Turkey- Pepperoni Burgers with Pesto Mayo

We have been eating a whole lot of ground turkey lately (organic of course), in lieu of ground beef.   I still think beef makes a better burger but this recipe should kick your turkey buns up a notch!

Chopped up pepperoni slices, some pesto mayo, provolone and yumbo! 

If you dont' have pesto on hand, mix a little garlic and dried basil with your mayo for a very close rendition. 

I like to cook my turkey burgers in a cast iron or nonstick pan instead of the grill, they are much juicer.  But if you choose to use the BBQ, for heavens sake don't press the burger patty down with your spatula ...jeeze that just makes me nuts when I see people doing that!  All the juices go right to the bottom of the BBQ and you are left with a turkey burger carcass.

Another trick for a juicier turkey burger is to avoid cutting into the burger with a knife when checking for doneness, this releases all the juices.....press down on the patty with your finger, if it is firm in the center,  it is done.  (Should feel like pressing on the ball of your hand...if you have really fat hands then I would pass on this technique and buy a good thermometer).

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Lemon Raspberry Snack Cake

We never seem to be able to finish a big sheet cake...I know!!!  I can't believe it either!  I end up tossing half and I hate to waste food...hate, hate, hate!  This is the perfect size.

Lemon Curd and Yogurt are the secrets to this moist, yummy snack cake!

If you haven't cooked with Lemon Curd before, it tastes just like the gooey center of a lemon cookie bar.  It is good straight outta the jar.  It has a mild flavor but adds moistness and bit of tang to the cake.   I wanted more lemon flavor so I added a teaspoon of grated lemon peel.

I didn't drizzle with frosting but when I make it again I will.  Mix a cup of powdered sugar and a tablespoon of lemon juice and drizzle on top after the cake cools...something to look forward too next time!

Simple, simple recipe and a nice bright flavor.  You could easily substitute blueberry's or blackberries.

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Watermelon Salad with Feta and Mint

If  you have ever flown Alaska Airlines then you know they have the nicest Flight Attendants ever!  Do these people ever have a bad day?  I can't possibly imagine serving 130 people stuffed into a tube and never getting a bit cranky! But these guys rock it...every day!  (okay I'm a bit prejudiced having worked at Alaska's sister company, Horizon Air for 14 years, but not as a Flight Attendant, I don't have what it takes... like the ability to not want to stuff screaming children in the overhead bin...)  These guys are truly amazing, every child remains in their seat for the entire flight, quite an accomplishment in my  book.

So on a recent trip to Tucson it is no surprise that I met one of their finest, Denise W.  Not only is Denise a sweet heart of a flight attendant, she knows how to cook!  She shared this recipe with me and it's been on my mind to blog it for a month now.

It's super easy, super healthy and so good you can't stop eating it!  If you are not a fan of mint, cilantro makes a nice alternative.

Hope you can enjoy it before summer ends!

Ingredients
1 small watermelon, cubed and seeded
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup white wine vinegar (Denise says not to substitute this ingredient, especially with balsamic or you get a rather unattractive salad)
1/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese
2 tablespoons minced mint or cilantro
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper


Toss and serve...how easy is that ????  Love it!  Thank you Denise and happy travels!

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Cappuccino Biscotti with Chocolate Bunny Drizzle

Biscotti is so very easy to make, easier than cookies and really impressive as a gift.
This particular recipe includes coffee and a little milk to give it that cappuccino flavor.    
How is it that they are drizzled in chocolate bunny you ask?   I had this beautiful Dove Chocolate bunny that had been decapitated by my daughter on Easter but  never touched again. I just couldn't see chucking the poor little guy, head or no head, it was still chocolate and good chocolate at that!  So, I chopped it up, threw some in the biscotti and melted the rest for glaze.  Damn clever if you ask me!  You could certainly use chocolate chips if you don't have a decapitated bunny lounging around.

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BLT Pasta Salad

Crisp, refreshing and easy!  

