Lentil Burgers

I had some leftover filling from my breakfast burritos (potatoes, onion, bell pepper, vegan cheese and tofu), and leftover cooked lentils from my mushroom lentil loaf... I decided they would be a perfect mix for some burgers. (One of my bosses told me that I'm not allowed to call anything vegetarian a "burger," but I think it's less incorrect than the "meatloaf" I brought in, sans meat.)

I'm finding that I can make a burger out of anything fairly pasty (for example, sweet potato, or in this case, the cooked lentils), then by adding breadcrumb and binder. I added some tahini to this mix, breadcrumb, and about two chia "eggs" (1/2 cup ground chia seeds, plus about 3/4 water). Mix, season (I used cumin, chili powder, a little ground fennel and salt and pepper). Mix by hand, keep tasting, and separate into patties to toast up in a pan.

I pre-cooked all of them, and then froze them in packs of two in aluminum foil in the freezer for re-heating.

Now that's so simple, we really need to talk about something else. I was wondering, are we really sure that Matthew Crawley is dead? I mean, he looked pretty dead. I realize that he was underneath the front wheel of a car and bleeding out the head, and then there's that frozen stare... But I'm thinking that there JUST might be a chance.

There's a small chance, right?

Chili Con Carne

I don't know how chili and the Superbowl came together, but somehow it became defined as "man food." Probably because of the farting that sometimes follows. Still, despite the risks, I've made a lot of chili recipes, and I've enjoyed most of them. Chili con carne is usually made with sliced up chuck roast instead of the usual ground beef, and it seems kind of special. (In the "black bow tie" way, not the "Church Lady" way. No, wait, in that way too.)

I made a chili con carne recipe from either Eating Well magazine, or Cooking Light... And I'll be darned if I can find it, even on their websites. I remember, because there was a misprint about when to add the beef back in, and they typed a correction in the next issue (I have a LOT of issues. Yes, also in that way). Well, if I find the exact recipe, I'll update the post. Meantime, it was very, very similar to this one. Many recipes for chili con carne don't have any beans in them, but this one is a little more healthy.

Chili is all about the toppings, so don't forget the light sour cream, the avocado, the limes and the cilantro. And if there are some, hmm, undesirable side effects later on, just remember this too shall pass (yes... in that way).

Turkey Chili Mac

This was super quick and easy, and I even made it a "deluxe" way. It was sort of a cross between a bolognese sauce (which has carrot in it), and regular chili mac. A bit of extra work to just pulse up the mirepoix (carrot, celery, and onion - in this case, I also added garlic) in the food processor, yes, but I doubled the mix of the four veggies, stuck half of it in the fridge, and then threw it into the Crockpot for "Easy Galumpki Bake" the next day. So you're saving time!



Ingredients:
2 carrot, peeled and cut into big chunks
2 celery sticks with leaves, cleaned and "chunked"
1 onion
2 clove garlic
1 lb. ground turkey
1/2 glass red wine
1 cup frozen peas
1 large can chopped tomatoes
mexican seasoning
salt and pepper
shredded cheddar
whole wheat pasta

Pulse the first four ingredients in the food processor until finely chopped (note: if you're only making the chili mac and not the Galumpki Bake, cut the amount for the first four veggies in half). Sweat the veggies until they are just translucent. Add the ground turkey and brown it, then add your seasonings, then the wine and tomatoes. Add the peas at the last moment just to warm them through. Serve over pasta with lots of cheddar!

Fredbangers Bowl

A friend of mine has a policeman for a boyfriend... I don't know why it is, but cops and firemen seem to make the best chili in the world. After some begging on my part, he gave me the recipe for his chili (he calls it "Fred's Bangin' Chili.") He is a super-nice guy, and his chili might be the best I've ever tasted. I hope his recipe wasn't a secret. Fred is a really nice guy, but he isn't someone I'd necessarily want to mess with!



This recipe is also the one that introduced me to Adobo seasoning, which comes in handy quite frequently, I find. You can use it to season flour to fry things, or to season any type of meat -- anywhere you would use garlic salt or something like it. You just have to watch it if you're controlling your salt intake (you could substitute garlic powder, or try the low-sodium version). Try it... you'll like it!

