Buffalo Turkey Burgers

I wanted to BBQ something for supper last night but I didn’t want the usual burger or hot dog. I decided turkey burgers would be a nice change.

When I saw this recipe on Rachel Ray’s site, I knew it was a winner. My in house taste tester loves anything buffalo style so I did these for him!

They have so much flavour. They have a nice kick from the hot sauce and a great texture from the sautéed veggies. We really liked them!

What you need,

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1 tbsp. olive oil

2 ribs celery, very finely chopped

1 carrot, peeled and grated

1 small onion, grated

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt and Pepper

2 lbs. ground turkey breast

1 rounded tbsp. old bay seasoning

¼ cup hot sauce, like Frank’s Red Hot or Buffalo Wing Sauce

1 cup sour cream, you can use low fat if you want

1/3 lb. blue cheese, crumbled

Hamburger buns

Lettuce for serving

Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium high heat. Add in the carrot, onion, celery and garlic and cook until tender, about 7-8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set mixture aside to cool.

In a large bowl combine the ground turkey, the cooled sautéed veggies, the old bay seasoning and hot sauce. Form into patties. I put mine in the fridge for an hour or so, I find it helps them stay together on the grill.

In a small bowl combine the sour cream and crumbled blue cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If you find the mixture too thick you can thin it out with a splash of milk.

Cook the burgers on the BBQ or in a grill pan for about 4-5 minutes per side until cooked through.

Serve on a toasted hamburger bun with the blue cheese sauce and some lettuce.

I also served mine with carrot and celery sticks and some homemade tater tots!!

Yep, homemade tots! I will share those with you tomorrow.

Jen

Recipe adapted from Rachel Ray

Cream Scones with Blueberries and Almonds

Want to know something weird, I have never made a scone before. I bake a lot, and for some reason I just never got to making them before.

When I saw a recipe for basic scones in the new Martha Stewart Everyday Food Magazine, I figured now was as good a time as any.

These scones are so light and moist.  They turned out perfectly!

What you need,

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¾ cup plus 1 tbsp. heavy cream

1 large egg

2 cups all- purpose flour, plus more for work surface

¼ cup granulated sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

6 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup blueberries, I used frozen but if you had fresh that would work to.

1 cup toasted sliced almonds

Sanding sugar for top (optional)

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a silpat mat and set aside.

Whisk together ¾ cup cream, vanilla and egg. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt. With a pastry cutter, blend the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal, with a few pea sized pieces of butter remaining. I don’t have a pastry cutter so I used a fork and it worked just fine. Stir in the blueberries and almonds. With a fork stir in the cream mixture until just combined. The dough should be crumbly, don’t overwork.

Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface and pat into a 6 inch circle.

Cut into 6 wedges and transfer to the silpat lined baking sheet.

Brush the tops with 1 tablespoon of cream and sprinkle with sanding sugar.

Bake until golden brown, 16-18 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through.

Cool completely on a wire rack.

Scones are best eaten the same day, but I wrapped my left overs tightly in saran wrap and they were perfectly fine the next day.

I just ate mine plain but a little smear of butter and some blueberry preserves would be awesome!

I had a tea and a scone and read my Fine Cooking magazine. It was a wonderful start to my morning.

I love that these scones are really adaptable, you could do chocolate and coconut, or cherry and hazelnut, even strawberry would be great.

I am so glad I finally tried making scones, they are so delicious.

Jen

Recipe from Martha Stewart Everyday Food Magazine

 

Favourite Things Friday Vol 26

My favourite thing this week is my herb garden.

I planted some herbs last year, and as the weather has been getting warmer they seem to be making their own way back.

the chives,

the rosemary,

and the parsley,

The only one that hasn't come back on its own is my basil, I guess I will have to plant some new stuff.
I really didn't expect any of them to come back on their own so I am very excited!

I love using fresh herbs as much as I can. Since I can't have a garden, growing herbs is the only way I can give my green thumb a work out.

It always amazes me what a little warm sun can accomplish!

Happy Friday Everyone!!

Jen
 

 

 

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

I have an obsession with lemon desserts. I am likely to choose lemon over chocolate, unless it is peanut butter and choclate, that always wins! When I found this recipe I was excited to give it a try. 

My friend Brenda was in town when I made them, she loved them as much as I did; I think we ate almost the whole batch in one sitting!

What you need,

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½ cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

½ tsp. vanilla

1 egg

1 tbsp. lemon zest

2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. baking soda

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a silpat mat, or parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla, egg, lemon zest and lemon juice. Mix until well incorporated, scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.

Gradually add the flour mixture into the stand mixer on low speed until blended.

Cover the dough with saran wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to firm up the dough.

Put the powdered sugar into a shallow bowl.

Roll the dough into balls using a heaping teaspoon of dough. Roll the dough balls into the powdered sugar to coat. Place the balls onto the baking sheets.

Bake the cookies for 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned on the edges.

Remove cookies from baking sheet and cool completely on a wire rack.

These cookies are light and fluffy with lots of bright lemon flavour!

They taste like spring!

Jen

Recipe from Let’s Dish Recipes

Porcupine Meatballs

This is another Clarke Family classic.

These meatballs are comfort food to the max! They have tons of flavour and are super easy. They taste kind of like a cabbage roll without the cabbage. 

What you need,

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1 lb. of ground beef

1 cup raw white rice

1 egg

¼ cup yellow onion, grated or finely diced

¼ cup bell pepper; finely diced (I used an orange one)

1 tsp. garlic powder

½ tsp. salt (or you could use seasoning salt)

¼ tsp. fresh ground pepper

1 can tomato soup

1 can of water (about 1 cup)

¼ cup ketchup, plus more for topping

1-2 tbsp. hot sauce, add to your taste

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl whisk together the tomato soup, water, ketchup and hot sauce until well combined. Season with salt and pepper to your taste. You are looking for at least 2 ½  cups of liquid, so add more water if needed.

In a large bowl combine the ground beef, uncooked rice, egg, onion, bell pepper, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix with your hands until well incorporated.

Form into meatballs. I used a large ice cream scoop to make mine, but you can make them whatever size you like.

Pour half the tomato soup mixture into the bottom of a baking dish or Dutch oven. Place the meatballs on top of the sauce. Pour the rest of the sauce over the top of the meatballs. Squeeze a little ketchup on each meatball and spread it out with the back of a spoon.

Cover the baking dish and cook for 1 hour. Uncover the pan and bake another 15 minutes or so until the top of the meatballs get a little bit brown.

I served mine with some fresh homemade bread, sautéed spicy kale and carrots. It really was a perfect Sunday dinner!

Jen