One Pot Wonder: Bulgur Pilaf with Mint

Heat 2 TBS of EVOO and 1/4 of pine nuts of raw almonds in a heavy bottom pot over medium heat and stir occasionally until the nuts are toasted, about 2 minutes. Add 1lb of ground beef (I use bison instead), breaking it up with a spoon. Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp of allspice and cook, stirring, until the meat is not longer pink, about 3 minutes. Stir in 1 1/2 cups of bulgur and cook until lightly toasted, about 3 minutes. Add 4 cups of chicken broth, bring the mixtures to a boil, and then adjust the heat to maintain a gentle boil, and then adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer.

Dice on medium zucchini and scatter over the surface of the pilaf (don't stir it in; it will steam on top) and sprinkle with 1 tsp of the salt and pepper to taste. Cook, uncovered, until the bulgur is tender but not mushy, 10 to 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, halve 2 cups of cherry or grape tomatoes.

Thinly slice 2-3 scallions.

Chop 1/4 cup of both mint and dill.

Grate 1 to 2 cloves of garlic and zest a lemon. Toss all together with juice of 1/2 a lemon, 2 TBS of EVOO, 1/2 tsp of salt, and pepper to taste.

Mound the pilaf on a serving platter and spoon the tomato salad evenly over the top. Serve warm.

Here is a yummy recipe that I make often!

I had not cooked with bulgur before this and didn't really know what to expect the first time that I prepared it, but it is truly delicious!

The most important thing is to take the time to toast, both, the nuts and the bulgur. The flavor of the toasted grain is different and wonderful! We are happy to eat it either warm and cold, and have even packed it for picnic lunches.

With farmers markets packed with produce and everyones backyard gardens growing it is the perfect recipe for summer!

Homemade Hot Sauce

The party prep continues........

Today the big task was getting the party favors put together. We decided we wanted to send people home from the party with my dad's Famous Hot Sauce. It is absolutely delicious and a highly valued commodity among our friends and family!

This is the first time for me to make it, so I was a little nervous, but dad gave me a pep talk this A.M. and walked me through the recipe again. Sadly, I can not share the recipe with you as it is truly a family secret and prized possession. I did want to share some pictures of the beautiful ingredients and some shots of the jars.....opinions?

I still have to add the label and figure out exactly what I want to do for that.......but, the hard part is over. I found some pretty quilted Ball Jars and used some old fabric and straw tied at the top to finish it. I of course had to do a taste test and while it's certainly not as good as the real thing, it's pretty good. Luckily, my guests won't know the difference.

I'm leaving the rest of the cooking until later in the week, so next up will be decorations. I found beautiful saturated colors of tissue paper.....now I will need to get busy making zillions of paper poufs to string and hang from the trees.

One Pot Wonder: A Crawfish Boil

The victims.

The Chef, Mr. Nick.

The assistant, Mrs. Ashley.

Assistant #2, Mr. Matt.

Wash , purge, repeat. (A glutton for punishment, Macey.)

The spice, the large bag.

The salt.

The ingredients.

Chop.

Pour.

Boil.

Retrieve your garlic, mushrooms, corn, onions, and sausage. Yum!

Add to the pot.

Bring to a rolling boil for 3 mintues.

Turn off the heat and cover.

Pull the straining basket out.

Shovel onto a paper covered table.

Serve with saltine crackers and special sauce and dig in.

Special Sauce:
Mayo
Ketchup
Mustard
Horseradish

What do you do when your power is out, your house is a mess, and you have out-of-town guests on the way in? Throw an impromptu Crawfish Boil, hooray!

On Friday night we lost power half way through Pinocchio, boo! Saturday morning we went to our favorite breakfast spot and spent the rest of the morning at the library waiting for the power to come back on. No such luck, but......... the day got much better when we got a call from our friends the Lufts, Nick and Ashley.

Nick is a spectacular cook! He is from Louisiana and serves the most wonderful southern dishes. Fried grits for brunch and Jambalaya for Super Bowl, Out of control!

Sorry I don't have a real recipe for this one, but you know how guys cook...... a little of this, a little of that, and boom turns out amazingly delicious. Basically Nick and Ashley showed up with a cooler full of crawfish, the biggest pot you have ever seen, an oar to stir, and bags of veggies and seasoning. The rest is history.

The food was not just tasty, but incredibly beautiful! The colors were so vibrant, I had to share. We ate until the table was clear and our bellies were stuffed full. There was great fun had by all! Thanks again friends!

One Pot Wonder: Turkey Enchilada Casserole

Preheat oven to 375.

Prep: brown 1 LB of ground turkey and season, to taste. (I use 1-2 tsp of grill seasoning) Set aside.

In a heavy bottom oven safe pan, heat 2 TBS of EVOO and 1 TBS of Butter.

Chop: 1 onion, 1 jalepeno pepper, and 2 cloves of garlic. (I like to grate mine)

Drop in pan and season with 1 heaping tsp of ground cumin and salt, to taste. No need for pepper. Brown until tender and fragrant, about 8 minutes.

Drain and rinse a can of black beans. Chop 6-8 corn tortillas into pieces. Drain, rinse, and chop half a can of black olives. Not crazy for black olives? Eliminate them.....I only added them to original recipe because Cuyler requests them in EVERYTHING that I cook.

Stir in the chopped tortillas, browned turkey, beans, and halved olives.

Pour in a jar of tomatillo salsa or 3 7oz cans of tomatilla sauce, if your grocery doesnt have a good green salsa. Bring to a boil.

Chop a handful of cilantro and grate 2 cups of cheese. I use a mix of Monterey Jack and Cheddar.

Turn off the heat and mix in the cilantro and half the cheese.

Top with the rest of the cheese and pop it straight into the oven. Be sure your using a pan that is oven safe. Bake for 20 minutes.

Garnish: sour cream (I use Greek Yogurt instead, as a low fat option) and some cilantro leaves. I have it pictured here with a salsa filled avocado......a perfect low carb option. No chips! Salt and eat with a spoon....yum! Costco makes a really good organic red salsa that is super affordable.

Hope you like this! It's easy and delicious!

Anyone try to make the chili from a few weeks ago? More one pot wonders go come.

One Pot Wonder: Turkey Chili

I was on the phone with my little sister today giving her some ideas of new things to cook when I realized it would be a great topic to post a little series on. What is better then a recipe where you chop and drop into a single pot and then simmer?

Over the years I have collected lots of simple affordable recipes like this. These are meals that are easy to make at the end of a long day, perfect for leftover lunches for Cuyler the next day, kind to my grocery budget, and typically pretty healthy for my family to eat. Most importantly........they are delicious! (At least we think they are)

30 Minute Turkey Chili:

The original recipe is from Food Network Kitchens Making it Easy.

2-3 TBS of extra virgin olive oil in a large pot. A yellow onion chopped. 5 cloves of garlic grated or chopped.

Season with 1 TBS kosher salt, 2 Tsp Chipotle Chili Powder (or regular if you don't like it spicy), & 1 Tsp Oregano.

Saute and add 1 small can of tomato sauce. Add 1 lb of ground turkey, brown.

Pour 1 Mexican Beer and reduce by half.

Prepare toppings: green onion (I found these gorgeous locally grown salad vidalia onions- yum), shredded cheddar, and greek yogurt (in place of sour cream).

Add 1 lg can of whole tomatoes. Break them up with your spoon and add 1 can of kidney beans. Simmer for 10 minutes.

I serve my chili with a scoop of organic brown rice. I always have a bowl of it made in the fridge.

For dessert- seasonal fruit: honey tangerines and strawberries, yum!!!