Red Sauce & Venison over Fried Eggplant

When venison was still the main protein in our family's diet, I was always experimenting with new combinations because it pairs beautifully with eggplant. One day I was thinking of grilling eggplant slices and then topping them with a very meaty red sauce. Unfortunately, the propane tank was empty... UGGH! Sooo..... what to do?

Oh yes.... let's splurge with some thick slices of eggplant breaded and fried in a bit of avocado oil!!! Over time it turned out that the dish works very well with beef or chicken, too.

• 1.5 lbs ground venison - beef is an option if you don't have venison
• 1 28 oz can plum shaped tomatoes in puree
• olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 yellow onion, cut up
• 1/2 tsp salt
• fresh ground black pepper to taste (I like about 6 twists on the grinder)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• dash of oregano
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• 1 lge eggplant
• Wondra flour
• 2 eggs
• avocado or vegetable oil
• flavored breadcrumbs

Preparation:

Start by frying up the chop meat in a large skillet with a bit of olive oil until fully cooked and a nice shade of brown. Set aside.

Add a bit of olive oil to your sauce pot and sautee the chopped garlic. As the garlic JUST gets brown add in the cut up onion and sautee til slightly translucent and shiny.  

Place canned tomatoes in a bowl and cut into quarters or bite-size pieces... Not too small as they will cook down some in the pot. Add tomatoes and puree to sauce pot and stir. Add in salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and dried parsley. Bring to a boil and then simmer on low for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Finally stir in the fried chop meat. The mixture will seem very meaty and not at all liquid.... that's intentional as our base for the sauce is very different from pasta. 

As for the eggplant, peel and cut into thick slices, about 3/8 - 1/2".  Coat in Wondra flour, then dip in egg and your favorite flavored breadcrumbs and fry until golden brown. Set on paper towel to soak up excess oil - you want them nice and crispy to add an extra level to the party in your mouth ;-) Top with meat sauce just before serving to retain most of the crunch.... and enjoy!

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Red Sauce & Chicken with Eggplant

I started making my own ground white meat chicken and I still long for my Bolognese on at least a weekly basis, so I had to find something besides zucchini ribbons to compliment the sauce. Enter.... the eggplant :-) Granted, it's not quite as colorful as the zucchini, but it sure packs a plateful of flavor!

The original recipe using venison/beef is still available at Red Sauce & Venison with Eggplant

Ingredients:

• ~1.5 lbs ground white meat chicken
• 1 28 oz can plum shaped tomatoes in puree
• olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 yellow onion, cut up
• 1/2 tsp salt
• fresh ground black pepper to taste (I like about 6 twists on the grinder)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• dash of oregano
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• 1 lge eggplant

Preparation:

Start by frying up the chop meat in a large skillet with a bit of olive

oil until fully cooked and a nice shade of brown. Set aside. 

Add a bit of olive oil to your sauce pot and sautee the chopped garlic. As the garlic JUST gets brown add in the cut up onion and sautee til slightly translucent and shiny.

Place canned tomatoes in a bowl and cut into quarters or bite-size pieces... Not too small as they will cook down some in the pot.

Add tomatoes and puree to sauce pot and stir. Add in salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and dried parsley. Bring to a boil and then simmer on low for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Finally stir in the fried chop meat. The mixture will seem very meaty and not at all liquid.... that's intentional as our base for the sauce is very different from pasta.

Peel the eggplant and cut into bite-sized cubes

Heat some olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat and add the eggplant. I like to use the large pot for this purpose as it makes it easy to do the frequent toss as the eggplant cooks without getting splatter or the occasional cube on the nice shiny stove  *smirks*

Once the eggplant is tender, plate as you would pasta and add the meaty sauce on top, or mix it all into one pot of delicious goodness. :-) Add some grated parmesan or peccorino-romano if you like :-)

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Chicken Fried Barley & Spinach - A Chef Favorite

This dish is a new take on my Venison Fried Rice from 2014 when I was still eating red meats 4-5 times a week. Times change and now the protein is ground white meat only chicken, and the rice has been replaced with pearl barley for a much lower glycemic index. All in all, this was a surprisingly amazing transformation. The dish is healthy and absolutely packed with a restaurant quality flavor pallet. The roasted pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds) elevate the dish even more with a touch of crunch that will make you smile.... ENJOY!

