Week of Feb 22

Roasted Vegetable Bowl with Hazelnut Gremolata

Servings: 4

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 pound sweet potatoes, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 pound Brussels sprout, halved
1 large shallot, slivered
4 cups cooked pearled barley or other grain
1 cup fresh parsley
1 clove garlic, peeled
2 teaspoons fresh lemon zest
½ cup toasted and skinned hazelnuts
¾ teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425°F. Spread 1 tablespoon of the olive oil on a sheet pan.
Place the sweet potato cubes, Brussels sprouts, and shallot in the oil and toss to coat. Roast for 25 minutes, then stir and check for doneness by piercing with a paring knife. When the sweet potatoes are tender and the Brussels sprouts are browned, take out and let cool slightly.
Warm the barley and keep warm.
On a cutting board, mince the parsley, garlic, and lemon zest until fine, then add the hazelnuts to the pile and chop them coarsely. Transfer the parsley mixture to a medium bowl and stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and the salt.
Serve 1 cup cooked barley in each bowl, covered with 1/4 of the roasted vegetables, then sprinkle with 1/4 of the parsley mixture. Serve immediately.

"Gremolata" is just a douchey name for pesto. The nuts in this pesto are hazelnuts, which are good, but honestly a pain in the ass. I'll save you the trouble of speed scrolling through some 10,000 word tradwife blog entry right here: to get the skin off hazelnuts you boil them in about 2 cups of water with a tablespoon or 2 of baking soda for about 5 minutes. Or you can swap them out with walnuts, in which case you should gently toast the walnuts in a pan or toaster oven. I'd also use curled parsley here instead of flat leaf/Italian parsley. It's a bit crisper and makes a better pesto IMHO. Save some parsley for the pasta at the end of the week.

The recipe calls for pearled barely, but the picture looks like it's showing black rice which is a lot more colorful. Whateves.

Skillet Turkey Burgers
Cook Time: 40 minutes | Servings: Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon water
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 pound 93 percent lean ground turkey
1 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons panko bread crumbs
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
½ teaspoon unflavored gelatin
¼ teaspoon pepper
⅛ teaspoon table salt
4 slices American cheese (optional)
4 hamburger buns

Directions:
Place oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet and set aside. Combine water and baking soda in small bowl. Place turkey in large bowl. Using your hands, break up meat into rough ½-inch pieces. Drizzle baking soda mixture evenly over turkey, followed by soy sauce and melted butter. Evenly sprinkle panko, Parmesan, gelatin, pepper, and salt over turkey mixture. Using your hands, gently toss to combine.
Divide meat into 4 lightly packed portions, about 4 ounces each. Gently flatten 1 portion into patty about ½ inch thick and about 4 inches in diameter. Transfer patty directly to prepared skillet and repeat with remaining portions.
Heat skillet over medium heat. When patties start to sizzle, cover skillet and cook until patties are well-browned on bottom, about 2½ minutes (if patties are not browned after 2½ minutes, increase heat). Carefully flip patties, cover, and continue to cook until second side is well browned and burgers register 160 degrees, 2½ to 3 minutes longer. If using cheese, place 1 slice on each burger about 1 minute before burgers finish cooking. Transfer burgers to plate and let rest for 5 minutes, then transfer to buns and serve.

This recipe is a great one to have in your tool box. I know it looks a little finicky with the baking soda and the gelatin, but just do it. This makes a great burger. Ground chicken works equally as well. Dont get super lean ground poultry here, it's not the time or place for that.

Quick Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese

Cook Time: 30 minutes | Servings: Yield 4 servings

Ingredients:
FOR THE TOMATO SOUP:
1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes
¾ cup chicken or vegetable broth, plus more as needed
1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
Salt and black pepper
FOR THE GRILLED CHEESE:
Mayonnaise
8 slices brioche or milk bread, crusts removed
1 cup shredded low-moisture mozzarella (4 ounces)
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions:
Make the soup: Dump the canned tomatoes and their juices into a medium pot and using your hands, tear into coarse chunks. Swish the broth in the empty tomato can and add to the pot.
Stir in the onion, butter, oregano and sugar and season generously with salt and pepper. Turn the heat to high and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and continue simmering, stirring occasionally, until the onion is tender and the tomatoes have broken down, 15 to 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the sandwiches: Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise on one side of each slice of bread and evenly sprinkle the cheese and a little oregano on the mayonnaise side of 4 slices. Top with the cheeseless slices, mayonnaise-side down.
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium. Add the sandwiches and cook until golden brown on the bottoms, 2 to 3 minutes. Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter in the pan, then flip the sandwiches with a spatula, move them around to coat with the butter and cook until the other side is golden brown and the cheese is melted, 1 to 2 minutes. Turn heat to lowest setting to keep sandwiches warm.
Carefully purée the tomato soup using a blender until smooth and creamy, adding more broth if needed to loosen to your desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer the grilled cheeses to a cutting board and cut each in half diagonally. Serve alongside the soup.

OK- even though this recipe is about as simple as they come, I have a lot to say here. First and foremost: BE CAREFUL PUTTING HOT LIQUIDS IN A BLENDER. Steam escapes in large volumes when you fire that thing up and it can blow the lid off the blender. Ask me how I know. Fill 1/4 of the blender to start with, and cover the lid with a folded towel. Go from there. OR you can buck up and get an immersion blender. I use the one recommended by America's Test Kitchen, which is this one. Just get the version with the blender, whisk and cup. I dont think you need the rest of that crap they bundle with it. I actually use this tool all the time, not only to make soup and smoothies, but I use the whisk for dressings and whipped cream. I have quite a life.

If you want to take a deep dive into grilled cheese and tomato soup, the food writer J. Kenji Lopez-Alt has a lot to say about this classic combo. You can check out his process for making a grilled cheese here, and I have included his tomato soup recipe as an alternative to the one in the main recipe. If nothing else, his dedication to this meal should make you feel less guilty about serving this up for dinner.

In either case, don't get crappy tomatoes. Muir Glen Whole Peeled is a fine place to start if you're not sure.

Slow-Cooker Mulligatawny Soup

Total Time: 6 hr 10 min | Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients:
1/4 cup vegetable oil
8 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 celery stalks, sliced
1 large apple, preferably Granny Smith, peeled, cored and chopped
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size chunks
1 cup masoor dal (split red lentils)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons minced ginger (from about 2 inches of peeled ginger)
2 teaspoons black or brown mustard seeds
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, plus more to taste
4 cups chicken broth or stock
1 (5-ounce) can coconut cream (about ⅔ cup)
Juice of 1 lime (about 1½ tablespoons)

Directions:
Combine all the ingredients except the coconut cream and lime juice in a 6- to 8-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
Stir in the coconut cream and lime juice. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Serve in bowls topped with a dusting of cayenne, if desired.

I have made this 3 or 4 times and have forgotten to add the coconut cream at the end at least twice. Now I put the can by the slow cooker in the morning when I prepare it.

Tomato and Olive Penne

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 25 min | Servings: Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
Coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
1 pound penne or other short pasta
¼ cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
¼ pound cherry tomatoes (2 cups), halved or quartered
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
¼ cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving (optional)

Directions:
1 In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the penne until al dente according to the package instructions. Drain.
2 Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic, and cook, stirring, until just golden, about 1 minute. Add the cherry tomatoes, oregano, red pepper flakes, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Reduce the heat to low, and cook, stirring, until the tomato juices run, about 3 minutes.
3 Add the penne, olives, parsley, and ¼ cup Parmesan to the skillet and toss to combine. Serve with more cheese, if desired.