One for the "Keeper File"

I was dragging yesterday afternoon. It seemed like a pretty good day to drag around, actually. From start to finish, it did nothing but pour down rain….then sleet, and then snow…blech. I dashed out to Sendiks around 4:00, right when the rain was changing over to sleet. Perfect timing (note the sarcasm here) -- someone (*ahem*, dear?) had pilfered the umbrella from my glove box, so I got absolutely pelted by the needle-y (is that a word?) drops of freezing rain as I ran from the car to the store, all the while hoping I wouldn’t run in to anyone I knew -- since I had become a drowned rat in the parking lot.

I got my shopping done in record time and made it through with no girlfriend sightings (and no sightings of any girlfriend’s husband’s either). Phew! That was a close one.

Dreary weather and drowned rats aside,the absolute highlight of my day was the phenomenal Greek inspired shrimp dish we had for dinner. I found the recipe while perusing Food & Wine yesterday afternoon.

Of all of the cooking magazines I subscribe to, Food & Wine is one of my favorites. Their recipes are consistently good; I’ve never had one bomb on me (and this is saying a lot!). If you have the March ’09 issue handy, you can find this fantastic Shrimp Saganaki recipe on page 82. Large shrimp (isn’t that an oxymoron?) are sautéed along with onions, fresh tomatoes and olives, then finished with fresh basil and a sprinkle of feta cheese….wow. I think I’m in love.

As for alterations -- I did swap in the sale grape tomatoes (.99!) instead of the romas that were called for. I halved them and they worked beautifully! I also tossed in fresh basil (personal preference) instead of dill, with great results.

I served the Saganaki in shallow bowls, on top of a bed of the sale Rice Select Orzo. We had a big romaine salad and toasted pita alongside…..again, wow! I would even go so far as to call this a restaurant quality meal – certainly good enough for entertaining, and definitely one for the ‘keeper’ file.

As usual, sale ingredients are highlighted in green.

Shrimp Saganaki
Source: Food & Wine Magazine, March '09
Serves: 4

2 T. olive oil
1 large white onion, thinly sliced
1 box grape tomatoes, halved
salt and cayenne pepper to taste
1 1/2 lbs. shelled and deveined large shrimp (Cen-Sea Brand)
1/2 c. pitted kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
1/4 c. sliced fresh basil (or dill)
3 oz. crumbled feta cheese, plus additional for garnish if desired

Toasted pita bread, for serving

In a large skillet, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the onion and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, season with salt and cayenne pepper to taste and cook until softened, crushing them with the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes. Add the shrimp and olives and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp are cooked through, about 3 minutes. Stir in the basil and half of the feta and cook just until the feta is hot, about 1 minute. Transfer to shallow bowls, sprinkle with remaining feta, and serve with toasted pita. Enjoy!

When the Stock Market gives you lemons.....make Lemon Chicken!

I've been paying entirely too much attention to the news in the past few weeks. Just yesterday one of my dearest friends gently accused me of having an unhealthy obsession with current events. Why would she say that? Just because when I'm at home by myself during the day, I keep CNBC on in my kitchen? Maybe I enjoy the company of all of those talking heads, and their non-stop chatter about stocks, bonds, charts, graphs, and all things financial.

I'm constantly checking that little green ticker in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen....usually I'm tracking it's downward trend...sinking, plunging, tanking. Around 5:30 I switch on Brian Williams, because I then need to get his take on the day's events. Of course, since I've been paying attention, he usually just re-hashes everything I already know.

Confession: I adore Brian Williams...clean-cut, preppy, smart...swoon! I once dreamt that he was my boyfriend....I know that's weird....don't tell anyone I said that out loud.

Anyway, my point is that all of this bad news puts me in a sour mood...hence, the 'you need a break from the news' lecture from my friend. "So, the economy is horrible," she said. "You can't do a single thing about it. Turn on HGTV or the Food Network! Take a weeklong break from the news and stop stressing!"

Because I also adore and have great respect for my friend, I've taken her advice. I've turned my attention to the gorgeous, sunshiny lemons that are on sale this week, and made this terrific Panko Crusted Lemon Chicken. Crispy on the outside, moist and juicy on the inside, with just a little hint of fresh lemon, it's just the ticket for kicking a sour mood.

See the side bar for a great side dish, Orzo Pilaf with Vegetables!

Here's the recipe:

Panko Crusted Lemon Chicken with Parmesan

Adapted from this recipe

Serves: 6

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

5 T. fresh lemon juice

2 large eggs

1 c. Panko breadcrumbs (find these on the bottom shelf of the Asian aisle)

1/2 c. grated Parmesan

2 t. grated lemon peel, rind only

2 T. butter

2 T. olive oil

Lemon slices for garnish

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees.

Sandwich the chicken breasts between pieces of heavy duty plastic wrap, and take out your aggressions on the stock market by pounding each breast to a thickness of about 1/2 an inch. Place the pounded breasts into a non-reactive baking dish and pour 4 T. lemon juice over, turning to coat. Let stand 10 minutes. Beat eggs and remaining 1 T. lemon juice in a medium bowl. Combine Panko, Parmesan, and lemon peel in a pie plate. Season liberally with salt and fresh black pepper.

If you're in to making cleanup easy on yourself, have ready a large plate lined with foil.

Dip 1 chicken breast into the egg mixture. Dip in the Panko mixture to coat; gently shake off the excess. Transfer to foil-lined plate. Repeat with remaining chicken, egg mixture, and breadcrumbs.