I must admit I am very proud of this recipe I built from the ground up all those years ago. It is literally me on a plate and even healthier now with the protein change and spinach addition and will be one of my signature dishes going forward.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground chicken
• 1 lge yellow onion
• 2+ cups baby portobello mushrooms
• 1 red bell pepper
• Avocado oil
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• Salt and fresh ground pepper
• 1 cup pearl barley (45 min version)
• 1/4 cup roasted, salted pepitas
• 1 big bag fresh baby spinach, wilted with just a touch of oil and kosher salt

Preparation:

Start your barley first as it takes 45 minutes to cook. Make sure you rinse it well first.

Roast the pepitas in a small skillet with a dash of avocado oil and salt. Set aside for final garnish.

Cut up onion, mushrooms and pepper to whatever size you like, sautee in a large pan with a little avocado oil, parsley, s&p and set aside.

Fry up chicken in same pan with a little more oil. When meat is cooked, add the peppers, onions & mushrooms. Add cooked barley and mix.

Serve in a ring of wilted spinach and sprinkle with roasted pepitas.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Creamy Mushroom Chicken & Broccoli

In an effort to create dishes using my new excitement for white meat ground chicken I make at home, I thought about my love for earthy comfort food and came up with something I believe to be truly special. Each of the ingredients has its own standalone flavor, but together they create a harmonious and balanced flavor pallet that blew me away once it all came together.

With the inclusion of the cream of mushroom soup this may not be the utmost in healthy cuisine, but with the fast-cook barley it is definitely something that's decent enough for a quick workday dinner.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground white meat chicken
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lge yellow onion cut up
• 8-10 oz sliced baby portobello mushrooms
• 1 small head broccoli, cut into bite size florets
• 1 10.5 oz can cream of mushroom soup
• 1/2 cup red or white wine of our choice
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp salted butter
• 1 cup quick cook barley
• 1/4 cup raw pepitas
• Salt & pepper to taste

Preparation:

In a small frying pan roast the pepitas over medium heat with a dash of olive oil. Toss frequently as they brown and salt as desired. Set aside.

Boil or steam the broccoli florets but leave them slightly firm for use later. Cook the barley according to package directions.

Fry the ground chicken with 1 tbsp each olive oil and butter in a large Dutch oven. Add salt to taste and set aside for later.

Add the final tbsp oil to the pot and sautee the garlic, onion and mushrooms. Season with S & P to taste. Add the cream of mushroom soup (rinse the can with wine) and blend. Add chicken and broccoli to the pot and mix.

Serve over a bed of barley and garnish with pepitas.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Red Sauce & Chicken over Fried Eggplant

Chicken and eggplant are just awesome together, so I'm always experimenting with new combinations. This time around I decided to fry eggplant slices and then top them with a very meaty Bolognese. Okay! Let's splurge with some thick slices of breaded and fried eggplant!!!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs ground chicken - white meat
• 1 28 oz can plum shaped tomatoes in puree
• olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 yellow onion, cut up
• 1/2 tsp salt
• fresh ground black pepper to taste (I like about 6 twists on the grinder)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• dash of oregano
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• 1 lge eggplant
• Wondra flour
• 2 eggs
• avocado or vegetable oil
• flavored breadcrumbs

Preparation:

Start by frying up the chop meat in a large skillet with a bit of olive oil until fully cooked and a nice shade of brown. Set aside.

Add a bit of olive oil to your sauce pot and sautee the chopped garlic. As the garlic JUST gets brown add in the cut up onion and sautee til slightly translucent and shiny.  

Place canned tomatoes in a bowl and cut into quarters or bite-size pieces... Not too small as they will cook down some in the pot. Add tomatoes and puree to sauce pot and stir. Add in salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and dried parsley. Bring to a boil and then simmer on low for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Finally stir in the fried chop meat. The mixture will seem very meaty and not at all liquid.... that's intentional as our base for the sauce is very different from pasta. 

