Garden Meatballs reincarnated

I recently made a big batch of the FMD Garden Meatballs (recipe here). We had them for dinner one night with the tomato sauce and zucchini noodles I posted in that recipe, but by the next day I wanted something a little different. I decided to repurpose the items and mix it up a little bit. For lunch, we had stuffed zucchini boats, and for dinner, stuffed chicken roulade.

Meatballs = gone. Done and done. I find it much easier to follow a healthy diet when I don't let myself get bored. These two alternative uses for the meatballs are healthy, tasty, and definitely not boring!

Garden Meatball- Stuffed Zucchini Boats

Let's start with lunch: Cut two zucchinis in half length-wise and scoop out the seeds as well as a bit of the flesh- just enough to create a nice little zucchini boat. Lightly spray a baking pan with olive oil cooking spray*, lay the boats cut-side down on the sheet, and bake at 375 deg F for approximately 15 minutes. I was looking for both some caramelization on the cut side and for the squash to become tender. When I was able to press a fork through the back of the zucchini as they lay face-down, I decided they were ready to go.

While the boats are a-bakin',  cook about 1/2 a cup of diced onion in a sautee pan with a little bit of olive oil ** (or broth if you're trying to stay low-fat) until they are slightly browned. Add four of those leftover meatballs, chopped up. Cook the mixture until warmed through, adding a bit more salt and pepper.

Now, if you haven't made those yummy meatballs,you can still make this happen***. Instead of just cooking down onion, add in whatever vegetables you have on hand. You can add diced carrots, celery, chopped spinach or kale... hell, maybe even some more zucchini (zucchini inside of zucchini...whoa...). If you decide to add anything more dense, like sweet potato, just make sure you start that thicker veggie first and then add the lighter items so they all end up cooked properly. Add salt and pepper, as well as whatever spice mix you're in the mood for. If you want to go italian, you can add garlic, basil, and oregano. If you're in more of a mexican mood, keep the garlic and then toss in some cumin and coriander. Cook until the veggies are tender and starting to get a bit of caramelization. Taste for seasoning and adjust as you see fit.

Once those veggies are all cooked and happy, add in your ground beef (or turkey, pork, tofu...whatever makes you have on hand). For just the 4 boats, you probably only need about 1/2 pound of meat. But if you're planning on making the roulades, I'm sure you will find a good use for any extra stuffing.

Spoon the filling into the boats and sit them on your baking sheet. Bake them at 375 deg F for about 10-15 minutes. You just want to get everything cooked through and to give the filling a chance to hang out with the zucchini and get all friendly-like.
Once you remove them from the oven, you can customize them. I chose to top mine with some of the leftover tomato sauce from the night before. You could also add some salsa or a nice drizzle of balsamic vinegar or glaze***. Enjoy!!

And behind Door #2: Meatball-stuffed Chicken Roulade

Moving on to dinner....A couple of months back, we had bought a pack of thin-sliced chicken breasts. We ate two and froze the rest. I decided this would be the perfect time to pull them from their icy home. For roulades, these thin breasts are incredibly handy. Pretty much the trickiest part of any stuffed meat dish is getting the inside of that meat cooked. I'm not gonna lie, the first one I made and cut into (my test breast, if you will), was still a little pink where the meat met the stuffing. But I fixed it. And no one got salmonella. Win.

First, preheat your oven to 350 deg F. That done, let's move on to the stuffing- I actually did the exact same thing as I did for the stuffing in the boats, so no additional work is needed here. Just use your leftovers from the boats or follow the instructions above.

Then it's time to prep your chicken. If you dont have the skinny ones lying around, you can easily thin out what you do have. Using a good sharp knife, slice through the middle of the breast length-wise. As you cut through, pull the top half up, slicing until you cut all of the way through and have two approximately equal-sized pieces. Then grab a meat mallet, heavy pan, or whatever heavy non-breakable item is in sight, and pound out the breasts until they are about 1/2 " thick all the way through. Try to make sure one end isn't thicker than the other so you get an even cook. Season both sides with S&P, as well as anything else that might please your taste buds. 

