Turkey and Quinoa Meatloaf

I have a cute little chime that rings on my Blackberry each time I get a new e-mail. I'm captivated by the sound. Sometimes it's a parent inquiring about Victory, an update on a blog that I follow, online account statements, unimpressive coupons and sale offers, a random piece of spam from someone in my contacts who had their account hacked, etc. I also receive an e-mail each weekday from AllRecipes.com. I usually delete them immediately because I have a long list of recipes to make on my wish list. Turkey and quinoa meatloaf caught my attention, though.

I read a few of the reviews and went for it. I added chopped green peppers and a little bit of cinnamon. The quinoa works very well as a replacement for bread and gives it a nice texture. Plus, it's a superfood.

This particular recipe made the meatloaf a little spicy. It definitely had a "kick," but it seemed like it was needed to add the necessary flavor. Ground turkey and quinoa both tend to be on the flavorless side. Combined with these ingredients, though, made for a fantastic meatloaf. All of this came from that simple little chime.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup quinoa
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1 (20 ounce) package ground turkey
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon Jalapeno pepper hot sauce (Trader Joe's brand)
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon water



Directions:
Bring the quinoa and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender, and the water has been absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion and green pepper; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute; remove from heat to cool.

Stir the turkey, cooked quinoa, onions, green pepper, tomato paste, hot sauce, 2 tablespoons Worcestershire, egg, salt, and pepper in a large bowl until well combined. The mixture will be very moist. Shape into a loaf on a foil lined baking sheet. Combine the brown sugar, 2 teaspoons Worcestershire, and 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl. Rub the paste over the top of the meatloaf.

Bake in the preheated oven until no longer pink in the center, about 50 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 160 degrees F(70 degrees C). Let the meatloaf cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Directions from:
Turkey and Quinoa Meatloaf Recipe from AllRecipes.com

Chobani yogurt pancakes

I usually purchase the large container of vanilla flavored Chobani Greek yogurt because we go through it so quickly. As I was scooping some out the other day, I noticed a recipe on the side for Chobani yogurt pancakes. Since I make pancakes a fairly regularly my kids, I thought it was the perfect recipe to try.

I followed the ingredients list very carefully because I couldn't quite grasp what yogurt would do to pancake batter. It was thicker and much stickier than I'm used to. I added close to an extra 1/4 cup of milk because I didn't trust that pancakes would cook through entirely. In the end, I don't think it made much difference.

We ate them with maple syrup, but I kept envisioning the berry syrup on the table at Perkins. I think fruit would go very well these pancakes, whether if it was syrup, jam or fresh strawberries. Fruit will definitely be in the plan next time. Regardless, these pancakes were simply fantastic.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups (12 oz) Vanilla 0% Chobani Greek Yogurt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
3/4 cup milk

Combine dry ingredients. Whisk wet ingredients, pour into dry mixture, and stir just until combined. Over medium-high heat scoop 1/4 cup batter onto skillet per pancake. Flip when bubbles appear. Cook until golden brown.

Sunday Soup Day: Pumpkin Turkey Chili, v2.0

This is the first repeat recipe that I've featured on this blog. It's that good. Any time people talk about chili, inevitably, I end up raving about my pumpkin turkey chili. I made it a handful of times last year and will probably make it a few times this fall.

I LOVE making soup. There's something about it that brings me peace and comfort. I get very focused when I'm in my kitchen. Chili is a little different, though. It allows for me to be less focused because, basically, I just put all of the ingredients in the pot, make sure the meat is cooked then eat it. In this particular chili, the pumpkin replaces the tomato paste usually used to make chili. It's the same consistency, but I think it's much better tasting and suitable for October.

I highly recommend this recipe, as I always do on this blog. It's a great potluck choice because it will create a buzz among the guests. It's also extremely tasty and good for you. I likely wouldn't post it if it wasn't.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 chopped onion
1 chopped green bell pepper
1 chopped red bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pound ground turkey
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 can pumpkin puree
1 can Cannelinni beans
1 can kidney beans
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and other seasoning to taste

Sunday Soup Day: Vegetable and Wild Rice with White Beans

Our day was jam packed with activity from the moment the sun came up. So, needless to say, I was strapped for time on the preparation of my soup. In fact, I didn't even know what I was going to make until half time of the Packers game, which meant getting groceries was out of the picture.

We had onions, carrots and green peppers, so I sauteed them in my lovely Dutch oven with olive oil. I poured water into the pot so it covered the vegetables and added cooked wild rice. I had to add a little more water because the rice was going absorb some of it. I also had a can of Cannelinni beans (white beans), so I added the entire can for a little extra protein.

