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All posts for the month June, 2012

Greek Chicken Wraps

Published June 29, 2012 by jenmatteson

I really wanted to call this a gyro, but I didn’t think it was appropriate seeing as though I used tortillas and not pitas.  However, if you read my homemade whole wheat flour tortilla post, you’d know that I made them a little thicker than a normal flour tortillas (darn doubling of recipes and math!).  So, I thought they’d be perfect to make gryo-esk wraps, using leftover tzatziki sauce from my Greek turkey burgers.

We’ve had crazy severe storms in Minnesota the last few days.  Thankfully I didn’t get hit quite as hard as some of my WC friends in the southern metro, or my bestie up in Duluth.  But, as of Monday, the forecast called for severe storms all day Tuesday and through mid-day on Wednesday.  Softball is Tuesday nights, and with that forecast, I highly doubted we’d have a game.  So I got my chicken marinating in some Greek seasoning and started looking forward to dinner on Tuesday evening.

Well, Tuesday came and went, with not so much as a drop of rain (okay, at least not until late, late night – at least, I think).  It was, however, 95+ degrees, and guess what?  Softball was on.  Which meant no gyros for us and we’d have to wait until Wednesday.  At least the chicken will be nice and seasoned.  I’m sure glad I hadn’t add any lemon juice yet, otherwise my bird might be cooked!

Greek Chicken Wraps

Source: Pigzilla Original
Servings: 4-6

Ingredients:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Greek seasoning
olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
4-6 tortillas
1/2 cucumber, sliced thin
1 tomato, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced thin
1 cup lettuce, roughly chopped
1/2 cup feta cheese
tzatziki sauce

Directions:

1.  In a small bowl, combine seasoning with olive oil and lemon juice.  Place chicken in plastic zip-top bag and add oil with seasonings.  Seal tightly and move chicken around to ensure it is evenly coated in marinade, then place in refrigerator.  Allow chicken to marinate for at least 4 hours; can be left overnight.

2.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line baking sheet with foil and coat with cooking spray.  Remove chicken from marinade and allow to come to room temperature, about 5-10 minutes.  Place chicken on prepared baking sheet and bake until cooked through, about 25 minutes.  Remove from oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes, then slice thinly.

3.  Spread tortilla with 2 tbsp tzatziki sauce.  Add a few pieces of sliced chicken, cucumber, tomato, onion and lettuce.  Top with feta and additional tzatziki if desired. Wrap and serve.

Greek Turkey Burgers

Published June 29, 2012 by jenmatteson

This is the first official recipe swap I’ve participated in, and I am so super excited.  Even better is the fact that I got an awesome recipe to make that is directly up Nate and my’s flavor lane.  The swap was a burger/sandwich recipe swap, and I submitted my cream cheese and jalapeno stuffed turkey burgers.  I was confident that this was the best burger I’ve made.  That is until I made Kate’s Greek turkey burgers.

Not only do Nate and I love turkey burgers, but we love Greek flavors, too!  I couldn’t have been more stoked to make this burger, plus I already had every.single.ingredient on hand.  Also, I made it the Monday following the Friday I received the recipe.  Friday was date night, Saturday my bestie had us over for grilling, and Sunday we went out for Father’s Day.  So, this was quite literally the first opportunity I had to make this burger, and I’m sure glad I did.

Of course I made my burger sans feta, but Nate’s was packed with it.  He must not have had any in his first few bites, but once he bit into the feta, he said, “wow!” (in a good way, of course).  This tzatziki recipe was much better than the one I used previously, so if you make it, go with this one.  I think it’s the shredded cucumbers, rather than just dicing them.  Love.

Greek Turkey Burgers

Source: Kate’s Recipe Box
Servings: 4

Ingredients:

For the tzatziki Sauce:
3/4 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt
1/3 cup cucumber, shredded
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
3 tsp lemon juice
3 cloves garlic
1/4 tsp salt
4 buns, pitas, or sandwich thins

16 spinach leaves, washed and dried
16 thin slices of cucumber
4-8 slices of tomato

For the burgers:
1 lb ground turkey (I use extra lean)
1/4 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt
1 cup feta, crumbled
1/3 cup red onion, chopped
1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix tzatziki ingredients together.  Refrigerate until burgers are ready to serve.

