even cooking.

Broil or grill the beef for about 3 minutes on the first side. Carefully flip to prevent breakage. One spatula underneath and one spatula pressed lightly against the top works well for the manoeuver. Return the patty to the broiler or grill and cook until cooked through. This took 4 more minutes under my broiler. Remove the pan from the oven and cool completely.

While patties cool, combine all of the sauce ingredients in a large skillet or braising pot.

When the patties are completely cool, cut into squares that are about 1-inch to 1 1/2-inches in size. Bring the sauce ingredients to a boil over medium high. Stir well, then add the patties to the sauce. Lower heat to medium low and simmer, basting the patties and turning occasionally, until the sauce has been reduced, is thick and syrupy and has been mostly absorbed.

Serve hot or chilled.

To prepare the Garlic Oyster Mushroom Noodles:

Place a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium high heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil in it.

When the oil is shimmering, add the mushrooms with a couple pinches of salt and stir to coat.

Cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms are tender and golden brown.

Add garlic, raw sugar, the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and gochujang. Bring the sauce to a simmer, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth and somewhat thickened around the mushrooms.

Add the noodles to the pan and toss to coat.

Remove the pan from the heat and toss in the green onions and sesame seeds. Let cool to room temperature or colder before serving.

To Assemble Lettuce Wraps:

Lay out several large lettuce leaves.

Arrange about 1/8 cup of noodles on each leaf and top with two or so of the simmered beef patties.

Garnish with additional sesame seeds and green onions, if desired.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/08/11/korean-style-teriyaki-beef-lettuce-wraps-and-a-giveaway/

 

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Giveaways!, Healthy Foods, Korean Food, Main Dish, Meat, Recipes Tagged With: , , , ,

General Tso’s Chicken

August 3, 2011 by 17 Comments

I love chicken. I love Chinese food. I love Chinese chicken dishes. I really, really do.

It’s a matter of garlic, ginger, soy sauce and sesame oil.  There’s just something about that combination that makes me weak. The heady, nutty scent of toasted sesame oil with the pungent garlic and spicy ginger and the umami of the soy sauce renders me powerless. When I smell that there’d better be food on the horizon. And quick.

When I first saw this over on Evil Chef Mom, I knew I had to have it that night. Sweet and hot, crispy and tender, garlicky, gingery General Tso’s chicken is a mainstay of Chinese buffets and restaurants, but I knew it would be infinitely better, fresher and healthier at home. Since my husband was at work in the big city,  I texted him saying, “Please pick up boneless, skinless chicken thighs and broccoli. Need them desperately. Love you!”

He came home with bone-in, skin-on drumsticks and peas. Sigh. He meant well. Needless to say, I didn’t get my General Tso’s chicken that night.

The next night, my darling brought me pork chops and salad.

The night after that? Beef to grind for hamburgers and potatoes. I worshipped the idea from afar and waited for the moment I would get to the store by myself.

The next two big shopping trips yielded *GASP* no boneless, skinless chicken thighs because there was an apparent run on them in Amish country. Go figure.

General Tso and I were becoming star-crossed lovers.

Finally, when I went shopping for my birthday meal last week, boneless, skinless chicken thighs were abundant on the shelves and I did a happy dance that resembled Chris Farley’s ‘Tommy Boy’ version of the Flashdance number near the butcher’s counter. He looked at me a little funny, but I didn’t care. General Tso was mine at last.

He was totally worth waiting for. Love always is.

Adapted ever so slightly from and with major thanks to Evil Chef Mom.

 

Print
General Tso’s Chicken

Sweet and hot, crispy and tender, garlicky, gingery General Tso's chicken is a mainstay of Chinese buffets and restaurants, but you can make it better, fresher and healthier at home!