Now, the amount of filling you place inside the chicken will depend on the size of your pieces. You want to be able to roll the sides of the chicken as well as the ends over the stuffing- much like a well-rolled burrito or egg roll. Spoon in the filling, roll up your chicken and close with a toothpick. I ended up making 4 breasts with the same amount of 4-meatball mix I made above, with a little filling left over. 

In a sautee pan (ideally one that can go straight from the stovetop to the oven), heat 2 tbsp of olive oil**. Once the pan has reached medium-high heat, set the rolls in the pan, lightly running the chicken along the pan bottom to ensure that there is a bit of oil down before you place each piece. Once you set them down, don't touch them. Let them do their thing and get brown for a couple of minutes. Then rotate the rolls, repeating the browning for all sides. Once the rolls are completely brown, they may look like they are done and ready to be eaten... 

...But this is a lie. 

There is still a layer of pink lurking inside, threatening to ruin your lovely meal. 

So- if your pan can go straight to the oven, do it- pop that whole thing straight in to your preheated oven for 8-10 minutes. If it can not, take the rolls and place them on a baking sheet. Then pop those babies in the oven, also for 8-10 minutes. When done, remove them and look at them adoringly- then invite anyone else in the house to come look at what you have created. This may just be the dog, but I'm sure he will be suitably impressed.

To serve: I have a balsamic glaze that I LOVE. It goes with so many things and is just so darn yummy. I believe it should be a household staple. So as you can see below, I simply plated the rolls whole with a drizzle of glaze and a vinegary side salad. You could also go spicy with some sriracha, maybe whip up one of the aiolis I posted here, or any other favorite condiments you might have on hand  ***

Important note: If serving whole, either remove the toothpicks ahead of time or be sure to let your guests know that the rolls hold a woody surprise!

So those are two ways that you can repurpose leftover meatballs, extra veggies, ground meat, or any combination thereof. Any other ways you like to use up these types of leftovers? I'd love to hear them!!

FMD Footnotes:

*Cooking spray = a no-no. With these, you could put a bit of broth on the bottom of the pan. Alternately, just lying down a layer of foil should still allow for caramelization without any annoying sticking.

**For FMD, use a bit of your favorite FMD-approved broth. I have mentioned it before, but I'll say it again. Bialetti Aeternum pans are awesome for getting browning without any additional fats... and without just boiling your veggies!

***Just keep your choices limited to phase-appropriate items!

Pork Tonkatsu Katsudon

I lived in Japan with my family for 6 years when I was younger. I helped my mom cook, but didn't pay enough attention to learn anything. Fortunately, by the time I got old enough to start paying attention, she had developed a collection of recipes for me to steal. This is one of my all-time favorites and one of my top comfort food dishes.

Pork Tonkatsu all by itself is the basic breaded and fried pork. It becomes Katsudon when you add the fish broth- based sauce, egg and some other good bits and put it all in a rice bowl. Yum.

Pork Tonkatsu Katsudon

Boneless pork- pounded thin (about 1/4- 1/2 inch)

1-2 eggs, scrambled for breading plus 1-2 eggs/person for the katsudon

Panko bread crumbs (important- all breadcrumbs are not created equal...)

Oil for frying

S&P

Either 1+ cups dashi soup stock or 3 tbsp dashi powder (see pic below) + 1 c water. I prefer the hon-dashi powder, it's easier to make as you go along and you can control the strength of the flavor.

5 tbsp soy sauce (I use low-sodium)

2 tbsp mirin (this is a type of seasoned rice wine, not to be confused with rice wine vinegar...)

1 tbsp sugar

1 onion, sliced thinly

A couple of handfuls of frozen green peas

Cooked Rice- I prefer the sticky rice, such as Calrose, for this dish.

For the pork:

Set up a standard breading station and dip each piece in egg and then coat in panko. I usually season both the eggs and panko with S&P or whatever seasonings you might like to get the most flavor out of the meat. 

Heat the oil and fry the pork until golden brown. I am lucky to have a FryDaddy deep fryer, I fry the pork at 375 F, usually about 3-4 minutes per batch.