2.  Heat grill to medium heat.  In a large bowl, mix turkey, feta, onion, dill, garlic, salt and pepper lightly until just combined.  Separate mixture into quadrants and make into 4 patties, about 1/2-inch thick.  Cook patties over medium heat until cooked through, about 8-10 minutes on each side.

3. Serve patties on bun, pita, or sandwich thin (this is what I used).  Garnish with spinach leaves, cucumbers, and tomatoes.  Top with tzatziki sauce and serve.

Whole Wheat Grilled Pizza

Published June 28, 2012 by jenmatteson

You  may have noticed a trend in my blog lately: whole wheat.  Well, yes, I do have a bunch of whole wheat flour in my freezer, so I thought I’d start getting creative and using it up.  And it’s actually proved very well.  Whole wheat english muffin bread was fabulous, whole wheat flour tortillas were excellent, and whole wheat pizza crust is no different.  When I get around to making breakfast on a weekend, next up is whole wheat pancakes.  Yum!

Anyway, the whole wheat pizza crust turned out really great.  The dough was a little less forgiving than the regular dough, but I got the hang of it, and it tasted great too!  Basically, it’s the same recipe as the grilled pizza dough, but substituting some whole wheat flour for the all-purpose flour.  Substitute this for your next crust, and you won’t be disappointed.

Whole Wheat Grilled Pizza

Source: Adapted from Prevention RD
Servings: 8 small, 4 large 

Ingredients:

2 1/4 tsp (or one packet) dry active yeast
1 cup warm water (105-110F)
1 pinch sugar
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 + 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2-3 tbsp fresh herbs (I didn’t have any, so I used dried rosemary, oregano, and basil)
toppings as desired

Directions:

1. In a bowl, dissolve yeast in the warm water, and mix in sugar.  Proof for 10 minutes, or until frothy.  Mix in salt, olive oil and flour until dough begins to pull away from sides of the bowl.  Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface.  Knead in herbs until smooth, about 8 minutes.  Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a damp towel.  Let dough rise for one hour, or until it doubles in size.  Punch down, and let rise for another hour, or until it doubles in size again.

2. Preheat grill temperature to about 350 degrees.  Punch down dough and divide into four pieces.  Make each piece into 9-10 inch square or circle pizza crust.  If the dough isn’t working with you, leave it sit, walk away, and come back after 5 minutes.  It’ll be more forgiving.

3. Have all sauces toppings, and cheese ready and waiting before you put the dough on the grill.  Spray one side of two of the crusts with olive oil, and place one grill.  Once on the grill, spray other side with olive oil.  Turn the crust 1/4 of a turn every 30 seconds or so, until crust beings to brown and bubble, about 2-3 minutes.  Flip crust and immediately top with desired sauce, toppings, and cheese.  Close grill cover and cook for 3-4 minutes, again turning 1/4 turn every 30 seconds.  Every grill is different, so timing will vary.  Be sure to keep an eye on your crust so it doesn’t burn, but don’t flip it too soon – you want it to be cooked through and slightly crisp.  repeat with second two crusts.

Here are some ideas for sauces and toppings:

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Published June 28, 2012 by jenmatteson

I’m not sure I even want to try making a pizza in my oven because we’ve fallen deeply in love with grilled pizza!  I even made a whole wheat crust last time, and Nate and I both loved it.  With the toppings, we almost couldn’t tell that it was made with whole wheat flour, but once we got to the bare crust, we could taste the difference, and it was so good!

Last weekend, we opted for a buffalo chicken pizza.  Every joint makes it differently, but certainly no one uses a tomato sauce.  I’ve seen ranch dressing and alfredo sauce, but what really caught my eye was a garlic cream sauce.  Of course, this was at a chain, so it’s not like I had a recipe to use, so I winged (wung?? I think both of those words sound wrong) it.  It turned out great, but I’m thinking I should have added a little more sauce to the crust, as it was lost under the spicy buffalo chicken.  I’m sure I’d notice if it weren’t there though.  Black olives or black beans would have been a great addition, and also add another color to the pie.