This recipe calls for store bought Ranch Dressing...yes, I said it, 'Redneck Ranch'. Personally, I am not a huge fan of Ranch,  (because I am so cultured an' stuff),  but in this recipe it works. I bought the higher end brand in the cold food section, I paid more, so I am sure it is better.

 If you don't like Ranch (or just don't want to admit you do), mix mayo and lemon juice...makes a sprite little dressing. (did I just say sprite when describing food?  OMG, I think I am evolving!)

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Thai Chicken Salad with Peanut Dressing and Crispy Wontons

What I love about this salad:

• Rotisserie chicken from supermarket
• Easy
• Low calorie/healthy
• Thai peanuty goodness
• Inexpensive
• Ingredients you probably have on hand
• No cook
• Great lunch leftovers
• But mostly...really, really tasty!  The crunch of the cuc's and the peanuty sauce with the crispy Wontons really pack a punch!

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Crunchy Oven Baked Shrimp with Peachy Dipping Sauce

Crunchy Oven Fried Shrimp with Spicy Peachy sauce!  I can't get enough of them!  I will make the peach sauce over and over again, I can already taste it with salmon and turkey burgers and pork chops and chicken and fish and...well you get the point. It's yummy!

The sauce is so simple, it is made out of peach preserves, ground ginger, honey and hot sauce...nuke it a minute and instant dip!  You can even use sugar free preserves and get amazing results.

I tried the shrimp a couple different ways - soaked in buttermilk, dipped in egg, and just Panko and then dipped in regular bread crumbs and then again with a bread-Panko combo, and that was the best. These little wonder shrimp have been tested and re-tested.  (Thank you Mr. Kirk for your very valuable opinion...he has a very tough job, being my official taste tester.)
The shrimp are also very low in calorie, so make tons and double your batch of the peachy sauce to go with everything you are cooking this week!

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Homemade Focaccia Bread with Fresh Rosemary

I tried quite a few recipes for Focaccia before landing on this one. Some were to thin, too dry, too thick...this one is perfect!  It could be because you cook it in a small pool of olive oil and who wouldn't like that?  The extra oil in the pan makes a crusty bread and the olive oil adds a deep flavor but it does not taste oily at all.    The original recipe is from Ann Burrell, (funky, spikey blonde hair lady on Food TV)  I've been told if I would sprout about 3-4 inches, I would be a an Anne Burrell look alike...I would be okay with that!

 I used a Kitchen Aid and dough hook, but you could certainly just go in with your hands.  Give it a long first knead though,  you want it smooth and silky.

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Grilled Ginger-Soy Chicken

Simple, simple, simple!  Just a few ingredients plus an hour to marinade and "Bob's Your Uncle"! 
I used  organic chicken thighs with fresh ginger and garlic...but you could easily substitute chicken breasts (try to stay organic if  you can) and ground, garlic and ginger...you get near the same results!


Ingredients

2 pounds chicken thighs (bone in or out, doesnt matter)
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup soy sauce

Directions

Toss everything in a ziploc type bag.  Seal the bag and mush it around so everything is coated.

Refrigerate for an hour or overnight.

Heat up your favorite grill and cook until done!

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Turkey Quesadilla Burgers

The first time I ever had a Quesadilla Burger was in Palm Desert,  after 18 holes of golf with our very dear friend's, Raela and Bob...both prolific golfers and lovers of good food...and guess where they took us to have this fine burger?  Applebees!
'So, if these guys are such 'food lovers', Kathi,  why did they take you to freakin' Applebees?' you ask.   Well, I'll tell ya why!...Applebees is the only place to get this burger...at least the only place I know of, and Raela knows good food ...so when the food whisperer speaks...I listen! 

And you know what? Applebees burger is good, good and creamy with processed gooey cheese and buttery grilled tortilla's...and I want it...I want it bad.  But my old ticker is saying, stop with the greasy food already.  So here we go again,  same old song running in my head: burger? health?...burger?...health?... sometimes the burger wins and sometimes my health wins, but with this recipe, I get both!

