spice rack challenge - turkey burger with feta and dill

When I learned of April’s Spice Rack Challenge, hosted by Mother’s Kitchen Blog, I was thrilled because it gave me the chance to make tzatziki sauce, which I have always wanted to make. Plus, when I think of dill I think of feta, which is a good, good thing. After some poking around through my many cookbooks and taking a look around the internet, I landed on this version of Greek Turkey Burgers with AWESOME Tzatziki Sauce. Credit for the burger idea goes to one of my favorite TV personalities, Ellie Krieger.  Sorry, no fresh dill here in Michigan yet. We are hopeful for spring, but it's slow in getting here this year. I'm sure this entire meal would be kicked up a notch with fresh dill. 


Be sure to go to Mother's Kitchen and see the other Spice Rack Challenge entries.  They will be posted the last week of April. There are about 25 of us participating and the variety of recipes will surprise you. Last month I made a Cardamom Coffee Cake for the cardamom challenge. Wonder what the spice challenge will be for May? Stay tuned right here! 

Here’s what you need for the burger:

½ onion, diced

2 C fresh spinach, chopped

¼ C crumbled feta cheese

1 t dried dill

1 ¼ lb ground turkey

Salt and pepper

Pita bread, stuff to garnish the burger like tomato, cucumbers, lettuce, spinach, etc.

Here’s what you need for the tzatziki sauce:

8 ounces low-fat Greek style yogurt

¼ t dried dill

2 t fresh lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

1 English cucumber

Here’s what you do:

Sautee the onions until tender. Add the spinach and dill. Cook until all wilted, about 2 minutes. Add the feta cheese and set aside.

You can see best what to do next from the pictures. Divide the meat in 6 equal thin patties and place a heaping spoon of the spinach goodness on three of them. Top each burger with another patty and carefully press it all together. Use your fingers to press the two halves together to keep the goodness from falling out. This was kinda messy, but surprisingly, the burgers did not fall apart.

My tip of the day: Do Not Overcook Turkey Burgers!!!

In the meantime, make the heavenly tzatziki sauce. Another tip for you: peel, seed, grate and wring the cucumber in a clean tea towel before you add it to the sauce. It’s amazing how much liquid you will squeeze out of a cucumber!

You might also like: 

Boursin Cheese

Salmon Chowder

Hungarian Mushroom Soup

Orzo with Shrimp, Feta and Dill (you must try this!)

(printable recipe)

Cheesy Summer Garden Rice

Cheesy goodness... oh, and a few vegetables

Well, don’t make this if you’re looking for a ‘lite’ vegetarian dinner. And don’t make this if you’re looking for a low calorie side dish. And don’t make this if you’re looking for a way to ‘eat those vegetables.’

Do make this if you’re looking for a great ‘old-school’ recipe. Do make this if you can afford to throw calories to the wind. Do make this if you’re looking for awesome delicious-ness. Really.

This excellent casserole is based on a recipe from one of my all-time favorite cook books – “Clock Wise Cuisine” from the Junior League of Detroit, copyright 1986. Yes, I know, 1986. Think 9 X 13 casseroles laden with canned soup, cheese and sour cream. Think calories. Think pot-luck-suppers. Think fantastic.

So this was the first time I made this lovely thing and obviously we all loved it. Originally it was called ‘Monterey Zucchini Casserole’ which is a pretty lame title if you ask me. (All respect to the Junior League ladies of Detroit circa 1986.) So we’ve been having some fun coming up with new and updated titles.

April in the D Rice (That’s for my Detroit friends…. We were watching the Tigers lose to the Oakland A’s today. Once that April in the D song gets into my head I CAN NOT stop singing it!)

Lloyds Bayou Rice (that’s where we live)

Kick Ass Rice (getting closer)

Wanna gain weight? Rice (probably the most honest name….check out the list of ingredients)

Exciting ingredients

Here’s what you need:

1 C uncooked rice

1 4 oz can of diced green chilis

1 lb Monterey Jack cheese (or other cheese to taste)

3 medium zucchini, sliced and parboiled

3 large tomatoes, peeled and sliced

2 C sour cream (I always use low-fat)

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp garlic salt

¼ C diced green onion

¼ C diced green pepper

Use any old casserole dish you have handy - my 9 X 13 is in the freezer

Here’s what you do:

1.      Cook the rice.

2.      Slice and parboil the zucchini. (I would never normally parboil a vegetable, but it seemed to work here very well…. Gets rid of some of the extra moisture)

