Roasted Tomato Turkey Burgers

I'm a product reviewer at Moana Saves, a fantastic site with reviews and many great giveaways. I review everything from children's games to personalized iPad cases to a whole list of food items (Bacon Hot Sauce, Beano's sandwhich sauce, The Everything Bean Cookbook, etc). Recently I had the chance to review some food products from Giada De Laurentiis's gourmet food line sold at Target. I'm having so much fun with Giada's Pepper & Eggplant Tomato Spread. This sauce is for mixing with your pasta or serving on a baguette but I'm experimenting with it and finding new ways to enjoy it's roasted pepper, tomato and eggplant flavor. My latest invention, these turkey burgers, was a huge hit with my family.  The addition of the sauce added great flavor to the patties, served bun-less alongside rice and vegetables. 

Roasted Tomato Turkey Burgers

1 pound ground turkey

1 1/2 Tablespoons Giada De Laurentiis's Pepper & Eggplant Tomato Spread (sold at Target)

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1/3 cup italian breadcrumbs

1/2 teaspoon garlic pepper

1/2 teaspoon season salt

1 egg

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

Mix all ingredients excluding the ricotta cheese. Form 5 small patties, reserving additional meat mixture. Place a spoonful of ricotta on each patty and top with additional turkey mixture, sealing the ricotta in the center of each patty. Grill 5-7 minutes on each side or until the meat is fully cooked.

*My notes: these are moist patties with the addition of the cheese filling so be careful as you flip them on the grill.

Who Dished it first? this is an original by me on The Dish List

Hamburger Italia, i.e. Lasagna on a Bun

I recently reviewed the George Foreman GRP4B Next Grilleration™ Removable Plate Grill over on Moana Saves. As part of the review I came up with a unique hamburger recipe that my kids like to call: "lasagna on a bun." In an attempt to be a little more classy, I call this "Hamburger Italia!" (Or would "Italiano" make more sense? I don't know.)

Hamburger Italia

1 pound ground beef

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

¾ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

¾ cup fat-free Ricotta cheese

¼ cup Parmesan cheese

3 Tablespoons fresh basil, finely diced

1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, finely diced

2 large tomatoes

7 button mushrooms

In a small bowl combine the Ricotta and Parmesan cheese with the basil and parsley. Mix thoroughly and set aside. Prep the mushrooms and tomatoes by thinly slicing them and setting aside.

Place the ground beef in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add the onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly and form into four ½ inch thick patties, leaving ground beef to spare.  Divide the mozzarella cheese evenly among each patty, placing it in the center. Seal the cheese inside each hamburger patty with the remaining ground beef.  Place the meat on your and cook the burgers for 7-10 minutes or until they reach your desired doneness; remove from the grill. Cover the hamburgers to keep warm while you prepare the rest of the burger.

Grill the mushrooms on your George Foreman by placing them inside, closing the lid for browning.  They should be done in 5 minutes. Next place the tomatoes on the grill and season with salt and pepper. Close the lid and grill for 3-5 minutes, creating a ‘sun-dried tomato’ effect. Carefully remove the tomatoes from the grill and immediately place them on your burgers; they will be delicate to handle. (*Note: You can saute the mushrooms in a frying pan with a little butter if you don't have the grill. For the tomatoes: place them on a foil lined baking sheet with a drizzle of olive oil and a shake of salt & pepper, broiling for 5-10 minutes or until done.)

While the mushrooms sauté and the tomatoes “sun-dry”, spread the ricotta mixture on the bottom side of a Kaiser roll. (This is the heavy half of your finished product and therefore needs to be the bottom half of the roll.) You want a good thick spread of cheese mixture. On the other half of the roll spread butter. Place both in the oven to broil. The buttered half will brown faster so be sure to watch it and remove once it’s brown. The ricotta mixture needs to get browned and slightly crispy on top.

To serve, place the meat and tomato on top of the ricotta mixture and top with the browned mushrooms.

Who Dished it first? This is an original by your's truly; Me!

Notes: The ricotta-covered bun can get soggy. Make sure this is the last thing you do before eating. Also, fresh herbs are a must in my opinion as they add a light and fresh flavor that dried herbs can't duplicate.

Italian Sausage Risotto

I made an Italian Sausage Risotto for dinner and there was happiness in the land! My family loves this recipe! My husband, who was doubtful that risotto could compare to his beloved Asian fried rice, served himself thirds. My kids loved the recipe as evident in this conversation we had after dinner:

Kindergarten-aged Daughter: "Mom, can I have these leftovers in my lunch at school tomorrow?"
Me: "Sorry, no. It has meat and you need a microwave to warm it up to eat it."
Daughter: "Can I have the leftovers when I get home from school as a snack?"