You can cook these on the stove top, as I did ...(because, well...Seattle weather sucks)  Or you can use the grill.  It would be yummy with fresh corn kernals tucked in the tortilla or sprinkled on top, maybe some Queso cheese and spanish rice on the side.

Holy Quesadilla!   I can already tell, I gotta make these again...and soon!

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Homemade Ricotta Cheese

I made this again...I just had to see if it was as good as I remembered, and girlfriend...mmmmmm,mmmmm,mmmmm.

I truly don't think this recipe got the attention it deserved the first time, so I am reposting.  Listen to me my fellow foodies, put  your ear closer to your computer screen so you can hear what I am saying.   You must try this recipe!  

I will expect a full report on how it has changed your life...how you will never, ever buy store bought Ricotta again.  How the smooth, warm, silky taste of this cheese has altered your foodie being.  I know, I know...I get emotional too....hold me...just hold me....

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Homemade Garlic Croutons

For my friend Holly who is always looking for new uses for old bread! 

I used wheat, white and threw in a few stale Sweet, Sexy Dinner Rolls.  Made a nice medley!
This is one of the few recipes I have that is actually better with garlic powder in lieu of fresh garlic. Fresh garlic tends to burn and just lay on the bottom of the pan when cooking at high heat.
You can also add a sprinkle of Parmesan right when you take them out of the oven. 
These make your usual salads really special and they are so easy to make!

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Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

Portable Strawberry Shortcake!  You can take it on the road with you, and anytime you need a little taste of summer...take a little nibble.

I've been wanting to blog this recipe since the dark days of winter and finally, the sun is out in Seattle and there is reason to celebrate!

I consider myself a savory, not sweet girl (and there are many that would back me up on that)...that may be why I love these cookies.  They have a biscuit quality to them, not overly sweet, just enough to let those beautiful berries shine through.

These were a little difficult to master.  I finally got it right on my second try, but let me save  you a step.  After  you mix the berries in, put the dough in the fridge for about 20 minutes...otherwise they tend to spread all over the cookie pan...also, serve them within a day, the strawberries can get a bit mushy...tasty, but mushy.

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Turkey Taco Pie!

Okay now, don't be talkin' smack about my simple old Taco Pie...I know, it's a little South Park but it is really yummy!

 This recipe took first place in the  Pillsbury Bake Off  in 1970 and I've been eating it ever since.  My mom made it, my sisters make it (well at least one of them, the other one doesn't eat, an apparent gene mutant),  and I make it at least once a month. Sometimes I'll top with canned chilies or thawed corn. I have even turned it into cheeseburger pie with hamburger, bbq sauce and lotsa cheese (of course).

You will note that I don't crimp the edges of the pie...I pull it up and partially over  the filling...I don't know why...I just think it looks cool...you can crimp or pull, whatever you feel like doing with your dough is fine with me...

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Chicken Sausage & Vegetable Soup with Cheese Crisps

Anywhere but here (Seattle), most folks are bustin' out the grills and lemonade this time of year, but not in the Pacific Northwest, we are still craving soup and red wine...well I am anyway, well I always am, actually. 

After my 'cancer fighting soup' disaster...lowest blog view numbers ever.  (Apparently people don't make recipes that start with the word 'cancer' and I need to work on my marketing skills.)  Consider this a 'make up' recipe.   I promise you will have this recipe for a long time, because you are going to live forever, and ever, and ever...how am I doing?  Marketing 101?.

This is like a minestrone only with sausage instead of the traditional lean pork and bacon. You can clean out your pantry and a fridge making this soup. Throw in whatcha got and you will still have a great soup....but start with the sausage, it really makes the soup.

NOTE: When I make soups with pasta, I always cook the pasta separate and ladle the soup over it.   You will find the pasta so much better tasting and won't get mushy when you have leftovers the next day. 

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