Meatball Sliders

17 Mar

If you’ve been following my blog you can likely tell that I’m very big on asian fusion cooking. As much as I love it, I decided that I wanted to venture outside of my comfort zone and start cooking some different meals. It all started with italian themed food which led to me this fantastic meatball slider recipe.

It all started because I was home with not much in the fridge, but lots of cheese! So I decided to make homemade pizza, yahoo! Homemade pizza dough was actually one of the first dishes I posted on this blog over 1 year ago and I used the same recipe.

It was a hit! It was so good that the next night I decided to continue my Italian path into meatball sliders. I have to say – these were incredibly easy to make, SO good, and still good the next day!

I doubled the recipe that I had, and it made 15 meatballs – and you only need one per slider! I ate alot of meatball sliders…alot.

Meatball Sliders

Makes 7-8 sliders

Ingredients:

1 lb extra-lean ground turkey
1/4 cup panko
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 large egg
2 TSBP chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 cup marinara sauce, store-bought or homemade
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
8 slider buns (I used mini onion rolls), toasted, for serving
Basil leaves, for serving

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine ground turkey, panko, parmesan, garlic powder, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt & peppers, egg and parsley. Using a wooden spoon, stir until well combined. Roll the mixture into 2-inch meatballs, forming about 8 meatballs.
Place meatballs onto prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, or until all sides are browned and meatballs are cooked through. Remove from oven.
Preheat oven to broil.
Assemble the slider: place 1 meatball and a spoonful of marinara on the bottom of each bun. Top with mozzarella and place into oven and bake until cheese has melted, about 1-2 minutes.
Top with 1-2 basil leaves and cover with the slider tops.
Serve immediately and enjoy!

Barely adapted from one of my favorite food blogs Damn Delicious

Such a fun and easy dish!!! Hope you like it!

- Jennie

Comments Comments Off
Categories Chicken, Meals
Author Jennie

Braised Beef Stew

24 Jan

Growing up I never had beef stew. Someone in my family (*cough* my father), used to call it Alpo (aka dog food). Sure, it doesn’t look too appetizing, and it’s not exactly fancy stuff, but let me tell you something – it is heart warmingly delicious. Especially when its -40°C back home.

Cars don’t start, fingers turn pink, and I’m in my snugly slippers eating soup. Shivering of course – but not because of the cold. BECAUSE OF FEAR. Welcome to interview month – the 4 years of medical school culminate into 4 weeks of interviews for a residency position. While nerve-racking, it is also really exciting to see my friends decide on their career paths and travel to parts of Canada we never thought we would (hello Saskatoon!).

What I need today is simply a hearty soup all wrapped up in a one pot meal. A warm belly always leads to an amazing interview process, right?

Braised Beef Stew

Ingredients:

1.8kg (4 lbs) stweing beef cubes, cut into 1-2 inches
2 tbsp flour
1 tbsp paprika
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 medium onions
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp hot paprika
3 cups beef stock
1-2 cups water
8 red potatoes, sliced in thirds
6 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
3 parnsips, peeled and thickly sliced
2 cups mushrooms, thickly sliced
1 bay leaf
pinch of dried thyme
kosher salt and fresh pepper to taste

Directions:

Mix flour, paprika, salt and pepper in a bowl and dredge beef cubes through this mixture.
Heat oil in a dutch oven (hot, but not smoking) and sear the meat in the pan (in batches to not overcrowd the pan). Brown meat well on all sides. Repeat with all meat and move to bowl, and set aside.
Lower heat to medium low and add the onions and paprika and garlic. Saute until onion are soft, about 8-10 minutes.
Return the beef the pot, add the stock and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a simmer and cook for 1 hour uncovered.
Stir in potatoes, carrots and parsnips, adding water one cup at a time until all contents in the pot are covered.
Cover and continue to cook for another hour.
Add mushrooms, bay leaf and thyme then cover and cook for an additional hour.
Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with flat lead parsley.

Source: Cooking with Love

I hope you stay warm in this arctic air!

Comments Comments Off
Categories Meals, Recipes, Soup
Author Jennie

Pasta Bolognese

30 Dec

There are a few “classic” meals that as a home cook, I still haven’t made. I’ve never made hamburgers, wings, anything with turkey, any sort of pie, or jambalaya.

Yes. Jambalaya is a classic meal in my mind.

These dishes and desserts are on my food to-do-list, but on the top of that carefully crafted list is Pasta Bolognese – the all elusive and sexy meat sauce. HmmmHmmm…

While it is a sauce I adore, there is unfortunately just one type of bolognese you can never beat – your boyfriend’s mothers. To be fair, it is pretty awesome, but as Ryan so nicely put it – Even if I spend 3 days slaving over my meat sauce, it will never be as good as his moms!

Who wants that kind of pressure?!?! Obviously, I do. And obviously my meat sauce was awesome, and got devoured.

But his mother’s was better.