Here's the recipe... enjoy, then freeze the leftovers and feed a whole police squad:

Ingredients:
-2 lbs. ground beef (I like to use 80% lean) or ground turkey
-2-28 oz cans Hunt's crushed tomatoes
-2-28 oz cans dark red kidney beans (I did half pinto beans cuz I like them, too)
-1-12 oz bottle of Pilsner beer (your choice)
-6 stalks green onion, chopped
-1 head fresh garlic: minced or pressed
-1 large red bell pepper: diced
-2 jalapeno or serrano peppers: stemmed, seeded, and minced

Chili Spices:
-2 packs McCormick chili spices (powder)

OR (the REAL way)
-6 Tbls chili powder
-2 Tbls ground cumin
-1 tsp paprika
-1/4 tsp red cayenne pepper powder
-1 1/2 Tbls dried oregano
-1 Tbls adobo powder
-1 Tbls freshly ground black pepper
-salt to taste

Preparation:
-In a frying pan, brown 2 lbs ground meat and drain well
-In a large stew pot or Dutch oven, add meat and vegetables and stir over medium heat until onions and peppers wilt (approx 5 minutes)
-Add spices and seasonings, stir
-Add crushed tomatoes
-Add kidney beans that have been drained and rinsed
-Add beer, stir
-Add water (if needed) until desired consistency
-Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low
-Simmer for approximately 1 1/2 hours, stirring every 5 minutes or so

One last note from Fred, "Refrigerate over night in pot before eating. Not essential, but I think it tastes better, as all of the ingredients blend together nicely."

We like ours with light sour cream, shredded cheese, and oyster crackers. Thanks, Fred!

Jaenicke's Drive In

When I was in high-school, I went over to my friend Lori's house. Her older sister was settling in to some take-out food. "Watcha eatin'?" I asked. "Sauce buns" she said. "What's a sauce bun?" I asked. She looked at me mid-bite like I was a frigging lunatic. "You've never had a sauce bun??" to which I replied, "No. Never heard of them." She wolfed down her dinner and hauled me out the door, straight back to Jaenicke's Drive In, where I had my first taste of heaven, sans hot dog.



Jaenicke's (pronounced yah-nick-eez) is right down the road from where I grew up, so I dunno why I'd never tried their food before. But I've had it a lot since. The owner of the place used to come into the animal hospital where I worked, and I first heard about "the feud" from her. There is a Jaenicke's Drive In in Kankakee, and the one near me in Bourbonnais. The Jaenickes, sadly, have apparently split into two warring factions that do not speak to one another. Consequently, everyone in the area swears that either the Bourbonnais branch, or the Kankakee one is far superior. A cross-town rivalry, if you will. Personally, I went to the Kankakee one (also called Jaenicke's on Wall) once or twice (with my friend Carrie, who swore it was the better of the two), and I found the food to be served a bit more sloppily, and I just felt it wasn't as good. I just found out that there is a Jaenicke's in Momence, too, but I don't know anything about that one... Maybe you just like the one closer to where you live, I dunno. The truth of the matter is, all the Jaenicke's joints are pretty awesome -- but I'm loyal to my Bourbonnais peeps. I just love what comes out of that joint. It is always consistent, perfect, and delicious.

We went to Jaenicke's on a pretty gray, unusually cold summer day. But you know what? Sauce buns on sale? That brings a summer day right into my mouf.



So what is a sauce bun, you might ask? It is a soft white hot dog bun, filled with Jaenicke's amazing hot dog chili. Of course they have hot dogs available if you like, but I like the warm, uninterrupted softness of the sauce bun. The chili at Jaenicke's is very sweet and mild -- more like barbecue sauce than chili. Cheese is optional, but trust me, you want that option. It's just plain old nacho sauce right out the jar, like Cheez Whiz. To me, the cheese and chopped onions are a necessity, as is a good old Green River to go along with it (to this day, Jaenicke's is the only place I've ever had Green River soda. It is available in other places, but it just doesn't seem right for me to drink it anywhere else).



Chris got a chili dog, and some corn dog nuggets. Hot and dee-licious.



I got my beloved sauce buns, tucked into the box with stapled wax paper, as usual. Which is great, because it facilitates me licking the cheese sauce off the top.



Jaenicke's is closed in the winter months, starting in October I believe, and re-opening in spring. I usually only get back to eat there once a year, but nothing says springtime quite like opening day baseball, and that first bite of Jaenicke's.

Coconut Chili and Bean Medley

Here's something I experimented with the other night that came out quite good. It has a sweet and spicy, vaguely eastern flavor due to the light coconut milk and seasonings. I've been playing with coconut milk a lot since tasting Thai curry a few years ago, and this is another of my variations.

• Sauté half of a yellow onion (diced) and four minced cloves of garlic with a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a deep pan.


• Add 1/2 bag golden raisins, and four cooked and diced Yukon gold potatoes.


• Add 1 can rinsed and drained kidney beans, one can rinsed and drained chick peas, and 1/2 bag steamed or prepared lentils (about one cup).


• Add 1 can light coconut milk, three-quarters of a jar of Trader Joe's roasted red pepper and eggplant dip***, 1/3 bag of cashews, and 1/3 bag frozen peas.


• Season with salt, pepper, a little cumin and coriander, and a more generous amount of chili powder to taste. Heat through and combine until peas are thawed, and the dish is warm.


• Serve over brown rice, and garnish with red bell pepper or scallions.

