Mini Bacon-Wrapped Turkey Meatloaves

I love this recipe because it's naturally divided into portions! It's very easy to make and I usually switch things up every time I make it.  The only constant ingredients I use are ground turkey, bacon, an egg, salt and pepper.  I usually add some sort of pepper and onions if I have them.  Then add whatever spices I'm into that week.  Sometimes I'll add a bit of cayenne pepper, sometimes a little curry. This week I also added a bit of finely chopped jalapeno to give it a little extra kick.  

Ingredients: 
1 pound ground turkey
1 egg
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 pieces of bacon
salt and pepper to taste

Other possible ingredients:
half a green pepper, diced
a quarter of a onion, cided
minced jalapeno
cayenne pepper
curry powder
other spices

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

1) Stir all ingredients together, except for bacon.  Add any desired spices.

2) Get out bacon, and wrap each strip around the inside of a cupcake tin. 

3) Stuff bacon shells with ground turkey mixture.  Stuff a good amount into each, but don't pile it too high- the juices will run and may roll of the edges of the pan into the oven.  (Not that this has ever happened to me..)

4) Cook for 30 minutes in the oven.  After 30 minutes, remove the meatloaves using a set of tongs.  I like to put mine on a baking sheet and cook them for an additional 10 minutes to get the outside a little crispy.  After they're all cooked, they're ready to be packed up for meals throughout the week!

Fresh Tomato Sauce

I'm finally posting a recipe from one of my (Okay, not really "one of"... it's my favorite) cooking blogs!  I adore Smitten Kitchen.  She's my blogging idol, to be frank.  So I couldn't pass up the opportunity to use one of her recipes when I found myself with 5 lbs of tomatoes, due to a plentiful harvest from my garden! Since she has everything outlined pretty clearly on her website, I won't do a play-by-play here. 

Here's the link: 

http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2010/08/fresh-tomato-sauce/

First, I washed the tomatoes and sliced x's on the bottom to make for easier peeling.  

Next, I blanched each tomato for 10-30 seconds, then shocked under cold running water immediately after.  After shocking the tomatoes, they were very easy to peel.  

Next, I finely chopped my carrot, celery, onion and garlic.  

After chopping the veggies, I cooked them in the 1/4 cup EVOO for approximately 10 minutes.  This is one of my favorite parts.  The aroma of the veggies cooking is just wonderful! 

Last, I added the tomatoes to the mix.  While cooking, I used a potato masher to break down the chunks a bit.  I'm not a huge fan of super chunky sauce.  I also added ground beef afterwards to make it into a meat sauce.  I usually prefer a meat sauce so there's a source of protein in the meal, but the recipe tastes amazing either way.  

I was especially thrilled to make tomato sauce because the tomatoes were all fresh from our garden.  Our hard work has finally paid off!  Anyone could of course, tweak the recipe to their desire, adding spice or peppers, or going in a sweeter direction.  The options are endless. 

Again, look at her blog for details- I gave a general description here, but the recipe is outlined in detail on the blog.  

Spaghetti (Squash) and Meat Sauce

I feel like spaghetti squash has become a new "it" food.  It's a popular replacement for pasta and loaded with healthy nutrients... who wouldn't love it? As with my last post, I can't take credit for this recipe, but I do like to put my own spin on it by adding fresh veggies (from the local farmers market!) and different spices or sauce.  

Ingredients: 
1  Medium-large sized spaghetti squash
23.5 oz bottle marinara of your choice (I used Wegman's 'Italian Classics - Grandpa's Favorite')
1 Lb ground beef (I used cage-free, antibiotic-free meat from TLV Tree Farms in Glenelg, MD) 
1 Tbsp Olive oil
Salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

"Optional" Ingredients (although highly recommended...) 
1/4 C. sliced green pepper
1/4 C. sliced red bell pepper
2 Tbsp diced celery
2 Tbsp diced carrots
1 Clove garlic, chopped
2 Tbsp Olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  

1) Start by slicing your spaghetti squash in half, (longways) then sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder.  Then place both halves of the squash in a glass baking dish, inside facing down.  Fill the baking dish with 1/4 inch of water, then bake in the oven for approximately 40 minutes.  

The great thing about this recipe is that while the squash are baking, you can take care of the meats and veggies.  Your meal should be ready by the time the squash finishes and cools down a bit.  

2) Heat a non-stick frying pan at medium heat, for the ground beef.  Also heat an additional saucepan or dutch oven (I prefer the Le Creuset dutch oven for this step!) for the veggies.  Coat the frying pan with 1 Tbsp Olive oil, and the dutch oven with 2 Tbsp Olive oil.  

3) Prepare the peppers, onions, carrots, celery and garlic.  

4) When heated, cook the ground beef thoroughly, seasoning with salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste.  

5) Add the peppers and onions to the dutch oven.  Cover and let cook for for 5 minutes, until slightly wilted.  
6) Add the celery, carrots and garlic to the peppers and onions.  Let cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.  

7) At this point, the cooked ground beef and marinara sauce are added to the veggies.  I usually tone down the heat slightly, and let the sauce marinate and the flavors come together.  I allow my sauce to continue cooking on low heat until my squash is ready.  

8) After removing the squash from the oven, it will require a few minutes to cool.  (Doh?) 

9) Use a fork to scrape the squash from the shells. Top with sauce and your meal is ready!

This recipe is so versatile, healthy and delicious!  Unless you're not a spaghetti squash fan.  It certainly doesn't replace the taste or texture of pasta, so if you're looking for a healthier option, I'd suggest trying  gluten free or rice noodles.  

Note: This is definitely a paleo-inspired dish, although I "cheated" a little, by using a pre-made sauce.  (But hey- the label said it was organic, so it has to be better for me...)  

Sweet Potato, Apple & Bacon Breakfast Hash

Welcome to my first post! First of all, I cannot take credit for this recipe- I heard of it from John's brother, who's a strict (err... stricter than I) paleo eater. (is there a term for that? paleo-eater?) Decided to give it a shot, and now it's a regular component of my breakfast. This recipe is enough for me to get through the week, however, I do usually supplement with a banana, nuts or something else.

Ingredients: 
2 Large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed to 1/2 inch pieces 
1 Apple, cubed to 1/2 inch pieces (I've been using Jazz, but previously used Honeycrisp) 
5 Strips uncured bacon 
~1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (I don't really measure) 
Dash of salt 

*Note: If you'd prefer more apple in your hash, you can use two apples and have a more equal sweet potato-apple ratio. 

1) Set oven to 350 degrees while prepping sweet potatoes. Put sweet potatoes on a baking sheet, with bacon spread out across the top. I do this to avoid using a different oil for the potatoes. If you don't want to use the fat from the bacon for the potatoes, coconut oil can be substituted and the bacon cooked separately.

2) After about 10 minutes in the oven with the sweet potatoes, take the bacon out and finish cooking it on a seperate sheet. I prefer doing this so there's not TOO much bacon grease in the recipe. Also make sure to stir the sweet potatoes so they're thoroughly coated and will not stick to the pan. 

3) Remove the bacon from the oven once cooked, and set aside for a few minutes. Once cooled, slice into 1/2 inch pieces.

4) Let sweet potatoes cook an additional 20 minutes alone. 

5) Add cubed apples and cook for an additional 10 minutes. I like to add the chopped bacon back in at this time so all the flavors can meld together.

6) Pull out and let cool before covering and placing the the fridge. Alas, breakfast for the week!

P.S - Please excuse the low picture quality! I decided to whip up this post on a whim and took the pictures on my phone. Hopefully the pictures will have better quality in the future.