Everything turned out very well. The wild rice was a very good addition, as were the beans, because they gave the soup substance and provided extra color and texture. I used many of the seasonings that I usually do, so it had a familiar taste, but it was better than normal because very little was expected from it. I'm getting pretty good at this. ;)

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 green pepper
1 onion
4 oz carrots
6-10 oz water
2 cups cooked wild rice
1 can Cannelinni beans (rinsed)
Seasoning to taste

Shrimp and Garbanzo Beans with Tomatoes and Pesto

It's already been a few days since I made this, but it's important that I share it with everyone. For "refrigerator clean out" day I threw together a keeper. We had a bag of frozen shrimp in the freezer so I let my imagination wander and came away with a simple and fantastic meal that is probably closest to the Italian dish Gamberi con Ceci e Pomodorini Secchi al Profumo. I know you're thinking I sound like a legitimate chef after name dropping that one, but I looked up shrimp and garbanzo beans recipes to see if what I did had ever been done before and of course my Italian ancestors apparently have.

I sauteed onion and garlic and added the shrimp. After 5-10 minutes, I set this aside and sauteed diced tomatoes (in a can). I wasn't very excited about the tomato juice that was in the can so I rinsed them in a strainer. I added a small amount of garlic and basil seasoning to the tomatoes and then set them aside, too. Finally, I sauteed the chickpeas in olive oil. Since it was refrigerator clean out, I pulled out a jar of pesto and added two large spoonfuls to the chickpeas. Once the pesto was fully incorporated, I added the garlic shrimp and tomatoes and mixed them together.

We couldn't believe how well this turned out. I kind of looked like a genius putting this one together on short notice and using only the things we had in the kitchen. I'm planning on making this the next time we have visitors. It can be a main or side dish. I would imagine more vegetables could be added, however, there was something about the simplicity that made it as good as it was.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 16 oz bag of frozen shrimp (cooked)
1 8 oz can of diced tomatoes in juice (rinsed)
1 8 oz can of garbanzo beans/chick peas (rinsed)
2 "spoonfuls" of pesto
seasoning to taste

Sunday Soup Day: Edamame and Sauteed Vegetable

Welcome back! It's been way too long since I've written about the things that have happened in my kitchen. It took until the 3rd week of the NFL season before I was able to get back to what we love most about Sundays: soup.

To start the Sunday Soup Day season, I chose to be creative and made an edamame and sauteed vegetable soup topped with Parmesan cheese and freshly baked bread. It was a splendid choice for today and it set a very high standard for the soups that will follow.

To start, I cooked some vegetables in olive oil using my Dutch oven. Oh, I've missed using my Dutch oven. After the vegetables were cooked, I strained, put on the cutting board and finely chopped them. I combined 9 cups of vegetable broth and the chopped vegetables and brought the soup to a boil before taking it off the burner and letting it cool so I could puree it in the blender.

I put the base back into the Dutch oven (which was a great soup by itself). I added pasta rings and the edamame and cooked it until the pasta was soft. Of course, I topped each bowl with Parmesan cheese, which happened to be a key component to the finished product. The fresh bread helped, too.

On Friday, I decided I was going to go with edamame soup. I visualized something light green (like split pea). I even thought about trying to include coconut milk, but ended up going in an entirely different direction. When the tomatoes were cooking, I was a little scared because it was clearly not going to be green. The pureed mixture was close to orange, but the edamame was perfect despite the color. I really enjoyed this soup and I'm excited to try a few other things with edamame in the near future.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 28-oz can of diced tomatoes (drained)
1 large onion
3 oz carrot
2 garlic cloves, chopped
4 oz baby bella mushrooms, chopped
9 cups vegetable broth (Trader Joe's organic)
4 large fresh Italian parsley sprigs
6 oz pasta rings
3 cups frozen edamame
seasoning to taste
fresh grated Parmesan chesse

Spring vegetable minestrone

It's been way too long since I've posted on Kevin Eats. I've made some wonderful meals and created some great new recipes over the past few months, I promise. My latest soup - spring vegetable minestrone - has motivated me to write another entry. I hope this re-ignites my desire to share what is happening in our kitchen more often.

I've made a lot of different soups and I'm very proud of my Italian heritage, so I'm kind of surprised that I had never tackled minestrone before today. To be honest, I usually choose "the other" soup on the menu when minestrone is offered which is why I'm very pleased with the one I made. It was extraordinary.

As always, I used my Dutch oven and sauteed onions and garlic with extra virgin olive oil. I added paprika (the key to the minestrone flavor), salt and pepper. Once the onions were translucent, I incorporated tomato paste followed by beef broth. While the soup was cooking, I diced a yellow squash, sugar snap peas, spinach, tomatoes and added it to the soup with a can of cannellini beans. I also used a lot of garlic and basil seasoning.

I constantly tasted the soup as it was cooking and added seasoning until it was just right. When served, it was topped with grated Parmesan cheese. Simply. Wonderful.

Ingredients:
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
4 tsp paprika
1 can tomato paste
1 box Trader Joe's Organic Beef Broth
1 yellow squash
4 oz. sugar snap peas, trimmed
1 tomato
2 oz. spinach
1 can Progresso cannellini beans
salt, pepper, garlic and basil seasoning to taste