Takeaways from some dinner flops

 

Last night’s dinner was not as good as I hoped—second time I’ve felt that way in a week. The menu was turkey meatloaves with mushroom gravy. Sounds great, right? In one way it was—flavor was so good I thought I was eating Thanksgiving dinner. But the texture countered that—the meatloaves were hard and dry.

This was not the first time I felt that way about using ground poultry. Some time ago I made chicken burgers that had the same texture problem, at least to me. But then I recently made turkey burgers we all liked. I can’t figure the difference. I thought at first it was the use of panko, but the ones we liked had panko in them too. So I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. One possibility is that the succulent burgers had enough mayo both in them and on the buns to add the moisture needed for softness. Here’s what I did that we liked:

Turkey burgers

½ c. mayonnaise

½ c. panko

1 envelope onion soup mix

2 lbs. ground turkey

Hamburger buns

Combine first three ingredients in a large bowl. Mix in turkey. Grill and serve with buns. We added tomato slices and mayo on the buns.

There was a takeaway last night though. The mushroom gravy was quick, easy, and flavorful.

Mushroom gravy*

8 oz. mushrooms, sliced

1-1/2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 cup chicken broth

¼ tsp. dried thyme

1 Tbsp. flour

Salt and pepper, if using low sodium chicken broth

           Here’s the thing I had never done when sauteing mushrooms: place them in a single layer in the skillet over medium high heat and don’t touch them for four minutes. They’ll get a nice browned surface. Then add thyme, salt, and pepper, and toss until they are limp and have released their juices. Toss with flour. Add broth, bring to a boil, immediately lower the heat to a simmer and let it cook until it’s thickened somewhat. This would be great served over those burgers instead of putting them on a bun.

Last weekend I cooked a polenta dish that was supposed to be like shakshuka—eggs cooked in little pockets. My neighbor, Jaimie, was here, and we both got involved in watching those eggs not cook in the oven. I got so impatient, I turned on the broiler, and the whites finally whitened. Jaimie said hers was good, but mine had sort of a tough skin on it, though the underneath it was runny and good. The eggs really didn’t add much to the dish at all in my opinion.

But the polenta was wonderful, and I’ll make it again. I had it for breakfast the next day, gave some to Christian, and then had it for lunch two days. One difficulty with my small kitchen: lots of recipes call for an oven-proof skillet, but there’s no way I can fit a skillet into my toaster oven, so I have to improvise. Here’s what I did:

Corn polenta**

2-3 Tbsp. butter

½ c. corn kernels (fresh, frozen or canned—all drained, of course)

4 c. chicken broth, low sodium

1 c. polenta (when I was a kid it was grits and we made mush out of it, but now it’s gotten sophisticated)

½ tsp. salt

Chopped fresh herbs—basil, cilantro, parsley, chopped green onions, what have you. Just throw in a good handful

Fresh baby spinach – again, a good handful

½ c. grated cheddar cheese, or more to taste

I used a deep kettle for this because polenta tends to bubble and splash. Melt butter and sauté corn. Let it cook a few minutes and then add the broth, polenta, and salt. Stir until the mixture thickens slightly, watching for those splashes—they sting! Add herbs and spinach. Stir in cheese.

Spoon this mixture into a greased pie plate, smooth it out, and cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 350^o for 20 minutes; uncover and bake for another twenty or twenty-five minutes. The polenta will be soft and delicious.

Serve this with a green salad for a great vegetarian light meal.

*Adapted from a Southern Living recipe

**Adapted from a New York Times recipe; image above is not mine.           

          

 

Breakfast, lunch, or supper? Try Shakshuka

 

Don’t you love saying that word? I like the way it rolls off the tongue. Shakshuka. In case you didn’t know, it’s an African dish that has become popular in this country, as have many dishes from Africa and the Middle East. And you really can have it for breakfast, lunch, or a light supper. I see it as part of a growing popularity of eggs as the main protein of a meal. You may see similar recipes called Eggs in Purgatory, though that dish sometimes incorporates more ingredients.

Shakshuka is basically tomatoes poached in a spicy tomato mixture. The name derives from an Arabic word meaning mixture. Once you get basic idea of shakshuka, you can tailor it to your own taste. For example, many recipes—there are lots on the internet—call for bell peppers, which I routinely leave out because neither my taste buds nor my stomach welcome them. On the other hand, I might slip an anchovy in there for earthiness.

Most recipes start with onion and garlic sauteed in olive oil. Cumin is the traditional spice, often given a quick sauté when the garlic and onions are almost limp, so that the spice releases its flavors. You might also add some chili powder or coriander or paprika—you want the warm spices of North Africa. Want more spice? A bit of red pepper or Siracha sauce. Stir in canned diced tomatoes, one or two 14 oz. cans according to how many you’re serving, and let the mixture simmer a bit until it thickens some.

Take the back of a wooden spoon and make little holes or nests in the sauce, according to the number of people you’re feeding—most people will eat one or two. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Cover and cook until eggs reach the desired degree of doneness—I like them soft, still runny a bit, but many prefer them almost hard. Sprinkle dish with chopped parsley or green onion, maybe some sliced avocado. Serve immediately with pita or baguette slices—something to soak up that sauce. Breakfast potatoes make a nice accompaniment.