Pasta Bolognese

Ingredients:

1 lb lean ground sirloin
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp oregano
1/4-1/2 tsp red chilli flakes
4 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup dry red wine
1 can crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or pot over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook, crumbling the meat with a wooden spoon, for 5 to 7 minutes, (until the meat is no longer pink and has started to brown).
Stir in the garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes and cook for 1 more minute.
Pour 1 cup of the wine into the skillet and stir to scrape up any browned bits.
Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, salt and pepper, stirring until combined. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 25 minutes.
Add the nutmeg, basil, cream, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened.
When serving, add the sauce and 1/4 cup Parmesan to the pasta and toss well.

Note: You can simmer for more or less time, depending on how much time you have. Original recipe calls for simmering for 10 minutes at step 4 and 5, but I found the flavors weren’t quite ready.

Recipe slightly adapted from Barefoot Contessa

Enjoy the recipe! And please healthy it up by omitting the cream (doctor’s orders).

Comments Comments Off
Categories Meals, Pasta, Recipes
Author Jennie

Cashew Chicken

25 Nov

I have officially moved – ahh, I live with a boy!! Now that I’m settled, I’m making attempts at being domestic. If someone told me 4 years ago that I would be excited to plan meals, make grocery lists and then…wait for it…. make dinner, I would have genuinly laughed my way out the door.

I’m more of a susie-homemaker than I thought I would ever be, but I still don’t get manicures or do my hair pretty. Maybe one day I’ll be more of a lady – but for now I’ll stick with cooking in my neon blue plush housecoat and slipper socks…

Now that I like to cook, there are some days where I feel like a nice home cooked meal would be awesome, but I don’t care to put in much effort. So I’m about to give you the best go-to dinner I’ve been making this past little while. Of course, it’s asian inspired, so I have everything I need on any given weekday. Serve this dish with some steamed rice and a veggie (bok choy if you can find it), and this dish is a sure-fire way to have a great dinner ready in all of 15 minutes. BOOM! From these pics you can see I’ve made it twice recently….

Cashew Chicken

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs skinless, boneless chicken breasts – cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tbsp cornstarch
salt and pepper
2 tbsp vegetable oil
6 garlic cloves, minced
8 green onions, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 tbsp rice vinegar
3 tbsp hoisin sauce
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup raw cashews, toasted
red peppers , mushrooms – cut into 1 inch pieces (optional)

Directions:

In a bowl, toss the cubed chicken with the cornstarch until coated. Season with salt and pepper.
In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tbsp of oil in medium-high heat. Cook half the chicken until browned (about 3-4 minutes). Transfer to a plate.
Add remaining oil and chicken to the pan, along with the garlic. Cook until chicken is browned. Return the first batch of chicken to the pan (and other veggies like mushrooms..etc if you want). Stir.
Add the vinegar, and cook until evaporated.
Add hoisin sauce and 1/4 cup water; cook, tossing, until chicken is cooked through (about minute). Remove from hear and stir in green onions and cashews.
Serve (with rice and veggies) and enjoy!

Recipe slightly adapted from Everyday Food – Great Food Fast

I hope you find this as easy and quick as I do! You can add whatever veggies you want to this dish for a little added goodness.

- Jennie

Comments Comments Off
Categories Chicken, Meals, Recipes
Author Jennie

Cajun Salmon with peach Salsa

26 Aug

It is the last few weeks of summer – I am horrified (yes, horrified) at how quickly the summer went by. Asides from my week of vacation, I think I’ve been in the sun for a total of 10 days. Sigh, the life of a medical student/netflix watcher (Buffy the Vampire slayer and Friday Night Lights – 2 very different shows that live deep in my heart).

Asides from the earlier sunset, August also means it’s peach season. They are so fresh and sweet now that they add something special to any dish. You can go for the classic peach cobbler, or you can cut fresh peaches into a green salad (if you just came back from a heavy-eating vacation). In my case, I used sweet peaches to balance the spicy zing of my cajun salmon – and it went perfectly.

This dish is a cajun spiced salmon with a fresh tasting peach salsa. You can buy cajun seasoning pre-made at your grocery store. No need to make a melange (that’s french for “mixture”) of your own. And while the recipe calls for a peach salsa, I didn’t cut my veggies and fruits into teensy tiny pieces – I’m rebellious. Conform if you wish.

Cajun salmon with peach salsa

Ingredients: (for 4)

For the fish:

4 salmon fillets
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp cajun seasoning (warning: it can be spicy!)
salt and pepper

Peach salsa:

1 1/2 cups (finely) diced peach
3/4 cup (finely) diced red pepper
1/2 cup (finely) diced green bell pepper
1/2 cups finely diced onions
1/4 cup diced fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons fresh lemon huice
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tsp minced garlic
salt and pepper

Directions:

Heat BBQ to medium-high heat or turn on your Foreman grill/use your grill pan
Brush the fish with olive oil. Spread the seasoning on a plate and dredge the fish through it, turning to coat (try to not have the seasoning too thick as it is spicy). Sprinkle salt and pepper on the fish.
Grill fish, about 4 minutes per side or until fish is opaque in the centre.
For the salsa: Combine the peach, peppers, onions and cilantro in a bowl. Mix together the lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper and pour onto salsa, stirring to combine.
Serve fish with salsa on top and a sprig of cilantro for a beautifully served dish.

From: Panache cookbook (Best cookbook in my kitchen – I have sited too many recipes already!)

Hope you enjoy this dish and your last few weeks of summer!

- Jennie