Orange Glazed Meatballs

These were so good and a refreshing change from the sweet and sour ones we usually make. I took it to someone and they loved it too.
I baked these in a glass cake pan, not in muffin cups.
 https://www.melskitchencafe.com/baked-orange-glazed-meatballs/

MEATBALLS:

• 1 1/2 pounds ground turkey (see note)
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs (panko, homemade, or storebought)
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 2 cloves garlic (about 2 teaspoons), finely minced or pressed through a garlic press
• 1-2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger (see note)
• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 green onions, white and green parts finely chopped

ORANGE GLAZE:

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon fresh orange zest
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 clove garlic (about 1/2 – 1 teaspoon) finely minced or pressed through a garlic press
• 1 1/4 tablespoons cornstarch

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees and lightly grease a mini muffin tin (see note above if you don’t have that kind of pan).
2. For the meatballs, combine all the meatball ingredients together in a large bowl and mix until combined (you might need to just get your hands in there and go to town).
3. Shape the meatball mixture into small balls, a couple tablespoons each, and place into the prepared mini muffin tin. The meatballs will shrink down a bit while baking.
4. Bake for 15 minutes or until cooked through.
5. Immediately (but carefully) spoon the meatballs out of the tin and onto a layer of paper towels to drain any excess grease (you may not need to do this if the meat was extra lean).
6. For the glaze, whisk together all the ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring often. Cook until thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Serve the meatballs with the glaze (either poured over the meatballs or served separately for each person to drizzle on as they like).

NOTES:

Ground chicken or lean ground beef can be subbed for the ground turkey. I always buy chunks of ginger and cut them into 1-inch pieces, toss them in a freezer ziploc bag (unpeeled) and then when a recipe calls for fresh ginger, I grab a piece straight from the freezer and grate it on the small holes of my box grater or on the microplane.

If you don’t have a mini muffin tin, scoop the meatballs onto a parchment-lined or greased baking sheet and bake that way.

Finally, if you like a little heat with your sweetness, try adding a little chile-garlic sauce or red pepper flakes to the sauce.

All images and text ©Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Seseme Chicken Potstickers

http://damndelicious.net/2014/08/08/sesame-chicken-potstickers/?m

I could not get my phone to copy so it's just the link this time. Some of the things I did different was use cooked shredded pork, used Asian star brand oil instead of sesame, used black pepper instead of white, and I would have liked to double the green onions.
She says you don't have to cook the meat first but I felt better knowing mine was cooked in case. I think this recipe would be great vegetarian too by using cabbage, mushrooms, and green onions for the filling.
I had trouble finding won ton wrappers at first but finally found them in the refrigerated veggie section by the mushrooms.
This was fun to try something new, especially since I had shredded pork to use somehow.

French Canadian Tourtieres Recipe

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/french-canadian-tourtieres
I had to save this dinner Julie sent me because it was soooo good and was so different than what I usually make. I want to make it again sometime. She said that she cut the recipe in half so it made two pies and used a pound of ground turkey, one pound of ground beef, and one pound of pork instead of the meat that was called for in the recipe.

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 45 min. Bake: 40 min.

MAKES:32 servings

Ingredients

• 4 celery ribs
• 4 medium carrots
• 2 large onions
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 4 pounds ground pork
• 2 pounds ground veal
• 2 pounds bulk Jimmy Dean® Premium Pork Sausage Roll
• 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) chicken broth
• 1/2 cup minced fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground mace
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• Pastry for four double-crust pies (9 inches)

Directions

1. Coarsely chop the celery, carrots and onions; place in a food processor with garlic. Cover and process until finely chopped; set aside.
2. In a stockpot or two Dutch ovens, cook vegetables, pork, veal and sausage until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in broth, parsley and seasonings. Reduce heat; cover and cook on low 20 minutes. Stir in bread crumbs.
3. Preheat oven to 400°. Line four 9-in. pie plates with bottom crusts; trim pastry even with edges. Fill each with about 4 cups filling. Roll out remaining pastry to fit tops of pies; place over filling. Trim, seal and flute edges. Cut slits in pastry. 
4. Cover edges of remaining pies loosely with foil. Bake at for 25 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°; remove foil and bake 15-20 minutes longer or until crusts are golden brown. 
   Freeze option: Cover and freeze unbaked pies. To use, remove from freezer 30 minutes before baking (do not thaw). Preheat oven to 400°. Place pie on a baking sheet; cover edge loosely with foil. Bake 25 minutes. Reduce heat to 350° remove foil and bake 50-60 minutes longer or until crusts are golden brown and a thermometer inserted in center reads 165°. Yield: 4 pies (8 servings each). 

Slow Cooker Beef Enchildas

http://www.melskitchencafe.com/slow-cooker-mexican-shredded-beef-for-enchiladas/

I don't usually like burritos that are mostly meat but these were different. We loved these! They tasted like a really good restaurant and they were easy because all the meat cooking was done in the crockpot.  I had a lot of meat and sauce leftover after making a big pan so I froze it for later. It was nice it made so much.