For a variation, look online for a recipe for green shakshuka, which abandons tomatoes in favor of a spinach or chard base and incorporates cilantro and serrano chiles. This version, less common, can be topped with chopped fresh dill and of course avocados are almost a must.

The one problem, for me, with shakshuka is that no one else in the household will eat it (they don’t like poached eggs), and a whole skillet of the sauce is too much for me. Recently I ran onto a recipe for shakshuka for one and decided to try it. It called for marinara sauce as the base and chickpeas, which I don’t particularly like, so I substituted. It did seem to me that marinara sauce moved the recipe across the Mediterranean to Italy, so I decided on Italian spices. But opening a jar of marinara for one serving sounded a bit wasteful. I used a small can of tomato sauce. Since I was mixing cultures, I dusted the top with pecorino. Here’s what I did:

Shakshuka for one

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 green onion, chopped

1 large garlic clove, pressed or minced

¼ c. tomato sauce (freeze the rest for a winter soup)

¼ c. black beans

¼ tsp. mixed Italian herbs—you could just use oregano

Tiny pinch of red pepper flakes, and I mean tiny

1 large egg

Pecorino, grated

Sauté the onion and garlic in oil; add seasoning and sauté one minute. Do not let the garlic burn. Add tomato sauce and simmer a bit to thicken. (I put it into an oven-proof ramekin because with so little sauce in the skillet, it wasn’t deep enough to make a nest.) Crack the egg into the sauce, which may still be thinner than you’d like, and kind of push it around so that the egg is surrounded rather than floating on top. Take care not to break the egg. Sprinkle with grated cheese and bake at 350 until egg is set to the firmness you want.

I really liked this! For my next adventure with poached eggs, I’m going to try a base of polenta with lots of cheddar and a few chopped vegetables in it. Stay tuned.

 

 

What do I do with this chicken?

 

Rotisserie chicken is one of the modern conveniences I’ve really come to appreciate. For a while, I was a bit resistant—yes, it tasted good, but it was such a chore to skin and bone it. I’d bring it home from the grocery, stash it in the fridge, and try to ignore it for a few days. Then Jordan taught me a hack—bone it while it’s still warm from the store. Meat slides right off the bone. So much easier! Now we keep one or two baggies of chicken, boned, skinned, and diced, in the freezer. Want to make a casserole? Just whip it out and defrost.

One night recently I was expecting a dinner guest from out of town, not one of the regulars on my patio happy hours or dinners. I wanted to make a good impression, but it wasn’t a steak-and-twice-baked potato kind of an evening. So, I decided on a chicken casserole. Then I had to choose between two favorites. Here’s what I did:

Baked chicken salad casserole – serves four to six

2 c. chopped chicken

3 hard-boiled eggs, grated or sliced (your choice—I prefer sliced, because I like getting chunks of hard-boiled white)

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

½ Tbsp. lemon juice

¾ c. mayonnaise

2 tsp. salt

2 c. chopped celery

4 tsp. minced onion (I used green onion)

Potato chips, crushed

Layer the chicken and eggs in a 9x13 pan. Mix everything else separately and pour over the meat and eggs. Top with crushed potato chips and bake at 375^o for 30 minutes. Watch and don’t let the chips burn.

I halved this—sort of guessing on the generous side at the mayo and lemon juice. It served two for dinner and gave me enough leftovers for two lunches.

Strangely enough, the other recipe on my mind was also a baked chicken salad, but this with curry. I used to fix it frequently when I had teenagers and have more recently used it as a company dish.

Curried chicken salad with broiled topping – serves four to six

3 c. cooked chicken, diced

2 c. celery, diced

½ c. thinly sliced green onions

1/3 c. vinaigrette dressing

2 tsp. curry powder

¾ c. mayo

½ c. sour cream

Salt and pepper

2 c. finely crushed potato chips

1 c. coarsely shredded sharp cheddar

Combine first chicken, celery, and onions, and marinate in salad dressing, refrigerated, one hour. Blend curry powder, mayonnaise, sour cream, salt and pepper and combine with chicken, celery, scallions. Cover loosely and chill. Put in shallow broiler-proof baking dish. Cover salad with mixed chips and cheese and broil about three minutes until cheese melts. The goal is to have a cold salad topped with melted cheese and chips. If you happen to be so lucky as to have a Corningware dish in an appropriate size, you can use it and go straight from fridge to broiler. Otherwise, it’s best to spoon the chilled salad into an ovenproof dish before adding the topping.

Serve with a green vegetable, such as broccoli, asparagus, or green beans, and bread if you wish.

Enjoy!

 

 

How to build your own deli sandwich

 

Recently, I came across directions for building a six-foot sub (or call it a hoagie or a deli sandwich or whatever you want). I cannot imagine I’d ever need a six-foot sub, feeding thirty or more, but just in case…. Recipes come with a warning you need a van or truck to get the special-order six-foot loaf home and a six-foot table to work on. And it takes two people to flip the top layer onto the sandwich. You begin to get an inkling of why ready-made these things cost upward of $175.

