Soooooo, never leaving anything alone, I have a new Turkey Meatball recipe
There are three things to remember
1) Fresh ground turkey, no frozen chubs. I prefer turkey from The Turkey Store (Go Barron WI), but you can use other.
2) You MUST cook by temperature - once the meatballs hit 150, off the heat they go. At 170 they turn into dry disgusting balls of sawdust. Under 150 you risk food poisoning. So get a Thermapen.
3) Seasoning is your friend - low fat means you need lots of seasoning. Under season and they are boringly bland
Ingredients
1 lb fresh ground turkey (I use 93/7 - you can use 99/1, but that is pretty dry stuff
8 ounces fresh mushrooms
1/2 onion
1 stalk celery
Garlic (you can use fresh, or use Penzeys Roasted Garlic)
Seasoning as appropriate (depending on if you want Italian, Asian, Swedish, or other style meatballs). For Italian I like Penzeys Tuscan Sunset and for Asian the Sate seasoning.
Salt
Pepper
Sauce of choice, depending on style of meatballs
Recipe
Finely dice onion, celery and mushrooms
Saute onion, celery and 1/2 the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper, and whatever seasoning your using. Cook till soft, then cool.
Spread cooked veg on plate, spread turkey of the top
Spread rest of mushrooms on top of turkey, salt, pepper, season with seasoning
Mix together, but not too much. Compress the turkey, you get blech
At this point I like to make a quarter size piece of the meatballs (squished flat) and cook, to check the seasoning. Then adjust seasonings if necessary and cook the rest
Heat pan medium (I use teflon, just spray oil)
Make meatballs and begin to brown
Once meatballs are brown on two sides (but not cooked yet), I add sauce and turn temp down to low. The idea is that the sauce will bring the temp of the meatballs up slowly to 160, making it hard to overcook. Remember - at 150 they come off the stove. Residual heat will bring them to 155
Serve - I like using Rosarios Spaghetti Sauce over Zucchini noodles.
Marjorie Approved
Showing posts with label dieting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dieting. Show all posts
Monday, June 26, 2017
Sunday, November 13, 2016
Turkey (or chicken) Meatballs the don't suck - HMR Phase 2!
Turkey/Chicken meatballs can suck. Dense, dry, DISGUSTING. I don't care how low calorie a food is, if it tastes bad it doesn't get made.
There are a couple key things to remember.
1) You must use a Thermapen. Poultry has to be cooked to 165 degrees. But anything over 170 and it gets dry, especially if your using the breast. Thigh meat is a little more flexible, but higher calories. A thermapen is the only true instant read thermometer there is. Spend the $100 - best kitchen tool ever.
2) You must use fresh ground poultry, or at very least the fresh Turkey Store ground turkey. Those frozen turkey chubs turn turkey into dog food. Just say no.
3) Use raw veg - they will cook and release moisture as they cook, helping keep the meatballs moist
Ingredients
1 lb fresh ground chicken or other poultry
8 oz of finely diced RAW vegetables. Options can include:
- mushrooms
- onions
- spinach
- peppers (red, green, whatever)
- think creatively - use several to add up to 8 oz
2 ounces of COOKED (this adds some bulk and keeps them from getting too dense)
- quinoa
- wild rice
- brown rice
- barley
- any cooked grain
Salt, pepper, seasoning ( I like 1 tbs of pizza seasoning, but hey, go mexican, asian, whatever)
Recipe
Heat teflon pan (medium)
Get out a wide, shallow bowl
Spread half of the veg and other items in the bowl
Spread the meat over it
Spread the rest of the fixings, including spices
Mix gently as you can. You do have to work the meat, but try to go easy
Make meatballs - I go for about 1 to 1 1/2 inch in diameter
Spray pan with a shot of spray oil
Put in pan
Cover pan!
When meatballs begin to brown, rotate
After rotation, be sure to check, and keep checking their temp - when they hit 160, turn the stove off and take off the burner! DO IT. It will naturally rise to 165.