When we make grilled pizza, we usually don’t get around to eating until pretty late in the evening, which means I don’t get quite as good of a picture of it :(   Next time, I’ll have to remember to make this during the day and update my pictures so you can see exactly how good it tasted!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Source: Pigzilla Original
Servings: Makes one small pizza (quadruple if you are doing all buffalo chicken pizzas and using my grilled pizza dough recipe, as it makes 4 small pizzas)

Toppings:

1/4 cup garlic cream sauce
1/2 cup boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced small
1/4 cup red pepper sauce (I like Franks Red Hot)
2 tbsp onions, diced
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese (Nate used mozzarella-provalone mix)
1 tbsp cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup lettuce, shredded
2 tbsp celery, diced small

Directions:

1. Prepare dough according to grilled pizza dough recipe, whole wheat pizza dough, your own crust recipe, or a pre-made crust.  Follow directions until it comes to adding toppings to your pizza.  Spread with garlic cream sauce, leaving just 1/4 – 1/2 inch crust around the outside.

2. In a small bowl, combine diced chicken with red pepper sauce.  Sprinkle chicken evenly around the pizza, then add onions, cheese and cilantro.  Cook according to the crust recipe’s specifications.

3. Before serving, top with shredded lettuce, celery, and more red pepper sauce if desired.  Slice and serve.

Garlic Cream Sauce

Published June 28, 2012 by jenmatteson

This is a pretty basic sauce that I made for my buffalo chicken pizza, but you could certainly use it as sauce for pasta, fish, or chicken.  Let your imagination run wild!  I’ll get a picture the next time I make it.

Garlic Cream Sauce

Source: Pigzilla Original
Servings: Makes 1/2 cup

Ingredients:

4-6 cloves garlic (depending on how garlic-y you want it)
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp flour
1 cup milk, room temperature
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, melt butter and saute garlic over medium heat until fragrant, about 2 minutes.  Whisk in flour until a thick paste begins to form.  Slowly add milk, continuously whisking.  Increase heat to medium-high until milk begins to boil.  Reduce heat to simmer, whisking constantly, until sauce reaches desired thickness.  Remove from heat and add salt and pepper to taste.

Mexican Cerveza

Published June 27, 2012 by jenmatteson

I’ve really let my beer blogging sit on the back burner for a while.  I think the problem is that with food, I get instant, or almost instant, gratification, whereas with beer, I have to wait, and wait, and wait.  By the time it’s ready, I’ve forgotten that I should be blogging about it too.  I must devise a new strategy.

The third beer that we brewed was a “Mexican Style Cerveza”.  This was a little different from our IPA and Red Ale in that it only needed to boil for 20 minutes, rather than an hour.  Additionally, we didn’t have to steep any grains (which is probably why it’s only a 20 minute boil).

Well, we finally made our first brewing mistake.  After making the wort, adding yeast, letting it ferment, and transferring it to the secondary fermenter, we bottled it.  Well, we forgot to add the priming sugar, and this is what add carbonation to beer.  I didn’t even notice until we were making our next batch of beer, and wondered why we had to packages of priming sugar.  This was a week after we’d bottled the cerveza.

We called for some expert opinions on what to do next, or if we should just abort the mission.  They suggested adding carbonation pellets to each bottle.  I don’t know why, but I was thinking carbonation pellets were the same thing you find in Guinness cans, the CO2 cartridges…well, they aren’t.  They look like little pills basically. We bought a bag, and added 4-7 (we had two different sized bottles) to each bottle.  We then had to wait for four weeks until it was ready.

The result was initially questionable.  I didn’t really even want to try it since there was so much visible muck in the bottom of the bottles.  This was even more surprising since we didn’t even steep any grains, so I had to assume this was from the carbonation pellets.  But, we bit the bullet and gave it a whirl.  Much to our surprise, it was quite refreshing, though really nothing like a Coronoa (which is what the kit label claimed).  If I had to compare it to a Mexican beer, I would say it’s closest to a Dos Equis Amber, which I don’t at all mind.  Add a lime for a little fresh twist, and you’re good to go.  This was perfect after a 95+ degree day, with super humidity.  Just don’t drink it to the last drop…I’m still a little weary of the sediment.

