Turkey & Broccoli Divan - Turkey leftovers!

Turkey & Broccoli Divan - Served on a Bed of Quinoa.

I like posting recipes that involve using up leftovers.  Although I wasn't the one cooking the meal, we still ended up with a lot of turkey!  I decided to substitute leftover turkey in one of my favorite recipes  - Chicken & Broccoli Divan (a Campbell's Soup Recipe).  I actually had some leftover spinach dip and some sour cream that I had in the freezer that I threw in too!  The turkey really added a nice change to this recipe and I will definitely use up turkey leftovers the same way in the future.  

The only changes I made to the recipe (other than the additions above) was substituting two cooks up chopped up turkey for the chicken.  I, as always, add a lot more bread crumbs than recommended, as I love a nice crisp crust on top.  I used panko crumbs, which I like because they seem to make a crunchier top than regular bread crumbs. 

The link above is to my post about Chicken and Broccoli Divan, but if you want to go straight to the Campbell's recipe, the link is here.

Sous Vide Pork Loin

And We Meet Again!   Hello there you faithful reader(s)!  I do realize that I am two weeks tardy on this post, however, with a sick boy and the holidays, there has been little time for myself.  And when I've had time, I sunk into bed with my book (The Psychopath Test by Jon Ronson - interesting non-fiction read).  Alas, that has finished and I have a couple moments, so here I am.

Thanks to Mike's boss, we have been introduced to the lovely world of Sous Vide.  It's essentially a super slow cooker that you use to make lean cuts of meat super tender.  You seal the meat in a ziploc bag (or sealed bag now that we have a foodsaver system- yay Christmas!) , throw it in your cooking vessel, plug it in, set the temperature around 140 (different for different cuts of meat), and let it cook for a day or two (or three!).

So we bought a cheap pork loin from Costco, cut it into roast size pieces, found a delicious spice rub, and went to work.  (And by 'we' I really mean 'Mike' as this is his baby but is just so good I feel I have to share!)   The rub he found was the Meatheads Memphis Dust Rub Recipe, which you can find here from www.AmazingRibs.com.

We did two pork loins as we were having a Christmas potluck and had a lot of hungry mouths to feed!  

We cooked it for 2 days at 140 Degrees F and the result was pure heaven. Mike did a quick sear on the meat just to get some appetizing color to the meat.  To be honest, I didn't realize that pork wasn't supposed to be dry.  The tenderness and the moisture was incomparable to any other pork dish that I've ever had!  Thank you, Mike, for a wonderful meal.  Yummmmmmm.

Quick Ground Beef Curry

Ever since my cooking classes earlier this year, I have been a lot more experimental with different flavors and spices.  Curry was my biggest enemy and now we are becoming at very least, acquaintances.  I ventured out to try this ground beef curry recipe after a quick google search brought up this CBC program "Best Recipes Ever" recipe located here.

To be honest, it wasn't that quick and I used the wrong type of curry.  I used a yellow curry powder, as it was all I had, and it was much too mild.  I think if I would have used the Madras Curry (which is a lot spicier apparently), this would have been much more flavorful and I would have enjoyed it more.  With that being said, Grayson liked it anyways!  I served it on basmati rice with a side of garlic naan bread.

Death By Chocolate

Death By Chocolate always reminds me of two women - my mom and my best friend Camille.  My mom has made this several times over the years (including for dessert the night Mike and I told our parents that we were expecting!)  And I remember the first time I met Camille -  it was at a birthday party and she had made the hugest vat of Death by Chocolate that I had ever seen!!! 

Every time I've had this or made this, it always tastes just a little different but is always phenomenal.  I think one of the biggest reasons for that is generally, you use whatever you have on hand and you don't measure!!  The skor bits on top could easily be replaced by pieces of and kind of your favorite chocolate bar, chocolate shavings, or even drizzled with caramel.  You could add berries or nuts and everyone would still love it.  It's a classic dessert that very seldom has any leftovers, no matter the version you make!  

Death By Chocolate

1 box of chocolate cake, prepared according to package directions and cubed. (My trifle bowl will only hold a 1/2 a cake, so I cube up the rest and freeze the other half - another dessert ready to go!)

1 tub of low fat cool whip

1 package of chocolate pudding, prepared

1 or 2 cups of Kahlua (optional)

1/2 cup skor bits

Place 1/4 of your cubed chocolate cake into your trifle bowl, ensuring the bottom is completely covered.  Top with 1/2 the Kahlua, 1/2 the pudding, 1/2 of the cool whip and 1/2 of the skor bits.  Repeat layers. Refrigerate for a couple hours to let all the Kahlua soak into the chocolate cake.  Serve to your guest OR grab a spoon and head for a nice quiet room where nobody will bother you!