 

Something about this crispy pork screams out to be stolen and eaten during prep. I would make sure you have a few extra chunks if there are going to be any wandering hands/mouths in the kitchen. Or if you are hungry while you are cooking....

While the pork is cooking, mix the dashi (and water if using powder), soy sauce, mirin, and sugar in a bowl and whisk until incorporated. It will have a pretty strong fishy odor, which can be a little scary, but once you taste it, you will know it's all ok. Some people like this sauce to be stronger in flavor, some less so. If you are in the latter group, just add a little more water until you are happy with the sauce. You may want to make a small serving using the sauce as-is first so you can see how everything tastes when it's all put together, then adjust for the next batch based on your personal tastes.

Once the pork is all cooked, slice it into strips and place strips into an omelet-sized frying pan. For this recipe, I prefer using a non-stick pan and I give it a quick shot of PAM just to be safe...

Scramble 1 egg per serving and pour directly on top of the pork. Scatter a handful of sliced onions over the mixture, add a ladle full of sauce, and toss a small handful of frozen peas over the top

Cover the pan and cook over medium heat until the egg is fluffy and cooked through. Spoon cooked rice into a bowl and slide the katsudon on top. Serve warm, top with chopped green onions if desired. 

A lot of this recipe is based on personal taste. Feel free to play around with ratios- sauce, egg, onions, etc. I prefer mine with about 1 1/2 eggs and a lot of sauce... You can also add other veggies, such as thinly sliced carrots or squash. The pork pounding/frying can take some time, but once that is done, this is a pretty quick dish to prepare and totally worth  the time.

Cheesy Southwestern Pork Chops

I don't particularly like going low-carb. My favorite food product EVER is the potato. I don't care what you do with it- fry, mash, bake, scallop- whatever. I will eat that potato.
Sadly, this post is not about potatoes.
However, when it is time to cut out the carbs for a bit, this is one of my favorite go-to recipes. It's gooey and slightly spicy, as well as being quite satisfying. I find that low-carb food leaves me wanting something more a lot of the times (probably a potato), but this recipe feels like comfort food. I have had the recipe for years, but to give credit where credit is due, I'm pretty sure I got the original from the old Atkins website some time ago...


Cheesy Southwestern Pork Chops
2 pork chops (thicker chops work better here. If you use thin chops,you may want to reduce the cheese topping). I used bone-in chops.
A little bit of EVOO (about 1-2 tsp)
1/4 cup tomato salsa
a small can of diced green chilies (4 ozs.)
1 teaspoon cumin
1/3 cup grated Cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons cream cheese

You want to  start with a nice hot pan. For this, I usually recommend not using a non-stick pan. It is usually not good to get those pans hot without anything in them, it can mess up the lining- That is, unless you have one of these new types of non-stick pans that also sear. My new non-stick is some sort of ceramic lined deal that gets nice and hot AND provides a great sear without getting the meat stuck.


Give the pan a go-round with the EVOO- not too much or you will just end up boiling your meat in oil instead of searing it. Get the pan nice and hot over medium-medium high heat. Set the chops in and don't touch them! My biggest problem when I started cooking was that I could not let food just sit and cook... 
I had to touch it and move it and stir it. But that is bad and I smacked myself on the hand and said, "NO!"
 If you are using a non non-stick pan, this is especially true. Wiggle the meat a little with a pair of tongs- when it comes willingly, it is ready to be turned. Otherwise- let it cook for about 5 mins (depending on the thickness of your chops- it took me about 5 mins and these were pretty thick, about 1").

It should have a nice brown crust on the bottom when you flip it. Let it cook for about another 3-4 mins. It should feel firm to the touch when you poke it in the thickest part. There is still another 5 minutes of cooking left so if it is mostly done, that is fine.

While the second side is cooking, mix the salsa, chiles, and cumin. The ratio given here is variable- I actually tend to add more salsa, probably closer to 1/2 cup. The cumin may seem like a lot when you put it in, but it is the key to  the sauce.