3.      Peel and slice the tomatoes. (I would never normally peel a tomato, but it seemed to work well here….)

4.      Mix the sour cream, green onions, green peppers, oregano and garlic salt.

5.      Grate a huge amount of cheese. I used 8 ounces Monterey Jack and 6 ounces of Irish Harp Cheddar.

6.      Layer in a 9 X 13 (or whatever) in this order…

a.      Rice

b.      Green chilis

c.       ½ cheese

d.      Zucchini and tomatoes (consider chopping them instead of slicing. They will mix in better)

e.      Sour cream

f.        Remaining cheese

layers of cheesy goodness - oh, and a few vegetables too

7.      Bake 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.  Broil if desired to get this lovely top.

8.      Devour. 

(printable recipe)

Tomato and Feta Cheese Tarts

This recipe comes directly from “Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics” cookbook by one of my favorite TV personalities, Ina Garten. I decided to make this when I stumbled upon a link-up on one of the blogs I follow called “It’s a Keeper.”  You can find the link to "It's a Keeper' in my blog roll. We were challenged to make something from either this cookbook or “The Pioneer Woman Cooks” by Ree Drumond. I’ve made quite a few things by Ina and I must say, except for her excessive use of butter, I love her stuff. Her Lemon Chicken Breasts is coming soon here on my blog.  

I would say this tart recipe is a ‘keeper.’ I did swap out the goat cheese (not a fan) for feta (a huge fan). Other than that, it’s pretty straight forward. Unfortunately, the tomatoes here in Michigan are terrible this time of year….. I can imagine this with a freshly grown tomato right from my garden. The recipe in the cookbook makes four tarts; I cut it in half and only made two.

This would be perfect as a first course or as a light supper served with a big salad. Enjoy!

Here’s what you need:

1 package puff pastry, defrosted

Olive oil (I didn’t use)

4 C thinly sliced onions

3-4 cloves garlic (I forgot them!)

3 T dry white wine

2 t fresh thyme leaves (I used ½ t dried)

4 T freshly grated Parmesan cheese

4 ounces goat cheese (I used Greek feta)

1 large tomato, sliced thinly

3 T julienned fresh basil leaves (I used just a tiny bit of dried)

2 more ounces grated Parmesan cheese (I didn’t use this)

Here’s what you do:

Carefully lay out the pastry and cut out large circles. You should get two per sheet. Then score another circle ¼ inch all the way around the dough. Prick the inside of the tart with a fork. Place on baking sheet which has been lined with parchment paper.

Cook onions in a bit of oil until very soft and brown. The secret here is low heat for a long time – be patient. Add the wine, salt and thyme and continue to cook until perfect. This whole onion process could take up to 20 minutes.

Divide onions evenly between the tarts, being careful to stay in the inner circle. Distribute the feta and tomato and Parmesan between the tarts. Sprinkle with basil.

Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. I also broiled mine for just a minute to get a toasty top.  Elegant and surprisingly easy.  Another keeper from Ina Garten.

(printable recipe) .... or just buy the book - you won't be sorry! 

Cubs Opening Day

Tim and I were lucky enough to be invited to Cubs Opening Day this past weekend in Chicago! Except for the cold and rainy weather and the fact that the Cubs lost, it was a great day.  We started at Goose Island Pub for lunch and a few delicious Goose Island beers. Lots of happy partying people at 11:30 in the morning, including us!

Because of the rain, we decided to spend the first half of the game in the bar. Yes, I did miss Robert Redford throwing out the first pitch, but I got this picture from the huge megatron size TV in the bar.  My apologies to Mr. Redford…..

Here you can get an idea of the weather – see how empty the stands were? See how hard the groundskeepers had to work to keep the puddles off the infield? See how many ponchos there are in the stands?

After the game we walked back to our hotel. It was a long hike, but it felt good to warm up and dry out a tiny bit. A highlight of the weekend was stumbling upon the MOST interesting used book store on the east side of Clark, about half way between Wrigley Field and The Loop. I snapped this picture. There were maybe 4 or 5 aisles just like this – all jammed and crooked and practically tipping over with every kind of book imaginable.

I did manage to find a few old cookbooks. It was the kind of place you could spend hours in….. except for the strange smell in the place. I think there were rodents living in the shelves…. A once-in-a-lifetime-experience, that’s for sure.

Dinner was at Gibson’s Steak house. We shared a fantastic crab and avocado appetizer. Tim had a petit tenderloin, which was heavenly. I had salmon, which I must admit was a bit overcooked. (Just last week, we ate out and again I ordered salmon, which was also overcooked. This confirms what I already knew – I prefer to cook and eat at home. )

The view from our hotel window. What can I say? I love Chicago.

