turkey chili

For 4 servings:

1 lb ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
1 can tomatoes (we like Rotel)
1 cup canned or cooked dried beans
2 t ground cumin
1 t ground red pepper (we use ancho)
1-2 t oregano
1-2 t garlic powder
1 t adobo powder (can omit if you don't have this)

Brown the turkey and onions in a little olive (or other) oil; while it browns, add the adobo seasoning. After this is browned, add all the other ingredients and enough water to cover. Simmer at least a half hour and preferably much longer, adding a little more water if necessary. Adjust the seasonings to taste. My kids like this topped with sour cream, grated cheddar, and a few oyster crackers. Not so healthy, but good.

falafel

I love falafel, but the dried mixes are so expensive and frankly not all that tasty. Here is a recipe I found for homemade falafel.

3 cups cooked chickpeas, drained and ground (or mashed up)
1 t salt
1 T dried parsley flakes
1 t garlic powder
2 eggs, lightly beaten
a little paprika, to taste

oil for frying




Combine everything except oil and mix well. Shape into 1" balls. Flatten slightly.

Heat oil in a skillet (about 1/2" depth of oil). Fry a few at a time until crisp. Drain on paper towels.

Serve stuffed into a pita bread, garnished with Tahini sauce, or on a plate garnished with Tahini sauce and some Greek salad on the side.

Falafel is a very tasty dish which is eaten throughout the Middle East.

Bean chowder

Dried beans are a good source of low-fat protein. They are also very inexpensive compared to meat. This is a vegetarian take on clam chowder.


1 cup dried white beans (navy or baby limas work well)
5 cups water
1 chopped onion
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
1 1/2 cups potato, cubed
salt to taste
1 1/2 cups milk

Soak beans overnight or by the rapid-soak method. Bring to boil, cover, and cook over low heat for 30 minutes. They should be partly tender but not all the way cooked through.

Add everything but the milk and cook 30-45 minutes longer, until beans and vegetables are tender. Remove 1 cup soup and puree.

Stir the milk gradually into the puree, then slowly stir this back into the soup. Cook over low, uncovered, until slightly thickened and heated through. Adjust seasonings if necessary.

Note: The original recipe called for 1 cup canned drained tomatoes. I omitted it because some of my children won't touch a tomato (except in the form of pizza sauce) but you could try it with the tomato if you like. I like a traditional white New England clam chowder and just can't picture putting tomatoes in this.

Khoresht

I like to make foods from different parts of the world so the children are exposed to a little more diversity than they would be otherwise. This dish is from Iran. I believe Iranian cuisine offers some of the tastiest dishes in the world. There are many different khoresht dishes. They are basically a thick sauce served over rice.

You will need:

1 1/2 lbs stewing beef
1 cup dried split peas or lentils (the yellow kind works well)
3-4 onions
1 lb potatoes
cooking oil
small can tomato paste
2T lime or lemon juice
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon (minimum) spices (paprika, turmeric, cinnamon, cumin---whatever you like in whatever combination you like)

Soak peas or lentils for about 3 hours, then drain.

Peel and slice onions. Fry in oil. Cut meat into small pieces and fry until color changes. Add 3-4 cups of water and bring to boil. Let simmer slowly for an hour or so until meat is tender. Add more water if necessary.

Peel potatoes, cut up into small pieces. Add potatoes, split peas, salt, pepper, spices and tomato paste. Simmer until done. Add lime juice near the end. During cooking, add more water if needed. The end result should not be dry, nor too watery---it should be a thick, rich sauce full of meat and vegetables. This is served over white rice. I have found that Basmati rice works the best.

If you are a vegetarian, you could adapt the recipe by omitting the meat and either increasing the potatoes, or better yet, replacing the meat with eggplant or with portobello mushrooms. If using eggplant: fry them slowly with the onions, adjust the water (it should cover the vegetables but not look too soupy), and simmer only until tender. Then, proceed as in the original recipe. If using mushrooms: I would probably just saute them lightly and add them with the potatoes and such.

Fried plantains

Plantains look like oversized bananas, but they must be cooked. They are at their best for cooking when they are soft and the skin is well-speckled with black.

1 or 2 large plantains
butter or oil for frying

Peel the plantains. Slice them lengthwise, then crosswise, and then into strips. Heat the butter or oil in a frying pan; add the plantains and fry them slowly until golden. Some people like to add a little cinnamon to them, but if they are well ripened, they are just as good plain. These make a good side dish along with rice and beans.