Use whatever sauce you like. I like using the HMR chicken soup made with chicken stock
Chicken - 500 calories (I used 99% fat free chicken breast)
Veg - depends on what you use - 40 calories
Cooked wild rice - 2 ounces - 60 calories
HMR Chicken Soup (1/2 package) 50 calories
Fat Free Chicken Stock, 1/2 cup - 10 calories
660 Calories, three servings - 220 calories per serving. Add more vegies, a great, filling meal for under 300 calories.
There are a couple key things to remember.
1) You must use a Thermapen. Poultry has to be cooked to 165 degrees. But anything over 170 and it gets dry, especially if your using the breast. Thigh meat is a little more flexible, but higher calories. A thermapen is the only true instant read thermometer there is. Spend the $100 - best kitchen tool ever.
2) You must use fresh ground poultry, or at very least the fresh Turkey Store ground turkey. Those frozen turkey chubs turn turkey into dog food. Just say no.
3) Use raw veg - they will cook and release moisture as they cook, helping keep the meatballs moist
Ingredients
1 lb fresh ground chicken or other poultry
8 oz of finely diced RAW vegetables. Options can include:
- mushrooms
- onions
- spinach
- peppers (red, green, whatever)
- think creatively - use several to add up to 8 oz
2 ounces of COOKED (this adds some bulk and keeps them from getting too dense)
- quinoa
- wild rice
- brown rice
- barley
- any cooked grain
Salt, pepper, seasoning ( I like 1 tbs of pizza seasoning, but hey, go mexican, asian, whatever)
Recipe
Heat teflon pan (medium)
Get out a wide, shallow bowl
Spread half of the veg and other items in the bowl
Spread the meat over it
Spread the rest of the fixings, including spices
Mix gently as you can. You do have to work the meat, but try to go easy
Make meatballs - I go for about 1 to 1 1/2 inch in diameter
Spray pan with a shot of spray oil
Put in pan
Cover pan!
When meatballs begin to brown, rotate
After rotation, be sure to check, and keep checking their temp - when they hit 160, turn the stove off and take off the burner! DO IT. It will naturally rise to 165.
Use whatever sauce you like. I like using the HMR chicken soup made with chicken stock
Chicken - 500 calories (I used 99% fat free chicken breast)
Veg - depends on what you use - 40 calories
Cooked wild rice - 2 ounces - 60 calories
HMR Chicken Soup (1/2 package) 50 calories
Fat Free Chicken Stock, 1/2 cup - 10 calories
660 Calories, three servings - 220 calories per serving. Add more vegies, a great, filling meal for under 300 calories.
Sunday, October 23, 2016
HMR Five Bean Casserole - Becomes.... West African Peanut Stew - Maafe!
The HMR Five Bean Casserole is pretty good.
And you can do a number of things with it - my favorite is making it into Peanut Stew.
Peanut stew is, typically, root vegetables with chicken, and of course, peanuts and peanut butter.. Which is not exactly hmr material. So, what to do, what to do.
Well, this is what you do
The simple adds are
PB2 - yes, that wonder of modern science, freeze dried, defatted peanut butter.
Cilantro
Green Onions
Jalapenos
HMR chicken soup
Get to add Vegetables? Time for some fun
Cooked Sweet Potato or Butternut squash are classics
Sweet corn
Fresh or canned tomato
Garbanzo beans (1/2 cup equals one serving of veg)
Cooked potato
Diced red peppers
This is a delicious stew - really!
Leek and Potato Soup - 100 calories a cup!
I like this soup in the fall when leeks are cheap. As in 69 cents each. When they are $2.69 each, I don't like them as much. Plus, they are cheap when potatoes are cheap also - 50 cents a lb - so a big win on the budget front.
To determine calories, you must of course base it on what you use. Your calorie count will vary...
Ingredients
Leeks (3 @54 calories each, 162 calories total)
Yukon Gold Potatoes, peeled (18 ounces @ 26 calories per ounce, 468 calories total)
Swanson or Progresso Chicken Broth, low sodium (8 cups, 15 cal per cup, 120 calories total). Or go with vegetable broth.
1 cup water (free)
salt and pepper to taste (free)
Thyme to taste (free)
Yields 8 cups, so 94 calories per cup with what I used.
Cut the dark green portions of the leeks off, slice in half the long way, then slice fine. Put in a big pot of water and swish around to get the dirt out of them. Drain.