Tim having some fun.

broccoli and cheddar stuffed potato skins with avocado cream

I have had this recipe for ages. I made them for the first time on Super Bowl Sunday and I absolutely LOVED them! They were salty, crispy, creamy and pretty healthy. The recipe comes from Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger on the Food Network.  Her food is always so, so good! I love her baked onion rings; her Curried Chicken Salad is a standard in my house. We can never get enough of her zucchini rounds or Crab Salad in Crisp Wonton Cups.  I think she takes such a common sense approach to healthy eating. I might say that I model my cooking after her - except for when I'm eating a big greasy burger..... 

This year on Super Bowl Sunday it was only Tim and me, so it was a lazy day – perfect for a tiny bit of fiddling in the kitchen. Lots of steps involved here, but easy steps and worth the extra effort! I took two of these to lunch the following day – so,so good! (I also made these Bourbon Brownies for us to snack on. Click here to view the recipe. Most of those went to work the next day - way too dangerous to have them laying around the house. Wow.) 

Here’s what you need:

8 small Idaho potatoes, scrubbed and dried

4 t canola oil

¼ salt

8 ounces broccoli florets, coarsely chopped (about 4 cups)

3 slices Canadian bacon, finely chopped (about 3 ounces)

¾ C sharp Cheddar cheese

Avocado Cream:

2 scallions, thinly slices, greens reserved

1 medium avocado

2 T reduced-fat sour cream

2 T lime juice

¼ C cilantro leaves

1 clove garlic

¼ t salt

Here’s what you do: 

Step One:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Step Two:

Pierce potatoes with fork, wrap in paper towels and microwave on high for about 15 minutes or until cooked. Remove and cool. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise and remove the insides, trying to leave the skin intact. (It wasn’t easy ;~0) Reserve potato insides for another use. (Try not to eat the potatoes because you want to save your appetite for the skins :~)

Brush the inside and outside of the skins with oil and sprinkle the inside and outside with salt. Place potatoes, skin-side down on a baking sheet and bake until skins are crisp – about 20 minutes. (Try not to eat the skins yet – it won’t be easy…. they’re great just the way they are!  J )

Step Three:

Prepare the filling. Steam broccoli until crisp-tender. Drain and set aside. Also, in a lightly sprayed skillet, cook the Canadian bacon until crisp. Set aside. (Try not to snack on these – that bacon is hard to resist. :~)

Step Four:

Prepare the avocado cream. Process until smooth: scallions, avocado, sour cream, lime juice, cilantro, garlic and salt. (Try not to eat all this before serving J ) [Does everyone out there know this trick? If you drop your whole garlic clove in the processor while it is running, you will get perfectly minced garlic every time. Then simply add the remaining ingredients. No big chunks of garlic here!]

Step Five:

Mix the broccoli and cheese and stuff each potato skin. Lower oven to 400 degrees and bake until cheese is melted – about 5 minutes.

Look at those beauties!

Step Six:

Serve with avocado cream, bacon and reserved scallion greens.

OUTSTANDING! Can’t wait to make these again. So, so good!

(printable recipe)

roasted mushrooms

Tim asked for a mushroom pizza and here’s what I came up with. Are you shocked by the amount of mushrooms???? I admit it was a tiny bit over-the-top, but well worth it. I hope you notice the layer of roasted tomatoes underneath the mountain of mushrooms. I spend lots of time in August and September slowly roasting tomatoes and then freezing them. I can’t tell you how much I love those tomatoes. These mushrooms are excellent also. Think pizza, pasta, omelets, grilled meats, hor d’oeuvres, etc…

Here’s what you need:

Fresh mushrooms

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Here’s what you do:

It's all about the method here. Follow this method to the letter.

Brush away any dirt from the mushrooms. Cut them in large pieces including the stems. Coat them lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and lots of pepper.

In a very hot skillet, pour about 1 tablespoon and allow to warm.  Add the mushrooms in one layer and sear them. Place them in one layer on a baking sheet. Keep doing this until all the mushrooms are ready for the oven.

Place the mushrooms in a 425 degree oven for about 20-25 minutes. Check on them half way and give them a toss.

Result? Perfection. Chewy. Intense flavor.  You can’t believe that a lowly grocery store mushroom can become this superb vegetable.

 (printable recipe)

Boursin Cheese

This recipe was adapted from “Party Receipts from the Charleston Junior League” cookbook, 1993 edition. If you’ve been reading this blog from the beginning, you already know that I totally love Junior League cookbooks.  I suppose women in the Junior League (especially in decades past) hosted parties and luncheons and ended up collecting the very best recipes. Who knows?

 If you ever come across a cookbook from any Junior League, be sure to buy it – I’ll bet anything that the recipes you find within will surprise you.

Examples of good cooking from my Junior League Cookbook collection.      