Black beans

My husband's aunt makes beans this way and they are delicious!!

1 cup dried black beans (or you can use pinto)
1 onion, chopped
several cloves garlic, chopped
1 bunch beet greens or fresh spinach, washed and chopped

Soak the beans several hours or overnight. When ready to cook, bring to a boil and cook them with the onions and garlic until beans are tender and liquid is reduced. The beans should not be dry, but the liquid should be reduced and kind of thick. When the beans are tender, add the greens and cook until done. Season to taste with salt.

For refried black beans: Omit the greens. Heat oil or shortening in a pan until hot; saute some chopped onion and several cloves of diced garlic until soft; add beans and enough liquid so they aren't too dry. Mash with a potato masher or fork. When they are well mashed, you can add grated cheese, cover and reduce heat to low until cheese is melted. This works for pinto beans as well, but black beans are especially delicious refried.

Meatless Cincinnati Chili

You will need: 16 oz. brown lentils, (1) 15-oz can tomato sauce, 2 cans vegetable broth (or beef broth), 2 bay leaves, 2 t (minimum) cinnamon, 1/4 cup chili powder, 1 t cumin, 2 whole cloves (or 1/4 t ground), 2 whole allspice (or 1/4 t ground), 2 t (or a little more) Dutch-process cocoa, 2 T vinegar (or a little less, to taste) (I generally use at least 3 t cinnamon; taste the sauce as it simmers and adjust the seasonings as necessary)

Put the broth in a pan, bring to boil and add lentils. Reduce heat; stir in the other ingredients and simmer at least an hour and a half, checking often and adding more broth or water if necessary so lentils don't get dry.

This is served over spaghetti, with chopped fresh onion and grated cheddar cheese on top.

Note: If you love Cincinnati Chili but absolutely hate lentils, you can still make the chili healthier by using ground turkey rather than ground beef, or you could use soy crumbles (meatless ground beef). I like the lentil version very much and even a couple of my kids liked it.

Milanesas

Very thin steaks (skirt steak works) or you can use skinless chicken meat, pounded thin

Dip each steak or chicken slice in beaten egg, then in bread crumbs. Fry these in a little hot oil until done. (If you use seasoned bread crumbs it is better) Serve these in one of two ways: on a plate with refried beans and Mexican rice on the side, or serve as a sandwich on a thick roll, topped with tomato slices, avocado, and mayonnaise.

This is one of the recipes my mother-in-law, who is from Mexico, taught me. She said that in Mexico they use sour cream (or the equivalent) rather than mayo. I tried it---it's good. This recipe cooks really fast and it's VERY easy.

Marinade for beef

Slice about a pound of beef in very thin strips (you can also use pork). In a bowl or plastic ziplock bag, mix together 6 T good-quality soy sauce, 3 T sesame oil, 3 T water or rice cooking wine, and 2-3T sugar. You can also slice thin several green onions and dice 2-3 cloves of garlic and add this to the marinade. Marinate the meat in this (in fridge) for at least an hour (2 or 3 would be better). Then, remove from marinade and broil until meat is cooked through.

This is a Korean recipe, so you want to serve this with a good quality white rice and, if you like it, kimchi. It is also good with a green salad on the side.

Spaghetti sauce

(If you have time to let this simmer a long time, the flavor improves)

1/2 eggplant, cut up (peeled if desired)
1 zucchini, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, diced, or garlic powder
1T or more basil or oregano, or 1 bay leaf
2 cans diced tomatoes

Saute the eggplant, zucchini, onion and garlic until tender. Add the spices and the tomatoes and let simmer. If you like a thicker sauce, add a small can of tomato paste. Serve this over hot cooked pasta. (Alternatively, rather than using canned tomatoes and tomato sauce, you can use a jar of pasta sauce)

Fried Apples and Onions

This is an old, old recipe but surprisingly good.

You will need: 1-2 onions, sliced thin; several cooking apples, peeled and sliced (depends on how many you're serving), a couple of tablespoons butter, and brown sugar to taste

Melt butter in a heavy skillet (cast iron works well, if you have it). Fry the onion slices in the butter over moderate heat until golden. Add the apple slices and cover, cook until apples are tender. You want this to cook rather slowly so the onions get nice and sweet. When the apples are done, add brown sugar to taste. If you want, you can add bacon (fried and cut up) for flavor. My family prefers it without the bacon.