Melt the butter with the olive oil in a heavy duty skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 pieces of chicken and saute until golden brown and cooked through, about 2 minutes a side. Transfer to a serving platter and keep warm in the oven. Repeat with remaining chicken in 2 more batches, adding 1 T of butter and 1 T. olive oil with each batch. Garnish your platter with lemon slices and serve.

Beef Soft Tacos

As I write this, the flurries are flying and the wind is whipping around outside -- it's a bonechilling, gray, and dreary day. Typical for Wisconsin in February, I know. I'm not complaining; I've got a toasty fire going and the makings for beef soft tacos simmering away on the stove -- I've gone far away to sunny Mexico, if only inside my head!

I had to get in at least one more pot of this fabulous stew before spring arrives. After all, while stew meat is a bargain shopper's friend, it's not exactly swimsuit friendly, right? As far as I'm concerned, February is still open season on comfort food - and since beef stew meat is on special this week for $3.49 a pound, I'll serve up these tacos once again this winter. Besides, I've got on a big sweater today, not a bikini.

A few words about the star of this dish: the stew meat. As I'm sure you already know, stew meat is not the cut of beef you can have on the table in 15 minutes - unless of course, you enjoy gnawing through tough and chewy chunks. It's usually cut from a chuck roast, which is a part of the animal that gets worked out a lot, so chuck is a little on the tough side. But, when it's braised nice and slow with a little TLC, stew meat can become incredibly tender and flavorful. Having enough time to pull off the tough-to-tender transformation is key.

You'll need a couple of hours to make this dish, I'm not gonna lie. (Just keepin' it real, as my kids say.) The good news: the time you invest in this dish will not be wasted. You will love it. I promise. Let your diners assemble their own soft tacos: set out some guacamole and pico de gallo from the Produce Department, a big bowl of the sale Sargento Shredded Cheddar, and the sale La Perfidia Flour Tortillas. Sit back and accept their praise, and dream of your own favorite warm and sunny spot!

Here's the recipe! SALE INGREDIENTS are marked in bold green print. Enjoy!

Beef Soft Tacos

Serves: 6

Source: epicurious.com

1 T. vegetable oil

2 lbs. beef stew meat, patted dry

1 jar Salpica Salsa

1 c. chicken or beef broth

2 T. minced garlic

2 T. brown sugar

1 T. soy sauce

1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro

hefty squeeze fresh lime juice

Flour Tortillas, Shredded Cheese, Extra Salsa for serving

Optional: Fresh Guacamole & Pico de Gallo from the Produce Department

Heat the oil in a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat. Saute beef in batches being careful not to crowd the pieces, for about four minutes per batch. Transfer beef to a bowl as each batch is done. Return all beef to the pot. Add salsa, broth, garlic, brown sugar, and soy sauce; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until beef is tender, stirring often, about 1 hour 15 minutes.

Uncover pot and simmer until sauce thickens, about 15 minutes longer. Mix in cilantro and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper.

Wrap your tortillas in a clean dish towel and microwave for a minute or two, or until hot. Serve the stew with the tortillas and accompaniments, allowing diners to assemble their own tacos.

Holiday bills rolling in? ....or, What to do with $1.59 ground turkey!

MONEY is flying outta' our house faster than you can say 'paper or plastic'!

December, as always, was a pricey month in our household (and I'm sure at your house too). On top of the very merry holiday spending spree, our furnace went out, our water heater crashed, and the water softener went on the blink.......ka-ching, ka-ching, ka-ching.....and now it's time to pay the piper.

How happy was I to find that GROUND TURKEY is on sale this week to the tune of $1.59 a pound!? Just so happens, one of our family's favorite meals is ASIAN TURKEY LETTUCE WRAPS, made with the super cheap, yet very tasty, ground turkey.

Which to you want first: the good news, or the not so good news? Let's get the not so good news over with first: none of the other ingredients for this dish are on sale this week. But, on the bright side (and I'm a bright side kinda shopper) if you can make a really fun and delicious dinner outta $3.25 worth of ground turkey, you can use the money you saved to pay full price for the rest of the ingredients. It won't be expensive. I promise!

I love to serve these wraps with a side of steamed jasmine or basmati rice. Don't be intimidated by the seemingly long list of ingredients, and feel free to leave out anything you don't care for, you really can't mess this up -- it's not rocket surgery! HA!

ASIAN TURKEY LETTUCE WRAPS

Adapted from Epicurious.com

Serves: 6

1 T. vegetable oil

1 large onion, diced

1 large carrot, grated

1 very big handful fresh bean sprouts

2 lbs. ground turkey

3/4 c. (or more to taste) Asian peanut sauce

1 T. hoisin sauce

1 T. soy

fresh mint, minced

fresh cilantro, minced

FOR SERVING:

1 English cucumber, seeded and diced

18 large butter lettuce leaves

OPTIONAL:

Chopped peanuts and canned crunchy rice noodles

Sriracha HOT Chili Sauce if you like a little extra kick

Heat oil in a very large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and carrot and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add in the ground turkey and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until fully cooked. Drain off any grease that has accumulated in the pan.

Add in the bean sprouts, all of your sauces, and the fresh herbs; stir to combine well. Taste turkey mixture and correct seasonings if necessary.

Line edges of a large serving platter with the lettuce leaves. Mound turkey mixture in the center of the platter. Have diners assemble their own wraps, and top with the diced cucumber and the optional garnishes.