As for the eggplant, peel and cut into thick slices, about 3/8". Coat in Wondra flour, egg and your favorite flavored breadcrumbs and fry in avocado or vegetable oil until golden brown. Set on paper towel to soak up excess oil - you want them nice and crispy to add an extra level to the party in your mouth ;-)

Lay the slices out on the plate and top with Bolognese just before serving to retain most of the crunch.... and enjoy!

Adding a green vegetable of your choosing will round out this dish nicely.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Grandma Inspired Fried "Meatballs"

My wife's grandmother became my Grandma Caroline when we moved into her tiny basement apartment for the first two years of our marriage. She spoke no English... I spoke no Italian. We communicated through food... mostly by way of the amazing Italian dishes she fed me. I was not a good cook four plus decades ago, so Grandma's cooking was always a joy.

She frequently made these little football shaped fried meatballs that were just to die for. Thinking back now on how much oil she used....... but OMG they were so good!!! They were, of course, beef based, but today I saw her smiling down at me as I attempted a similar version using white meat chicken... and a lot less oil. LOL

In a nutshell, I think today's creation would have Grandma Caroline smiling. I hope you do as well.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs ground chicken or turkey
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup plus red onion - minced
• 1/2 cup plus baby portobello mushrooms - minced
• 3 tbsp fresh parsley - minced very fine
• 3/4 tsp garlic powder
• 3/4 tsp sweet paprika or half sharp for a little kick
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup plus flavored Panko
• 4-5 tbsp good quality olive oil

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients but the oil in a bowl... Don't be shy... use your hands and have fun! LOL Once thoroughly mixed, make free-form patties about 1/2" thick. I decided on patties so I could cut way back on the amount of oil grandma used to use.

Heat up a large skillet over medium high and then add the oil. Carefully place the patties in the skillet and fry until you see a color on the bottom you're happy with. Flip them over and finish with same color. 

Serve with a vegetable you like... Here I paired the paddies with sauteed bok choy and tomato.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Chicken & Shrimp Stir Fry

The original version of this dish was made with beef or venison and can be found by clicking here. With white meat chicken being a much healthier alternative for me, I decided to give the substitution a try. I had never really worked with ground chicken before so this was to be a good test. Long story short, it really worked out well, and I now have a use for my grinder again as whole chicken breasts are  far cheaper.... AND I always know for sure what is in my grind.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs ground white meat chicken
• 1 lb large raw shrimp, cleaned and peeled (no tails)
• light olive oil
• 3/4 head green cabbage, shredded
• 1/2 cup ginger teriyaki marinade (more or less)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp spicy mustard
• Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Preparation:

In a large non-stick Dutch oven fry the chop meat in a bit of oil. When cooked, add  cabbage, marinade, soy and mustard. Simmer and toss frequently until cabbage is cooked but still crunchy. Finally add shrimp and cook another few minutes until shrimp are just cooked perfectly. Finish with salt & pepper to taste.

Blessed be... and happy cooking!

Quick & Easy Chicken Chili

I found this recipe using beef more than ten years ago on the back of a can of Progresso kidney beans. It looked so simple I just had to try it. It has since become my base for many fun chili dishes, including this version that uses ground chicken breast. Everyone should make chili their own... This recipe is a good jumpstart and you can add just about anything you like to suit your flavor pallet! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lb ground chicken breast
• 2/3 cup chopped onions
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 15 oz cans dark red kidney beans, undrained (make 1 can cannellini if you like)
• 1 28oz can whole tomatoes in puree, cut up
• Tomato paste (if needed)
• 3 - 4 ½ tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp or 2 cubes instant chicken bouillon
• 1 tbsp dried parsley ( or ¼ cup fresh copped)
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Scallions for garnish

In chili circles this one is flavorful, but considered quite mild. Add seasonings of your choice for more heat.

Preparation:

1: Brown chop meat with onions and garlic over medium heat with a bit of olive oil until meat is fully cooked. Drain.

2: Stir in all remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.

3: Simmer over medium low heat for 15-20 minutes to blend flavors, stirring occasionally.

4: Serve with barley cooked in chicken stock and garnish  with scallions or any of the fun things you enjoy. Parsley, cilantro, cheese, sour cream, avocado… In other words, make this dish your own. 

Blessed be... and happy cooking!