Succotash

1 cup dried pinto beans
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup fresh corn kernels (slice them off the cob)
1 zucchini, chopped
optional: 1/2 cup chopped green pepper

Soak the pinto beans and cook according to package direction. When the beans are tender, saute the onion, zucchini, fresh corn and peppers in butter until tender. Add to the pinto beans and serve this with brown rice.

Homemade noodles (Great-Grandma's recipe)

2 eggs
milk to fill 1/2 eggshell
a pinch of salt
flour to make a stiff dough

Mix together the eggs, the milk, the salt, then stir in enough flour to make a stiff dough. Stir it in well until it's smooth.

Lightly flour a board and roll the dough out till pretty thin. Put a kitchen towel over a very large stockpot or something similar and hang the dough over it for about an hour to dry it some. Cut it into strips for noodles. Bring a pot of broth to the boil, put in the noodles and cook until noodles are done.

This is an old recipe and not real specific in directions but the noodles taste really good! I often make homemade beef/vegetable soup and add these.

Rice Pudding

Here's a tasty and inexpensive dessert for you!! For 8 servings or 4 large servings:

6 cups milk, 2/3 cup uncooked rice, 1/2 cup sugar, 1-2 T (or to taste) vanilla, cinnamon to taste

Bring milk to the boil. Stir in rice. Turn heat down to low and simmer, covered, 45 minutes to an hour, stirring every so often, until done. (Rice should be tender and pudding rather thick.) Stir in sugar, vanilla and cinnamon, remove from heat and serve either warm or chilled.

Guacamole

2 avocados
1 medium tomato
1/2 medium onion
a pinch or two of chopped fresh cilantro
1 fresh jalapeno (can omit if desired)

Peel the avocado and chop it into a mixing bowl. You can squeeze a little lemon juice over it for flavor and to prevent browning. Chop the tomato, onion, jalapeno if using and add them with the cilantro to the bowl. Mix up well.

Serve this with tortilla chips or wrapped in warmed tortillas.

For a change you can mix in some bottled salsa such as Pace or some other brand.

Mexican rice

For four servings:

1 cup white rice, uncooked
1 small can tomato sauce
4 cups or a little less chicken broth (I use canned, or water with a couple tsp of bouillon)
small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, diced
small green bell pepper, chopped (can omit if you don't like these)

Heat a couple of TBS oil in a pan. When hot, pour in the UNCOOKED rice. Let it toast till golden. Add the onion, garlic and peppers and toast 1 to 2 minutes. Then add the tomato sauce and the broth. Bring to the boil, then turn heat down to simmer and cook, covered, until rice is tender and the liquid is gone. You can also add some frozen mixed veggies or some corn if you want.

Fried Brown Rice

1 cup brown rice, cooked and cold (leftover is good)
1/2 cup chopped fresh veggies---mushrooms, snow peas, cabbage, bean sprouts, carrots, green onions, etc. (whatever you have)
oyster sauce or soy sauce to taste

Heat a little oil in a wok (I got mine at Ikea for $7). When hot, add vegetables and quickly stir-fry until crisp-tender. Add rice, mix in. Add oyster or soy sauce and mix up well. If you want to add protein to this dish, you can mix in some cooked leftover meat or chicken with the rice. Or, when the vegetables are cooked you can drizzle in a beaten egg, scramble it, then mix in the rice and seasoning. This makes a really good quick lunch of leftovers or even a side dish for dinner.

Easy Yellow Lentils

For four servings:

One cup of yellow lentils, dried (no need to presoak)
2 or more cups of vegetable broth or chicken broth
curry powder to taste

Bring the broth and lentils to a boil. Simmer until lentils are tender and sort of a thick stew, but not dry (you may have to add more broth). Add the curry powder to taste closer to the end of cooking time. It will take around a half hour. Serve this over brown rice.

Vegetarian Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients for Four Servings:

1 cup brown lentils, dried
1 small eggplant, cut up in small pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, diced,
1 carrot, peeled and sliced
1 jar spaghetti sauce

Cook lentils in several cups of boiling water till done, about a half hour. (No need to pre-soak). While they are cooking, saute the vegetables in a little oil until tender, then add sauce and simmer. When lentils are done, drain them and add to sauce. Serve with hot spaghetti or other pasta.