Fortunately, you can make a smaller version at home pretty cheaply and without a lot of cooking or dirty dishes. Last night a friend was coming for an overdue visit—and a bit of business over a piece of writing she was helping me with. I offered dinner; she declined until I told her how I make sandwiches. Then she said, “That sounds wonderful,” and showed up at my door at five o’clock.

Reading those recipes gave me some good tips. The great thing about these sandwiches is that you can use whatever ingredients you want, leave out the things you don’t want, tailor it to your taste. Here’s a basic outline of what you need:

Bread or bun (I used sliders a lot, but the filling tends to spill out; a conventional hamburger bun might work better; of course you can always use Italian bread, but don’t use a baguette—too skinny, no room for filling.

Condiments – mustard, mayo, ketchup, whatever

Assorted cold cuts—ham, roast beef, turkey, chicken, salami, pastrami, bologna, corned beef; try to use two or three

Assorted cheeses—again use two or three, cheddar, American, Swiss, provolone, etc.

Tomato

Lettuce – head lettuce, shredded

Parmesan or pecorino, grated

Vinaigrette (see recipe below)

Oregano – just a sprinkling, dried

Optional: pickles, relish, olives, olive salad, whatever (if you add olives, you are entitled to call it a muffuletta)

My choices are pretty conventional, and I don’t always follow my own advice about two or three meats and cheeses. Instead, I pile on several slices of ham and at least two of provolone.

It’s important to begin by putting a layer of mayo or mustard on both sides of your bread or bun. Some people use mustard on one side and mayo on the other. This layer acts as a barrier and keeps the bread from getting soggy (not completely, especially if you use vinaigrette, but it does help). Then pile on in the order above. Be sure to chop the lettuce finely; works much better than a couple of floppy, big, old pieces. And slice the tomato thin, so it says in place.

This sandwich is standard—until you get to oregano, Parmesan or pecorino, and vinaigrette, but they make all the difference. Sprinkle dried oregano lightly—you want to taste it but not be overwhelmed. Be a bit generous with the grated cheese and careful with the vinaigrette which you pour over last. It will still make your sandwich a bit soggy. Here’s the vinaigrette my family likes on everything, from grilled salmon to sandwiches (I may have posted it recently; if so, forgive the duplication).

¼ c. olive oil

2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 clove garlic, pressed

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

½ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

My family loves these sandwiches and sometimes requests them for supper.

 

 

 

Another retro dinner

 

You may remember, if you read this blog frequently, that a few months ago I cooked dinner for Christian’s friend (and mine), Gary. Like me, Gary holds in his heart some of the dishes his mom cooked when he was young. He particularly liked tuna casserole, so that’s what we had. I think the Burtons ordered in Mexican. Christian does not eat tuna in any shape or form, and Jordan has announced that tuna belongs in salad, cold. She will not eat any dish with cooked tuna. Gary and I had a lovely dinner. (I can’t speak for what Christian’s mother fixed, apparently not tuna, but I do know that Jordan was raised eating tuna casserole.)

A bit later I fixed myself Chicken Divan from a recipe I’ve had for years. When I was a single parent, I saved this dish for nights the children were out of the house, and I was cooking for a male friend. When I mentioned how good it was, Gary said he loves Chicken Divan—it had to be our next dinner. So it’s on the menu this Sunday night. Jordan has declined, and Christian does not eat broccoli. He asked if we could substitute for the broccoli, like maybe potatoes. I explained color, taste, and texture would all be off. Nope, Chicken Divan needs the broccoli. Maybe you could do spinach but never even green beans (which he only likes canned). I suggested that he could eat the chicken without the broccoli, but I think they are eating turkey burgers. Jacob may well like the main dish. He loves broccoli.

This is a recipe I got from a neighbor, handwritten, so I have no idea about the origin. But it’s delicious and not difficult. One problem though is that back in the eighties things came packaged differently than they do today. The recipe calls for two 10-oz. packages of frozen broccoli spears. I cannot find them on the Central Market web site, so I used a broccoli crown, though my mom would frown at me not getting the stems. (Mom believed in waste not, want not. She used to slice the stem, sauté quickly in butter and splash with soy; they were delicious.) I tell myself it’s always better to use fresh when you can instead of frozen or canned.

The picture above is not mine, but you get the idea of the dish and it satisfies the algorithms.

Chicken Divan

2 10-oz. pkgs. frozen broccoli spears

¼ c. butter or margarine

6 Tbsp. flour

½ tsp. salt

Dash of pepper

2 c. chicken broth

½ c. whipping cream

3 Tbsp. white wine

3 chicken breasts, halved and cooked

¼ c. Parmesan cheese

 Cook broccoli and drain. Melt butter and blend in the flour, along with salt and pepper. Add chicken broth and cook until mixture thickens and bubbles. Stir in cream and wine. Place broccoli crosswise in a 12x7½x2 dish. Pour half the sauce over. Top with chicken and pour remaining sauce over it. Top with Parmesan.

An elegant company dish. Wonder if I can interest Gary in Tuna Florentine next?