Add to big pot and sweat (that is, cook at low to medium heat till they soften). You don't need oil, butter or anything else. They will release moisture as they cook down. Salt with about a teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of pepper.
Peel and slice potatoes into 1/4 thick slices. I do it this way because they then cook evenly no matter how big the potato is - every slice cooks at the same speed.
When leeks have gotten soft (10 to 15 minutes), add potatoes, thyme, broth and water. Cook at medium until potatoes are soft
Put half at a time into a blender, blend till smooth - be careful and put a towel over the blender and don't fill it more than 1/2 way - to much is a good way of blowing the top off, burning yourself and painting the walls with the soup.
When pureed, serve. Good hot, good cold.
To determine calories, you must of course base it on what you use. Your calorie count will vary...
Ingredients
Leeks (3 @54 calories each, 162 calories total)
Yukon Gold Potatoes, peeled (18 ounces @ 26 calories per ounce, 468 calories total)
Swanson or Progresso Chicken Broth, low sodium (8 cups, 15 cal per cup, 120 calories total). Or go with vegetable broth.
1 cup water (free)
salt and pepper to taste (free)
Thyme to taste (free)
Yields 8 cups, so 94 calories per cup with what I used.
Cut the dark green portions of the leeks off, slice in half the long way, then slice fine. Put in a big pot of water and swish around to get the dirt out of them. Drain.
Add to big pot and sweat (that is, cook at low to medium heat till they soften). You don't need oil, butter or anything else. They will release moisture as they cook down. Salt with about a teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of pepper.
Peel and slice potatoes into 1/4 thick slices. I do it this way because they then cook evenly no matter how big the potato is - every slice cooks at the same speed.
When leeks have gotten soft (10 to 15 minutes), add potatoes, thyme, broth and water. Cook at medium until potatoes are soft
Put half at a time into a blender, blend till smooth - be careful and put a towel over the blender and don't fill it more than 1/2 way - to much is a good way of blowing the top off, burning yourself and painting the walls with the soup.
When pureed, serve. Good hot, good cold.
Tuesday, October 4, 2016
HMR Lasagna with Meat Sauce - Pump It Up!
The HMR Lasagna with Meat Sauce is fine. I mean, it's not great, but its ok.
However, it can be so much more....
There are a few things you can add in the no decision phase, for example....
Penzey's Frozen Pizza Seasoning - spices, garlic, it amps it up some
Hot sauce of your preference
and.... not sure what else goes in.
Once you get to add Vegies to your diet....then it can become quite good.
My fave is spinach and mushrooms
Saute the spinach with garlic
Saute the mushrooms with the Penzey's Frozen Pizza Seasoning
Layer with the Lasagna in a microwave dish
Spinach, Mushrooms, Layer of Lasagna, repeat. Top with Spinach and Mushrooms
Cover and nuke.
Serve with a salad...Pretty good.
However, it can be so much more....
There are a few things you can add in the no decision phase, for example....
Penzey's Frozen Pizza Seasoning - spices, garlic, it amps it up some
Hot sauce of your preference
and.... not sure what else goes in.
Once you get to add Vegies to your diet....then it can become quite good.
My fave is spinach and mushrooms
Saute the spinach with garlic
Saute the mushrooms with the Penzey's Frozen Pizza Seasoning
Layer with the Lasagna in a microwave dish
Spinach, Mushrooms, Layer of Lasagna, repeat. Top with Spinach and Mushrooms
Cover and nuke.
Serve with a salad...Pretty good.
Saturday, October 1, 2016
Hacking the HMR Vegetarian Thai Curry with Brown Rice
HMR Vegetarian Thai Curry with Brown Rice - Pumping up the Thai
The HMR Veg Thai is ok. A little spicy, but not too much. They use Gardein as the meat substitute, and it's actually good. However, the meal is a little boring. So, what to do.....
Two questions really - what are the options when you are only using HMR products, and what can you do once you add fruit and veg.
Flavorings
Mixing the Thai Curry with a Chicken soup makes it more like the curry you get in a restaurant, which tend to be quite soup like
To pump up the curry, try Green Curry paste - just watch out for calories. Some pastes are quite low - some are not so low. I find green curry paste is often the lowest calorie of the red, yellow, etc. types.