From “Soupcon – Seasonal samplings form the Junior League of Chicago” - 1974

Honey Pecan Loaf

From “Clockwise Cuisine- Junior League of Detroit” -1986:

King Ranch Casserole

Easy Cheesy Chicken Casserole

Crab puff

Oatmeal bread

Here’s what you need:

16 ounces Low-fat cream cheese (Neufchatel style)

8 ounces whipped butter

2 cloves garlic – minced or squeezed through garlic press

½ - ¾ t Beau Monde seasoning- this is a bit salty, so add it to taste

½ t dried thyme leaves

½ t dried basil leaves

½ t dried chives

½ t ground marjoram

1 t dried dill weed

Here’s what you do:

Mix well!   Delicious!
(printable recipe)

Pork Enchiladas and Green Salsa

This type of Mexican food is a standard in my household.  We eat bean tostadas like they’re coming out of our ears! Cheap. Healthy. Tasty. We are currently in a HUGE corn tortilla phase.  If you have a health food store near you, look for sprouted corn tortillas – you’ll thank me.

A 4 pound pork shoulder made about 28 enchiladas. They freeze beautifully. They reheat beautifully. Garnish with sour cream, avocado, cilantro and lime slices.

[I'm not sure what the protocol is for including pics of raw meat, but it doesn't bother me....My apologies to my vegetarian readers....  ]

Here’s what you need:

4 lbs pork shoulder

2 garlic cloves

1 onion

1 jalapeno pepper

24 small corn tortillas

Monterey Jack cheese

Green salsa

Here’s what you do:

Trim the meat of excess fat and cut in 2 inch cubes.  Slice onion, split the jalapeno pepper and remove seeds and veins (I use rubber gloves to avoid getting the hot stuff on my skin), slice garlic. Place meat, onion, pepper and garlic in pot with enough water to cover. Simmer for about 40 minutes or until meat is very tender.

Remove the pork and any onions, pepper and garlic you can find with a slotted spoon. Shred the meat and as much of the veggies as desired.

Soften the tortillas in the warm ‘broth’ and fill with about 1 heaping tablespoon of meat. Place in a greased baking dish.Keep going until all the meat and tortillas are used and the kitchen is a big mess. 

Cover with green salsa to taste (don’t be shy!) Smother with Monterey Jack cheese.  (don’t be shy!)

 I include here a collection of random photos to prove to you how much we love this type of food! (I’ve been snapping photos of my meals for years and years….. good thing I finally have this blog to store them…)

I didn't make these.... but I ate them in Merida, Mexico!

Can you find the pattern in our eating habits? I bet you can.....

spice rack challenge – cardamom

I recently stumbled upon a fellow Michigan food blogger -Mother's Kitchen -  who has designed a really fun project called ‘Spice Rack Challenge.’ I’m on board a few months late, but excited to participate. Currently, there are 25 of us participating. Each entry must be posted the third week of the month, so you can look forward to reading about my spice adventures then.

Since I decided to join this group on the spur of the moment and the deadline for posting was looming, I went with something very easy and obvious for my first challenge – Cardamom Coffee Cake from the Moosewood Cookbook. I have made dozens of things from all the Moosewood cookbooks, but never this coffee cake before. Killed two birds with one stone on this one.

(you know the Julie and Julia movie, where Julie cooks every recipe in Julia Child’s cookbook, well I could do the same for the Moosewood cookbooks……. Do I hear another challenge?)

Here’s what you need – and don’t blame me about the pound of butter!

4 sticks of butter

2 C packed light brown sugar

4 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

4 C flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 ½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

1 T cardamom

2 C sour cream

For the nut mixture:

¼ c light brown sugar

1 T cinnamon

½ C chopped nuts (I used pecans today)

Here’s what you do:

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy; add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in vanilla. I used the standing mixer for this part of the recipe only – the rest is better done by hand to avoid overbeating.

In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cardamom. Add this dry mixture to the butter mixture alternating it with the sour cream. (half the flour then half the sour cream, etc) Don’t overdo the mixing.

Spread 1/3 of batter in a well-greased bundt pan – I always highly recommend Pam for Baking! One of my favorite products on earth – and that’s a lot of products……

Then sprinkle half of the nut mixture over the batter. More batter, more nuts, end with batter….

Bake in a 350 degree oven for at least 1 ¼ hours. Cool in the pan before attempting to remove it. Some comments on the internet mentioned that the cake dries out all of a sudden if over baked, so watch it closely.

Place a baking sheet in the oven one rack lower than the coffee cake – it overflows while baking!!

I love bundt cakes and here’s the proof:

Blueberry Pound Cake

Spiced Rum Cake

Pumpkin Butterscotch Bundt Cake

(printable recipe)