When the chops are mostly done, top them with the salsa mix. Cover them and let them cook for about 5 mins, until the salsa is warm and the chops are cooked through. During this 5 mins, mix the cream cheese and cheddar. I usually put the cream cheese into a bowl and nuke it for about 20 sec to get it soft enough to mix. You should end up with an odd looking concoction like this:







Divide the mixture between your chops and spread it over the top. Don't worry if it is too hard, as it melts it will spread. Cover it for about 1 min or until the topping becomes all gooey. Plate it up, serve it with a salad with a nice tangy vinaigrette and you are good to go!

New York is awesome at p < .001 (Study 1)

So we just got back from a beyond fabulous extended weekend in NYC. The ostensible purpose of this trip was to attend the wedding of two of Matt's long-time I/O buddies. It turned into Matt & Erica's fantabulous New York-a-Palooza (with a wedding in the middle). And man, we did it up right: shows, restaurants, drinks, street vendors.... We did not waste a single New York minute.

New York. Wrote a blog about it. Wanna read it? Here it goes: (anyone get that reference? Anyone at all?)

Thursday: Plane lands approximately 11 am. By 12:30, we are checked into our Times Square hotel (see view at right) and on our way to Eataly. As I am posting this, I looked at the page to verify the URL and see that they have 50 products at 50% off- beginning last Friday.
Did I mention we were there Thursday? That hurts.
So let me tell you about Eataly. I am assuming that all ten of you reading this blog enjoy Italian food. I mean really, who doesn't enjoy Italian food? Heathens, that's who! Pure heathens who are the haters of all that is good and yummy.



I'm sorry- heathens get my blood all in a lather.  But I digress...

Eataly is a food sanctuary, a small land of culinary enjoyment bordering on sinful. There are counters of cured and fresh meats, seafood, and cheeses. The mozzarella is pulled fresh. Some is destined for even greater things- it is soaked, pulled thin, and then wrapped around a creamy mixture called panna (leftover mozzarella bits mixed with cream), then wrapped into yummy little bundles of goodness called burrata (aka my new favorite).
 

There were aisles and aisles of pasta, fresh sauces, and gorgeous fresh produce that I can only dream of from my location in central Indiana.


And then, there was the food.

We began  with what had to be the most magical focaccia in all of FocacciaLand. It was a simple slice topped with roma tomatoes, fresh  mozzarella di bufala, basil,and a splash of olive oil.
In the days that followed, it took all of our strength and reason to not get in a cab and revisit this place every day, just to get one more slice.

Why didn't we get one more slice?!?! Sigh...

Now, by a show of hands, how many of you are familiar with the savory, fatty, crispy, delicious goodness of a little something called "porchetta"? 
If your answer is "No, Erica- I'm sorry, I am not familiar with this delicious treat", then you should Google it.
Immediately.
Educate yourself.
If you don't have time to google, or are just too excited to read the rest of this post first, here are the cliff's notes:

Porchetta: /por'ket:a/, noun: Pork (skin on), wrapped around more pork, seasoned, roasted until juicy and crispy on the outside, sliced, and shoved into a chewy italian roll. Chew, moan, swallow, repeat.

Having finished our bread and main course, we searched for a suitable side dish.
It turns out Mario Batali is famous around these parts for his arancini- basically risotto combined with melty cheese, wrapped around a chunk of meaty ragu, rolled in crispy breadcrumbs, and deep fried.

There is not a single word in that sentence that should not make you happy down to your toes. If it did not make you drool, consider yourself one of the aforementioned heathens. You may want to do some serious soul-searching.

Meanwhile, back at the Batcave...err, Eataly, we managed to get the very last arancini left in the entire establishment. It took 30 minutes to prepare, but the creamy risotto with the crispy outside and the meaty/cheesy middle was totally worth the wait.

Last but not least: espresso, candied orange cannoli, limoncello baba, and some sort of fluffy, ethereal hazelnut panna cotta mixture. One word: Yum.

That is Eataly. I believe I have provided sufficient evidence above to declare that New York = awesome, p < .001.
I will provide further proof in future studies ("posts") in the form of our fantabulous adventures over the remaining portion of our trip.

Stay posted!