Turkey Bolognese

Okay, so I admit that I love leftover turkey (hello- Kelli and I had a 22 lb turkey to divide and conquer!). I figure if I am going to spend all day roasting one piece of meat, I might as well make enough for a few extra meals (and some turkey and mustard sandwiches!). Last year I found a recipe from Giada DeLaurentiis from Food Network and I loved it. Bolognese is a rich meat sauce. It's a little thicker than traditional spaghetti sauce too. I loved the added veggies in the sauce and the flavor. It may sound weird to put turkey in a spaghetti-type dish, but it was way yummy. I am making it next week with some turkey I froze after Turkey Day. Enjoy!

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1 pound shredded cooked turkey (preferably dark meat)
3 cups marinara sauce
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves (you can use dry, but the flavor won't come out as much as if it were fresh)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound spaghetti (I used thin spaghetti- I like it better for some weird reason)
Freshly grated Parmesan

Heat the oil in a heavy large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the carrot and celery and saute until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Add the turkey and saute 1 minute. Add the marinara sauce. Decrease the heat to medium-low and simmer gently for 15 minutes to allow the flavors to blend, stirring often. Stir in the basil. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper. (The sauce can be made 1 week ahead. Cool the sauce completely, then transfer it to a container and freeze for future use. Bring the sauce to a simmer before using.)

Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the pasta to the sauce and toss to coat, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten as needed. Serve with the Parmesan.

Indonesian Plank Grilled Salmon

Brent's (and Bryan's) cousin Sandy had us over for dinner and made this amazing amazing amazing dinner. You have to try it!

Indonesian plank grilled Salmon

1 fillet Salmon

1 cedar plank, soaked in water for at least 30 min.

1/4 C. butter

1/4 C. olive oil

1/2 tsp. red chili flakes

4-5 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 C. brown sugar

1/2 C. fresh lime juice

1/2 C. soy sauce

3 tsp. cornstarch to 3-4 tsp. water

Melt butter in saucepan. Add olive oil. Heat to boil. Add chili and garlic. Doesn't need to cook too long. Add brown sugar and stir. Combine soy sauce and lime juice. Add and bring to a boil. Add cornstarch mixture. When its the right consistency; take off heat.

This is the sauce to bast the Salmon with. I cut the salmon and place on the plank. I then put the sauce all over the Salmon. I heat my grill to a medium heat. Put the plank on the grill. When I check the Salmon, I bast it again. It should take about 30-40 min to grill depending on how hot your grill is. I start my potatoes before I put the Salmon on. While it is grilling...I mash my potatoes and steam my spinach. To plate; mashed potatoes, spinach, Salmon, and don't forget to drizzle! When we have company over, I double the sauce recipe and I use two fillets. I hope this makes sense. The spinach is fresh. Enjoy!

Sweet Potatoes

Does anyone have a good sweet potato recipe for Thanksgiving??

Bacon and Baked Potato Soup

This is from kraftfoods.com. I love that site, it offers a lot of recipes and the reviews from readers are way helpful. Some tips that I like from the site on making this soup- you can use half and half instead of milk to make it richer, you can add more cheese as well as more bacon if you prefer, and the soup will be runny at first so you need to mash the potatoes enough and allow the starches to thicken up the soup. Some readers also let the carrots and celery saute a bit longer with the butter so they were softer. If you want more ideas for potato recipes, go to kraftfoods.com and type in "potato" in the recipe search.

1 Tbsp. butter or margarine
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) reduced sodium chicken broth
1-1/4 cups milk
2 medium baking potatoes, baked, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
8 slices bacon, crisply cooked, crumbled and divided
3/4 cup cheddar cheese, divided
2 Tbsp. green onion slices, divided
1/4 cup sour cream

Melt butter in heavy saucepan or Dutch oven. Add onion and celery; cook and stir until crisp-tender. Add broth, milk, potatoes, salt and pepper; bring just to boil, stirring constantly. Slightly crush potatoes with back of spoon. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Reserve 2 Tbsp. each of the bacon and cheese and 1 Tbsp. of the green onion for toppings; set aside. Add remaining bacon, cheese and green onion to soup just before serving; cook until cheese is melted, stirring constantly.

Serve topped with reserved bacon, cheese, green onion and sour cream.

rising price of groceries....

I've been noticing that my grocery bill is getting higher and higher but I've also noticed that potatoes are pretty cheap! You can get a 20 lb. bag for $3! So does anyone have any good potato recipes? My husband was raised on them and my kids love them but I don't really know any great recipes, besides mashed and baked.

Creamy Fudge

OK, this is my Grandma's fudge recipe. I guess she trusts me with her secrets!! I am not a big fan of fudge but when I eat this, I spend a little moment in heaven! You don't taste the butterscotch but it adds a really creamy texture! Try it! It's easy!


1 12 oz. pkg. semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 12 oz pkg. butterscotch chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla


Melt in sauce pan. DO NOT BOIL! Mix until smooth.
Pour into a 9 in. square pan lined with foil and sprayed with Pam. Let set and enjoy!!

Fudge

So, we're in the beginning of fudge season and I don't have a to-die-for fudge recipe even though it's my favorite. So, I was wondering if anyone out there could help me out. (Me = damsel in distress. You = knight in shining armor with buckets o' fudge.)