Thursday, 26 November, 2009
Happy Thanksgiving, dear readers!! What a wonderful day to be surrounded by family, friends, and FOOD!
Even on those years when my parents don’t host Thanksgiving dinner at their house (our families alternate years), they still roast a whole turkey. Why go to all the trouble? Well, for the leftovers, of course!
I think there are two really unique things that my family does when we roast a turkey. The first is the stuffing. My grandmother, Nanny, makes the stuffing every year. She will tell you that it’s very simple – just some breadcrumbs (made from plain white hamburger buns!), melted butter, chicken broth, and some poultry seasoning. But I’m telling you . . . . it’s simply magical. I can’t even look at recipes for stuffing that include a lot of *stuff* – the simple classic has spoiled me. I don’t want cranberries, mushrooms, lentils, oysters, carrots, celery, onion, raisins, or even cornbread in my stuffing! Give me Nanny’s, or I’ll just pass on this dish altogether!!!
The second unique touch in our family turkey recipe is the sausage. (And NO, the sausage does NOT go in the dressing!) About mid-way through the roasting process, we place traditional link sausages (usually Bob Evans or Jimmy Dean brand) all around the base of the turkey. They roast to perfection, all the while basting the turkey with their wonderfully flavorful juices! Everyone takes a link to have on their plate next to all the delicious veggies.
We have a few other turkey-day tricks up our sleeve in my family, but I have to save some of those for the years to come!
In the meantime, best wishes to all of my dear readers for a wonderful holiday season for you and your precious families!
Sunday, 15 November, 2009
The four cheeses in my lasagna are not the most traditional cheeses . . . but they sure are tasty! I like to use turkey for the meat in this one – there are so many wonderful flavors going on that most people who taste this dish don’t even notice that it’s not beef! Plus, I think the turkey makes it seem lighter, which is a nice balance to the richness of the cheese.
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Wednesday, 8 July, 2009
So my cousin is pretty much amazing. She is absolutely adorable. Gorgeous, funny, and very smart.
The unexpected part, though, is that my cousin is really into meat. In fact, she is a graduate student in the Meat Sciences program at the University of Georgia. It is absolutely hilarious to see this beautiful, sweet girl talk about slaughtering animals, different cuts of meat, and her research projects.
But the best part is that we get to sample some of the fruits of her labor. The school sells their cuts of meat every Friday afternoon – and she brings us some of her projects that are not for sale, as well!
This is an example of the latter. This is a Greek sausage that the graduate students made. We grilled some last week, and they were amazing! For more great meat info and tips, check out my cousin’s blog: The Meat Lady.
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Thursday, 2 July, 2009
Here’s another easy weeknight meal that I made up with some fresh and flavorful ingredients we had on hand. These peppers were bursting with flavor – but still quite lean because we used chicken sausage.
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Tuesday, 21 April, 2009
Need a hearty dinner to bring to a friend? Need a dinner that freezes and travels well? Need a dinner you can make days ahead of time but still feed a crowd? This baked ziti is for you!
Italian Sausage Baked Ziti
1 lb. ziti noodles, uncooked
4-6 sweet Italian sausages, browned and sliced
1 15-ounce tub of fresh ricotta cheese
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (or oregano and basil)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 16-ounce jar of your favorite tomato sauce
3 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Apply cooking spray to a deep-dish 9×13 inch oven-safe baking dish and set aside.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook your ziti noodles until barely al dente.
Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, stir together ricotta, egg, garlic salt, Italian seasoning, and pepper until completely combined. Drain your cooked ziti noodles, and pour them into the ricotta mixture. Stir until evenly incorporated.
Spread about half of the tomato sauce in the bottom of your prepared baking dish. Next, spread half of the noodle mixture on top. Then, sprinkle half of the sliced sausage over the noodles. Finally, sprinkle half of the mozzarella cheese on top. Repeat, layering the rest of the tomato sauce, noodles, sausage, and mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle the paremsan evenly across the top.
Cover with tinfoil and bake for about 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes, until cheese is brown and bubbly.