Mexican Cerveza

Ingredients:

priming sugar
dry yeast

Malt:
3 lbs, 5 oz Munton’s Mexican Cerveza Hopped LME
2 lb light DME

Hops:
1 oz hallertau

We’ve learned a few lessons from this experience, and I could only assume the next one (Java Stout) will be 100 times better…and it was!

Basil Pesto

Published June 24, 2012 by jenmatteson

I adore pesto, but most places make it with parmesan cheese, so I always have to examine the ingredients or ask how it’s made.  Finally, I made my own.  I assumed making pesto was petty simple, however, I’ve never had a whole heck of a lot of basil at one time.  My grocery store only sells appoximately 2 sprigs in a package.  I know it’s available in bulk at superstores, but I don’t belong to any of those :(

But, Mama Marsha to the rescue!  That’s the nickname my girlfriends and I gave Nate’s mom while we were in Sonoma last year.  She gave us wonderful recommendations and even set up and paid for one of our tastings.  We stopped over to grab their garage door opener so Nate could feed Sprout, their kitty, while they were out of town.  She chopped off a huge bunch of basil for me to take home.  This was just wonderful because we were planning to make grilled pizza that night, so I decided to whip up a batch of pesto for our pizzas.  Even better…I had just finished off my jar of yeast, so I could store my pesto in there.  Couldn’t have been more perfect!

For making this in the fly, I thought it was a pretty good go.  The pesto had such a fresh herby taste, and you can easily add parmesan if you like that added saltiness.  This should last in an airtight container for about two weeks.  I anticipate that we’ll be having some pasta in our near future :)

 

Basil Pesto

Source: Pigzilla Original
Servings: Makes about 1/2 cup

Ingredients:

2 tbsp toasted pine nuts
2 cups fresh basil
4-6 cloves garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
salt to taste
1/4 parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:

1. In a food processor, pulse pine nuts, basil, and garlic.  While processor is running, stream in olive oil to desired consistency.  Add salt and parmesan to taste.  Run processor for another 30 seconds to completely combine ingredients.  Use immediately, or store in an airtight container and refrigerate.

Buffalo Chicken Wonton Cups

Published June 24, 2012 by jenmatteson

The first time I had buffalo chicken wontons was at a bar in Minneapolis after a beer festival.  Of course, at the time, they tasted AMAZING, because what wouldn’t after a few brews?  But, I had become obsessed and had to recreate them at home.  I’ve been “into” cooking for quite some time, but this is one of the first times I can remember thinking I had to, and could, recreate something that I had in a restaurant.  I lived alone at the time, so I was my only judge.  I thought they were pretty good, seeing as though I’d never worked with wonton wrappers before, I made up the recipe, and I baked them.  However, I was my only judge.  They didn’t look very pretty, but they sure tasted great.

Finally, I made them for a Viking playoff party (you can tell this was a few years ago, because the last time they were in the playoffs was 2010, when the Saints took a cheap shot at golden boy, Brett Favre.  No, I’m not bitter ;) ), and everyone seemed to love them.  Nate adores them.  So, needless to say, I’ve made buffalo chicken wontons quite a few times over the last three years.  This was the first time I’ve attempted to make them in muffin tins, making for a much prettier presentation, and no risk of your wonton bursting while cooking, and all the delicious goodness leaking out.

I’m thinking they went over pretty well at the party we went to.  As they came out of the oven, everyone was asking what they were and commenting on how good they looked.  Before I knew it, there was only two left on the tray, so my guess is that yes, they were a hit!  I really liked the addition of the raw green onions after cooking. It really gave these a fresh flavor with an unexpected crunch.

These are pretty similar to crack dip, however, I don’t use any shredded cheese, just cream cheese.  I also used chicken I baked and shredded as a opposed to using canned chicken.  Buffalo chicken wonton cups are quick and easy to throw together in a flash, great for any party or even date night home with your sweetie.