Fish Sauce is an added feature, but it can be salty, and the HMR meal has a fair bit of sodium
Some add Soy Sauce, which is a flavor, but see fish sauce. I usually skip the Soy Sauce
PB2 (Powdered Peanut Butter, 85% less fat) makes an interesting addition (but remember to measure accurately). Makes it more of a pad thai type meal. Add it to the chicken soup when you are adding the water. You may need to add a little more water as it will thicken
Chopped Green Onions - one onion is less than 20 calories, and it adds a little crunch and bite
Cilantro - fresh herbs are always free
Coconut extract (1/4 teaspoon) - I am not a huge fan, but some like it since coconut milk is definitely out, although technically a 1/8th of a cup of lite coconut milk would be about 22 calories.....
Lime - half a fresh lime, squeezed over the heated meal
Splenda Brown Sugar - just 1/2 a teaspoon packed is 10 calories
Garlic powder (rehydrate in the chicken soup)
Minced garlic, although I would probably only use it with vegetables when I stir fry them
Thai Basil
Hot sauce, such as sriracha
Vegetable (and Fruit!) add ins
Things get a whole lot more fun at this point. I still would mix the meal with the chicken soup as the start, add your choice of flavorings above... then you can think about ...
Pineapple!
Red Pepper (or green, orange or yellow), sliced thin and stir fried briefly
Onion, sliced thin and stir fried (no oil remember!)
Snow pea pods stir fried
Sugar Snap Peas, just cooked lightly
Bean Sprouts (no need to cook at all)
Frozen Peas (just add to the soup to warm)
Sweet potato - peeled, then sliced or cubed and cooked just al dente, not mushy
Cauliflower rice!
Cooked sliced carrots (or raw for some crunch)
Peeled, cubed, stir fried eggplant (but don't over cook!)
Birds Eye Chili's - if you like it hot!
The HMR Veg Thai is ok. A little spicy, but not too much. They use Gardein as the meat substitute, and it's actually good. However, the meal is a little boring. So, what to do.....
Two questions really - what are the options when you are only using HMR products, and what can you do once you add fruit and veg.
Flavorings
Mixing the Thai Curry with a Chicken soup makes it more like the curry you get in a restaurant, which tend to be quite soup like
To pump up the curry, try Green Curry paste - just watch out for calories. Some pastes are quite low - some are not so low. I find green curry paste is often the lowest calorie of the red, yellow, etc. types.
Fish Sauce is an added feature, but it can be salty, and the HMR meal has a fair bit of sodium
Some add Soy Sauce, which is a flavor, but see fish sauce. I usually skip the Soy Sauce
PB2 (Powdered Peanut Butter, 85% less fat) makes an interesting addition (but remember to measure accurately). Makes it more of a pad thai type meal. Add it to the chicken soup when you are adding the water. You may need to add a little more water as it will thicken
Chopped Green Onions - one onion is less than 20 calories, and it adds a little crunch and bite
Cilantro - fresh herbs are always free
Coconut extract (1/4 teaspoon) - I am not a huge fan, but some like it since coconut milk is definitely out, although technically a 1/8th of a cup of lite coconut milk would be about 22 calories.....
Lime - half a fresh lime, squeezed over the heated meal
Splenda Brown Sugar - just 1/2 a teaspoon packed is 10 calories
Garlic powder (rehydrate in the chicken soup)
Minced garlic, although I would probably only use it with vegetables when I stir fry them
Thai Basil
Hot sauce, such as sriracha
Vegetable (and Fruit!) add ins
Things get a whole lot more fun at this point. I still would mix the meal with the chicken soup as the start, add your choice of flavorings above... then you can think about ...
Pineapple!
Red Pepper (or green, orange or yellow), sliced thin and stir fried briefly
Onion, sliced thin and stir fried (no oil remember!)
Snow pea pods stir fried
Sugar Snap Peas, just cooked lightly
Bean Sprouts (no need to cook at all)
Frozen Peas (just add to the soup to warm)
Sweet potato - peeled, then sliced or cubed and cooked just al dente, not mushy
Cauliflower rice!
Cooked sliced carrots (or raw for some crunch)
Peeled, cubed, stir fried eggplant (but don't over cook!)
Birds Eye Chili's - if you like it hot!
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