I think this dish is easy to prepare, even if you don't really cook. It looks like a lot, but it is all "pantry" ingredients, and it is my favorite style of cooking (just combining things in a pan.) Don't be scared if it looks a little strange... The raisins give it a burst of sweetness, and the nuts give it a nice crunch. The leftovers (and there will be a lot), reheated very well, and it may have even tasted better after a couple of days in the fridge.

*** You could make your own by processing oil-packed red peppers (with the oil), garlic, and grilled eggplant until smooth.

Turkey Burger Summer

This house is the official "Turkey Burger Central." I'm lucky to be married to a guy who doesn't really care for red meat, and doesn't really fight me on these things. Once in awhile, if we go out, we will splurge on a beef burger... But at home, it is strictly turkey meat.



The one thing about turkey is that I don't feel that it has as much inherent flavor as the fattier beef counterpart does, so I have experimented a lot with different seasonings. My favorite (other than the "Turkey Tricolore,") starting with ground meat and shaping the patties, has the following seasonings added:

a half-capful of Liquid Smoke
a couple shots of Worcestershire sauce
a little Adobo seasoning (or garlic powder)
a shake of ground cumin
1/2 a medium diced onion
one egg
a little salt and pepper

After you flip them once, then brush on a little chili sauce. I like to top them with cheddar, or turkey bacon, and a little lowfat mayo sometimes.



You can also substitute the chili sauce with BBQ sauce, whichever you prefer. We like veggie fixings and whole-wheat buns.



Another variation I like is to top the burger with turkey chili, and shredded cheese. They are sloppy and they feel sinful, but they don't have much fat at all.



Sometimes we get pre-packaged or frozen turkey burgers, so there is no chance to put your own seasonings inside, but they are really convenient. Grilling can dry out the Jennie-O patties, because they are very lean... But I got an idea from the Harper cafeteria, which serves really yummy turkey burgers. They keep the burgers in broth, and serve them from there. So we simmer ours in chicken stock until they turn white. It keeps them juicy, and you can strain the stock through a funnel and put the carton back in the fridge for re-use once or twice (the stock just gets more flavorful.)



Mmmm... well, now I'm all worked up, and I've gotta break for lunch... Hope you guys have a good one, too!

Chili Mac

About once a month for oh, my whole life, my dad would get a craving for Steak 'n Shake chili mac. We'd have to rush out and get it. I've often said that I think he was under the misgiving that there was a little fetus growing in his little potbelly, and he would get the cravings that would correspond to that condition.

I could never figure out why the chili mac I made at home never tasted like the mac at Steak 'n Shake. I even bought the chili that they sell there out of a can, and it still didn't taste right. Later I realized that there was chili sauce under the chili. Now I put the pasta sauce in the bowl, a healthy glug of chili sauce out of the bottle, and warm chili. Then the cheese, onions, and sometimes some sour cream. Shown in the picture above is my buddy Cameron's fantastic Howitzer Death Fart Chili that he was kind enough to send home with us. Well, that's what I call it. The effects last up to five days (that's tested fact, and not a joke), but lordy. Worth every green swamp cloud that the stuff emanates. Just make sure you look ahead on your calendar to what you have going on during the weekend.

World's Greatest Cornbread

In this season of BBQ's and chili cook-offs, it is the finishing touch to have the best cornbread recipe ever. I wrote this down on yellow legal paper some years ago, and I now don't remember where I got it from. TV? A friend? Foodtv.com? I dunno. The mysterious origins are lost in the mists of time. But I'll never make another kind. Once you've had the best? You can poo-poo the rest.

1 box of Jiffy corn muffin mix
8 oz. of whole canned kernel corn, drained
8 oz. of creamed corn
8 oz. of sour cream
2 eggs
1/2 cup (1 stick) of melted butter

Mix all of the ingredients well, and pour into a greased 9 x 9 inch pan (the batch shown in the picture has been doubled for one of my friend Cam's fabulous chili nights). Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

That's it! This bread is crazy moist (and trust me, I hate the word "moist" but there's no other way to describe) and never has that gritty-kitty-litter texture. It sure ain't health food, baby... But like I said: the old ways are now dead to us. You try this recipe, and see if you can go back!

Mexican Seasoning

I got tired of opening several containers (and then closing several containers) to season Mexican food the way I like it. So I bought all the seasonings, whisked them in a bowl, and poured them into a large parmesan cheese shaker I bought at the dollar store. Doesn't matter how much you make, just use equal parts (one jar, or a half-jar) of each of the following:

one part coriander
one part cumin
one part chili powder
1/2 parts garlic powder
one part onion powder
1/4 to 1/2 part cayenne pepper (depending on how hot you want it) OR
1/4 part hot chili mix plus smoked paprika

Now I just liberally dust whatever I want to have that Latino flavah, and add salt. Done!