A risotto is a class of Italian dishes of rice cooked in broth to a creamy consistency. To make this more than just a deliciously flavored rice with meat and peas I added some sliced mushrooms and served it alongside a fresh green salad. This will definitely become a favorite meal in our future menu plans.

Italian Sausage Risotto
Recipe courtesy of Once a Month Mom


    * 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
    * 16 ounces Italian Sausage links (like Johnsohnville), sliced
    * 1 cup apple juice
    * 1 cup onion, diced
    * 1 Tablespoon garlic, minced
    * 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
    * 1.25 cups rice
    * 1 cup Chardonnay or dry white wine (can also sub apple juice)
    * 3.5 cups chicken broth
    * 1 cup peas, frozen
    * 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
    * 1/2 cup Romano Cheese, grated

In a large saucepan, cook the sausage in apple juice. When finished cooking, remove from pan and slice. Heat oil in a large stockpot,  add sliced sausage and onion, cooking until browned and softened, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and thyme, cook for one minute longer. (*I added sliced mushrooms at this point as well.) Add wine and rice and stir until the liquid is absorbed. Stir in 3 cups of the chicken broth. Lower the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until broth is absorbed. Add the rest of the chicken broth slowly, stirring until rice is cooked and creamy. Stir in peas and cheeses; cook until heated through. Serve.

Freezing Directions:
Follow all directions above. Allow to cool. Package in freezer containers. To serve: Thaw. Slowly warm on stove top, in slow cooker or in microwave. You may need to add a little chicken broth to bring it back to it’s creamy texture.

*My Notes: I used ground Italian sausage instead of sliced. I cooked the meat in 1 cup apple juice and continued adding the other ingredients without removing the meat from the pan. (I did drain off some of the meat fat which might have drained off my apple juice if it hadn't already evaporated.) I didn't add another cup of apple juice later in the recipe (no wine for us!) but instead just added the broth.

Calzones

We love Italian food in our house. One of my favorite qualities of Italian cooking is the wide range of ingredients that most often are fail-proof. For instance, pizza is so versatile we love to experiment with toppings.

Our new favorite recipe that is bound to be an outlet in our food creativity is calzones. I found this recipe and I love the creaminess of the ricotta, the sausage is delicious and the dough surprisingly light and flavorful. I can't wait until next time I make this to add some mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, and maybe cook it one or two with pepperoni per the kids' request.

Ricotta Calzones with Sausage
Taste and Tell's slight adaptation from The New Best Recipe

DOUGH
4 cups bread flour
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon warm water

RICOTTA FILLING
1 15-ounce container whole-milk ricotta cheese
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 1/2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
8 ounces hot or sweet sausage
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Extra-virgin olive oil for brushing on tops
Kosher salt or coarse sea salt for sprinkling on tops

FOR THE DOUGH: In the bowl of a standing mixer, whisk the flour, yeast, and salt to combine. Attach the bowl, and with mixer running on medium-low speed with the dough hook, add the olive oil, then gradually add the water. Continue to mix until the mixture comes together and a soft, elastic dough is formed - about 10 minutes. Lightly spray a large bowl with cooking spray. Place the dough in the bowl and cover. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled - 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

FOR THE FILLING: In a medium bowl, stir together the cheeses, egg yolk, oregano, salt, and black pepper. Cover and refrigerate until needed.

Remove the casings from the sausage. Cook the sausage in a skillet, breaking it up into 1/2 inch pieces, until it is cooked through. Stir in garlic and red pepper flakes until fragrant, about 10 seconds and remove from heat. Set aside to cool.

TO ASSEMBLE AND BAKE: Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position and set a pizza stone on the rack. Heat the oven to 500 degrees for AT LEAST 30 minutes. Divide the dough in half, and then divide each half into thirds, giving you 6 pieces of dough. Gently shape each piece into a ball and set on a piece of parchment paper that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 15 minutes, but no more than 30 minutes.

Form the calzones by rolling each piece of dough into a 9-inch circle then placing 1/2 cup of the filling on half of the circle and topping with 1/6 of the sausage. Fold the top half of the dough over, leaving a 1/2 inch border uncovered. Lightly press the dough to seal it. Beginning at one end, place your index finger diagonally across the edge and gently pull the bottom layer of the dough over the tip of your finger. Repeat until the calzone is sealed.

With a very sharp paring knife or razor blade, cut 5 slits, about 1 1/2 inches long diagonally across the top of each calzone. Make sure not to cut completely through the calzone, but to just cut through the top layer.

Brush the top of each calzone with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake until golden brown - about 11 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes before serving. While the first batch is baking, prepare the second batch.