Ingredients

    For the chicken:
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
  • 1 large egg white
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat and cut into 1 1/2" pieces
  • canola, peanut or vegetable oil for frying
    • For the Sauce:
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger root
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
  • 1 cup chicken broth or stock
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon Chinese chile-garlic sauce
  • 3 tablespoons raw sugar (a.k.a. Demerara or Turbinado)
  • 1 tablespoon peanut, canola or vegetable oil
    • For Serving:
  • 4 scallions, thinly sliced
  • Steamed broccoli
  • Fresh, hot cooked white rice

Instructions

Prep your chicken:

In a mixing bowl, stir together the sesame oil, soy sauce, egg white, and 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of cornstarch until a thick slurry forms. It will look gummy but smooth.

Add the chicken pieces and stir until all are evenly coated. At first it may appear that it will not come together but it does!

Set aside, covered lightly with plastic wrap, at room temperature for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Begin the sauce:

Add the tablespoon of oil to a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over high heat.

Stir the garlic and ginger into the oil and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the remaining sauce ingredients until smooth. Pour into the garlic and ginger, stirring, until thick and shiny. Keep over a low burner partially covered to stay warm.

To fry the chicken:

Heat 1/2-inch of oil in a heavy-bottomed, high-sided frying pan or skillet over high heat.

When the oil is shimmering, add one piece of chicken at a time, taking care not to crowd the pan.

Cook for 4 minutes on each side, or until deep golden brown and crisp on both sides**.

Transfer the chicken to a paper towel lined plate and repeat the process until you've cooked all the chicken.

Slide all the chicken into the prepared sauce and toss to coat. (If desired, add the steamed broccoli to coat with the sauce also.) Increase the heat to medium, stir and cook just until hot all the way through.

Sprinkle with sliced scallions and serve immediately over white rice.

**A note: Chicken is a safe food for me. I know that just about anything done to it is going to yield something that is, at the very least, edible. This is especially true of boneless skinless chicken thighs. It's really hard to mess those up! They stay tender and juicy and it's very hard indeed to cook them to the point of chicken jerky. Be sure to cook them through, you definitely want that crisp, deep-brown coating to hold up to the sauce!
http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/08/03/general-tsos-chicken/

Filed Under: kid food, Main Dish, Rebecca, Recipes Tagged With: , , , ,

Pizza Black Bean Burgers

July 27, 2011 by 7 Comments

As promised in the last post, today I’m sharing a fun way to use up pizza sauce other than just pizza, not that there’s anything wrong with that…

In the extreme heat we’ve been having lately, my appetite has flagged a little bit. Believe me when I tell you that’s not a normal condition around here. (Referring to both the heat and the lack of appetite.) I haven’t wanted anything heavy or hearty and I surely haven’t wanted to stand around a hot stove or boiling pot of whatever or even, unbelievably, a screaming hot grill for more than ten minutes. That has limited our meal repertoire somewhat…

I saw some gorgiferous spicy black bean burgers floating around the internet a couple of weeks ago and knew some version of them had to make it to my table and soon. I’m a sucker for fried legume patties.  Veggie burgers are a good bet when it’s steamy hot since they cook up very quickly and the prep work leading up to it is minimal and doesn’t require cooking.  The cooking time is mercifully short  (four minutes per side) and you don’t have to stand over the pan to baby sit them. Where veggie burgers really shine, though -aside from the eating-, is after you’re done with the meal. You feel satisfied through and through but you don’t feel like you just ate a side of beef.*

*Mainly because you haven’t. Heh. Veggie burger humour; It’s meaty.

Since there are so many veggie burger recipes on the internet, I figured I should explain exactly why I prefer my version.