Cheesy Spinach Stuffed Pasta Shells

http://www.melskitchencafe.com/cheesy-spinach-stuffed-pasta-shells/

I think these are going to replace my manicotti recipe because they were so much easier. I didn't make her sauce but just opened a store bought bottle to make it easier. My favorite part was that I didn't have to stuff those tight manicotti shells.

White Bean Chicken/Turkey Chili

This is the recipe I made at Christmas.  It is nothing too amazing but it's pretty good and the best part about it is that it is one of the easiest recipes I have!! Yay for simple!! I keep making the parker house rolls with it that Katie posted from Mel's.  Man those are good too!

http://www.melskitchencafe.com/white-bean-chicken-or-turkey-chili/

White Bean Chicken (or Turkey) Chili

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 cups cooked, diced chicken (or turkey)
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 cup salsa (I use Pace Chunky Medium)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
• 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the remainder of the ingredients, except the mozzarella cheese. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the soup comes to a simmer. Add the mozzarella cheese one handful at a time, stirring to let each addition melt before adding the next. Stir to combine and make sure all the cheese has melted and serve.

 

Red Chile Sauce Chicken Enchiladas

http://www.melskitchencafe.com/red-chile-sauce-chicken-enchiladas/

I was pleasantly surprised on this one.  I didn't think I was going to like this one much when the sauce was cooking but they really were good!  I loved that they were really saucy.  Lucy loved them too.   She asked for seconds which is unusual with her lately.  We topped them with lime juice, cilantro, and sour cream.

 I don't like eating just chicken and cheese for the filling so I added a little corn and rinsed black beans from a can mixed in with two chicken breasts instead of three.  I also didn't want to take the time to strain the sauce like it says in the instructions.  Instead I just put a little sauce in the bottom of the pan, put a little sauce in each tortilla with the chicken/corn/bean/cheese mixture and then poured it all over the top at the end.  I also only used cheddar cheese. We had a anaheim chile pepper growing in our garden so I substituted that for the jalepeno.  I just noticed she says you can freeze these so I am going to try to remember that.

Red Chile Sauce Chicken Enchiladas

YIELD: MAKES 12 ENCHILADAS

INGREDIENTS

• 1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped fine
• 1 teaspoon canola oil
• 3 medium cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 3 teaspoons sugar
• 2 (8-oz) cans tomato sauce
• 1 cup water
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 3 large chicken breasts)
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 cup shredded Monterey jack cheese
• 1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
• 12 (6-inch) soft corn or flour tortillas (fajita-size for flour tortillas)
• cooking spray
• salt and ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large saucepan, combine the onion, jalapeno, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and oil. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until the onions and peppers have softened, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and sugar, and cook until fragrant, less than 30 seconds. Stir in the tomato sauce and water. Bring to a simmer.
2. Nestle the chicken into the sauce. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until chicken is cooked through, about 12-20 minutes, depending on the size and thickness of the chicken breasts you are using. Transfer the chicken to a plate, and set aside to cool. Continue to simmer the sauce over medium heat until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.
3. Strain the sauce through a strainer into a medium bowl, pressing the onion mixture to extract as much liquid as possible. Season sauce with additional salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the leftover onion mixture from the strainer to a large bowl and set aside.
4. Shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Add to the onion mixture in the large bowl. Also stir in 1/4 cup of the enchilada sauce, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup Monterey Jack cheese and the cilantro. Toss to combine.
5. Stack the tortillas on a plate and cover with plastic wrap; Microwave on high until warm and pliable, 40-60 seconds. Spread the tortillas on a clean work surface, and spoon 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture evenly down the center of each. Tightly roll each tortilla and lay seam-side down in a greased 9×13 inch baking dish.
6. Heat oven to 400 F. Pour the enchilada sauce evenly over the top of the enchiladas. Top with the remaining cheese. Cover dish with foil and bake 20 minutes, or until heated through.
7. Remove foil and bake another 5 minutes, until cheese browns. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving.
8. Serve with sour cream, guacamole, salsa, additional cilantro, if desired.

NOTES

Make Ahead Instructions: Follow the recipe, letting the sauce, onions and chicken come to room temperature before assembling the enchiladas. Finish following the recipe instructions and instead of baking, cover the pan with a layer of tin foil and refrigerate for up to 12 hours. Bake covered for 20 minutes, uncover and bake an additional 5-10 minutes. Alternately, the assembled enchiladas can be covered with a double layer of tin foil and put inside a jumbo-size ziploc bag (if you don’t have a jumbo-sized bag, make sure the edges of the pan are sealed well with tin foil). Freeze for up to 2-3 months. Bake from frozen, baking for 1 1/2 hours covered at 350 degrees F. Uncover and bake an additional hour until hot and bubbly.