Of course you don't have to use a trifle bowl, it really is just used for presentation so you can see all of the pretty layers.  You could also use a large glass bowl - or even an  old ice cream pail.  I promise you it will taste just as good! 

Zucchini Wedges

My mom introduced me to this recipe last week and we made it again for supper tonight!  It's a great way to use up some of the zucchini that grew amazingly big this year.  This is a much healthier version of pub-style food and satisfies that craving without the greasiness you get with deep frying.

Panko Crusted Wedges (left) and Shake 'N Bake Wedges (right)

I wanted to try two different coatings for the wedges so I used Shake 'N Bake (on the right) and made my own coating with panko crumbs and Epicure's Lemon Dilly spice mix (on left).  My preference? The Shake 'N Bake by far were the favorite in our house.  The color was more appealing, it had more flavor (which most definitely means a lot more added salt), and I really liked the texture.  The panko crumbs are made from only the inside of white bread (no crusts), which is why the color is so light, and whereas the crunch is usually quite nice - it just didn't compare to Shake 'N Bake!

Zucchini Wedges
3 cups zucchini, cut into wedges that are about 1"x3"and about 1/2 inch thick.
1 egg, beaten
1 package Shake 'N Bake Crispy Coating

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Dip zucchini wedges in egg, and then toss to coat in breadcrumbs.  (can use plastic bag and shake it around or in a bowl and just flip it around to coat all sides).  Place on greased baking sheet.  Repeat until all zucchini wedges are coated.  Bake at 350 deg F for 25 minutes, or until fork pierces easily through zucchini.

*You could use this for other kinds of vegetables as well!  Get creative!

Brunch edition: Thyme Scrambled Eggs

Lately when I'm cooking, I find myself asking, "What can I make that Grayson will actually eat?"  He rarely wants to stop playing to eat, so a lot of the time (against my better judgement), I am feeding him on the go.  Every now and then, I'll find something that he will actually sit still for in the highchair and just devour!  What you ask?  Eggs!!  Instead of serving him just boring old scrambled eggs, we step it up a notch and add some real flavor by adding some fresh thyme!  It's really a balanced meal with elements from each of the food group included.  And the best thing is that it's not a super messy food for him to feed himself!  Usually most gets in his mouth and only a little on the floor, which is always considered a huge success!

Thyme Scrambled Eggs

4 eggs

1/8 cup milk

1 TSP fresh thyme 

1/2 cup grated cheese (we like old cheese with our scrambled eggies, but use whatever you've got on hand)

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 small tomato, chopped 

Preheat skillet and melt about a 1/2 tsp butter/margarine.  In medium size bowl, whisk first three ingredients together. Pour into hot pan, topping with the rest of the ingredients.  Once the egg white starts to cook, scramble them repeatedly until eggs are cooked and no longer runny.  Serve with a slice of whole wheat toast.

*we usually fry up some sausage to go along with this and cube it up for him.  The farmers sausage that Coop makes in store is absolutely delicious and is preservative free! yumm

When served with toast and sausage, this recipe is enough to feed all three of us!  

Open Faced Turkey Sandwich with Garlic Aioli

Grayson Shark Halloween/2011

 Hi everyone!!  Wow - I can't believe it's the middle of November already!  My little boy turns one tomorrow!

New updates on our life:
-Grayson is walking!
-I got a new job! I am now working in the College of Nursing at the University of Saskatchewan as the newest Clinical Placement Coordinator!  (Yay for no more shift work or nights!)
-Grayson started daycare last week
-Mike successfully went hunting white tail for the first time.  We have the tenderloin in the fridge, ready for tomorrow nights supper!

 This fall has just flown by and I haven't been able to keep up with my blog.  I have been keeping track of different recipes that I've tried or new twists on old recipes.  As much as I like my new recipes that I try, there's nothing like a good old comfort recipe to satisfy your cravings.  After Thanksgiving, we were lucky enough to have some turkey leftovers sent home with us from my MIL and some fresh garden tomatoes from my mom.  Mike and I were both starving one night and we wanted something quick, so I whipped up these yummy open faced turkey sandwiches, and they were a total hit!  You might ask why I am putting something as simple as a sandwich in my blog, as I asked myself that same question.  I guess the answer would be because sometimes you just don't know what to do with those turkey leftovers!

Open Faced Turkey Sandwiches with Garlic Aioli

4 slices of bread, toasted (I use Alsask bread from Family Bakery - a multigrain type bread)
1/3 cup mayo
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 clove garlic, minced (or more if you prefer!)
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 large tomatoes, sliced
1 cup leftover turkey
1/2 cup grated cheese (I like using old cheddar as it gives it more cheesy flavor!)

Preheat oven to broil.  Mix mayo, lemon juice, garlic and salt and pepper together.  Spread on each slice of toast.  Top with tomatoes, turkey, and grated cheese.  Broil for 3-5 minutes, watching closely so it doesn't burn!