  • I like a burger that holds together well while being fried. I am an impatient human and when things start falling apart on me I’m prone to thinking angry thoughts. Angry thoughts while cooking equal stress and who needs more of that?
  • I like the method (introduced to me by Eat, Live, Run) of turning part of the beans into paste and stirring the remaining whole beans in for texture. I like to see the whole beans peeking out at me.
  • While I like to see bits and pieces of bright vegetable colour laced throughout my burgers, I am feeding a family that includes some entrenched members of the anti-visible-veg-contingent. Finely mincing the vegetables in the food processor allows me to add the flavour without adding the fight to the meal. Feel free to chop rather than mince, but I’ll tell you that the pickiest eaters in my house didn’t even flinch. These disappeared like shadows at noon.
  • I love using egg  as a binding agent in my vegetable burgers.  I think they hold together wonderfully in the frying pan and the added protein is a bonus.
  • I have a liberal hand with the bread crumbs. This is a textural issue for me. I don’t like veggie burgers that are mushy or straight-up wet in the center. And again (although I feel like a broken record saying this) they don’t fall apart when you try to flip them in the frying pan.

A note: I prefer my black beans cooked from dry rather than canned, so I used my own cooked beans. If canned beans are what you have on hand, though, they will work very well.

Print
Pizza Black Bean Burgers

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 14 sliders, 8 standard size, or 6 large burgers

Gorgeous deep brown and crunchy on the outside, tender and full of taste, topped with pizza sauce and gooey melted mozzarella, and served on soft buns brushed with olive oil and Italian seasonings, these meat-free Pizza Black Bean Burgers pleased even the most entrenched picky eater in my house.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups (or 2 cans) black beans, drained and rinsed well, then drained again
  • 1/2 of a green pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
  • 3 tablespoons roughly chopped onions
  • 1-3 cloves of garlic, according to preference, roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons pizza sauce
  • 1 cup (or more) plain breadcrumbs (*See notes below the instructions)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasonings
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil (or 1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh basil)
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • canola or peanut oil for frying
  • additional pizza sauce, for topping
  • grated mozzarella cheese, for topping
  • soft rolls, for serving
  • Optional:
  • extra virgin olive oil and Italian seasonings to brush on the roll

Instructions

Add the pepper, onion and garlic cloves to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade.

Put the lid in place and pulse, stopping to remove the lid and scrape down the sides of the bowl, until the ingredients are finely chopped.

Add half of the black beans, Italian seasonings, basil, salt and pizza sauce to the food processor and pulse, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary, until the mixture resembles the consistency of guacamole (slightly chunky but a cohesive paste.)

Scrape the bean and vegetable mixture into a mixing bowl and stir in the remaining beans, the egg and breadcrumbs.

Test the consistency of the mixture. You should be able to roll the mixture into a ball and flatten into a patty without it sticking to your hands. If you cannot, add one extra tablespoon of breadcrumbs at a time, stirring and checking the consistency after each addition until it does what it should. The goal is to add enough that the mixture ceases to be sticky but not so much that it becomes crumbly.

Roll balls of the bean mixture according to the size of the burger you'd like: golf ball size for sliders, peach size for standard burgers, navel orange size for mega-burgers.

Place a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat and pour in enough oil to cover the bottom by about 1/8-inch.

When the oil is shimmering, flatten each ball into a patty that is about 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick and slide it into the oil. Do this with as many patties as you can comfortably fit into the pan without crowding.

Fry for about 3-4 minutes on each side, or until deep brown and crunchy on the outside.

Transfer the patties to a paper towel lined platter and top immediately with grated mozzarella.

While the mozzarella melts on the hot patties, prepare the buns. They can be served as is, or brushed lightly with olive oil, sprinkled with Italian seasonings and then toasted quickly in the hot pan you used to fry the patties.

To serve:

Put one patty on the bottom half of each bun, dollop warm pizza sauce on the melted cheese and add the top half of the bun.

*I found that in each of the batches I made, I needed significantly different amounts of breadcrumbs to hold the patties together, but I never needed less than 1 cup.
http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/07/27/pizza-black-bean-burgers/

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Happy Healthy and Wise, kid food, Main Dish, Rebecca, Recipes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , ,
«Older Posts
Newer Posts»