Buffalo Chicken Wonton Cups

Source: Pigzilla Original
Servings: 36 wonton cups

Ingredients:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper
12 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup red pepper sauce (I like Franks Red Hot) – more or less to taste
3 green onions, chopped
36 wonton wrappers

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Prepare baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.  Season each side of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper.  In a small bowl, combine chili powder, paprika, and garlic powder.   Sprinkle each side of both chicken breasts with mixture.  Bake until cooked through, about 22-25 minutes.  Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine red pepper sauce and cream cheese until smooth.  Once chicken is cooled, shred with two forks, and add chicken to cream cheese mixture.  Add green onions, leaving a few for garnishing, and mix until well combined.

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place wonton wrappers in mini muffin tin.  Scoop 1-2 tbsp of cream cheese mixture into each wonton – they should be filled just about to the top of the tin, not the wonton wrapper.  Bake 10-12 minutes, until wontons are crisp.  Remove from oven and turn off heat.  Give a quick spray with cooking spray, and return to warm oven for 1-2 minutes.

* Note, the cooking spray part is optional, but I like it because the wonton wrappers tend to have a floury coating on them, so they don’t look pretty.  If you spray with cooking spray before baking, the wontons will get too crisp on the top, but not on the bottom.  Spraying after cooking gets rid of the floury excess and gives them an appetizing shine.

4. Garnish with additional green onions.  Serve and enjoy!

Watermelon Breeze

Published June 23, 2012 by jenmatteson

You may be wondering why I am posting a watermelon breeze right after the watermelon-mint jello shots.  Where’s the variety, right?  Well, turns out when you puree half of a watermelon, you end up with quite a bit of extra juice (it might also have to do with the fact that 3 cups of the juice was replaced with gin to make jello shots…).

So I couldn’t just throw it out.  I HATE wasting food; it’s a big pet peeve of mine.  So, after our wine on Thursday (which is always wine and sweatpants night in my house), I finished off the night with this delightfully refreshing summer bevie.  You could certainly substitute another liquor for the gin, but I think the flavor of the gin pairs nicely with the mint and truly acts as a background flavor to the watermelon.  Even if you think you don’t like gin, try it first.  Really, it was difficult to taste the liquor in this one…which certainly can be dangerous.

Watermelon Breeze

Source: Pigzilla Original
Servings: 1 cocktail

Ingredients:

2 oz gin
4-6 oz pureed watermelon with mint (process here)
1 oz soda water
lime for garnish
mint sprig for garnish

Directions:

1. Fill a low ball with ice.  Pour in gin, watermelon puree, then top with splash of soda water.  Stir as desired.  Garnish with lime and mint.

Watermelon-Mint Jello Shots

Published June 23, 2012 by jenmatteson

Nate and I were invited to a drink tasting party at our neighbors house this weekend.  I decided it would be a great time to try out these amazing looking jello shots I saw on Food Gawker.  I thought it was such a clever idea and was blown away at how incredibly simple these were to make.

They looked just as awesome when mine were done too, but unfortunately, my jello didn’t congeal to the rind.  Well, it did in some places, but once I sliced it, pretty much all the jello separated from the rind :(  I’m not sure where I went wrong, but I guess that means I’ll have to try again.  Regardless, they were super neat looking, and tasted good, too.  I used gin, as it went with the theme of the party, but vodka would be wonderful too!  Oh, and we took first place for drinks, too ;)

Watermelon-Mint Jello Shots

Source: E is for Alphabet
Servings: 24-30 shots

Ingredients:

1/2 seedless watermelon
30-40 mint leaves
juice from 1 lime
2-4 tbsp honey (depending on how sweet you want it)
4 packets Knox gelatin
1 1/2 cup vodka or gin

Directions:

1. Hollow out half watermelon to create a vessel to mold the jello.  In a blender, combine insides of watermelon with mint leaves(you may have to do this in a few batches).  Strain through mesh strainer to separate the solids from the liquid.

2. Pour 3 cups of the watermelon-mint juice into a large saucepan.  Stir in lime juice and honey until combined.  Sprinkle gelatin over mixture and let stand for a minute or two.  Heat mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly, until gelatin is completely dissolved, about 3 minutes.

3. Stir in alcohol and pour mixture into hollowed out watermelon.  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.  Slice into wedges and garnish with mint leaves.

* Note: Don’t throw out that extra watermelon-mint juice.  Cool off with a watermelon breeze!

How would you use up the rest of your watermelon-mint juice?

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