Tag Archives: recipes

Springtime in a Bowl – Shrimp, Asparagus and Tomato Pastaa

Posted on May 7, 2024 | Leave a comment

Since it’s truly Springtime here in NY I think about lightening up the menu. Asparagus is so very beautiful this time of year and shrimp is always my go-to. This recipe is a variation on my Summertime Tomato Pasta. I wanted to use some of those beautiful asparagus out there. Even though I knew Joel would pick them out I still made this dish. The asparagus are large enough for him to easily pick out and put on my plate. This dish is light and delicious and pretty quick to prepare. It is like springtime in a bowl!  There are so very many things to do with asparagus but this just appealed to me  and if you leave the shrimp out you have a lovely vegetarian pasta dish and if you leave the pasta out you have a super light dish!   I also used linguine in this recipe because it just seems to hold on to the flavors nicely. Happy Spring and Enjoy.

Ingredients:

1 lb. box linguine ( I used Fini Linguine , it was lighter than regular linguine and was just perfect) but any spaghetti will work here.

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 pint size containers of little grape tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, or any small tomato ( app. 16-20 oz. of tomatoes)  I cut tomatoes in 1/2.

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

* crushed red pepper ( we like the heat) use your own discretion depending on how you like it, totally optional

3 large cloves of garlic, chopped finely

1/2 cup dry white wine ( I use whatever I have open)

1 lb. Asparagus , trimmed, stalks cut on a diagonal into app. 1 1/2 inch pieces

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

fresh basil chopped ( app. 1/2 cup)

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Directions:

Cook the pasta according to box directions.( Fini Linguine cooks in 6 minutes perfectly) scoop out a little pasta water after cooking about 1/2 cup to 1 cup and keep it handy if pasta is too dry, you can add water to it a little bit at a time.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the tomatoes, app.  1/4 teaspoon kosher salt and app. 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes are soft , it takes at least 5 minutes . You want the tomatoes to start to burst so they make a delicious sauce.  Add the crushed red pepper and garlic. Cook for another few minutes ( don’t burn the garlic)keep on low heat and stir around. Add the wine and the asparagus. Bring to a low boil and simmer for at least 5 minutes . Taste for Salt and Pepper, if it needs more this is when I would add it, and I did. I added a bit more salt here, pepper was fine. You need to use your own discretion about the salt .

Sprinkle shrimp in a bowl with a little salt and pepper. Add the shrimp to the pan and continue to simmer until the shrimp is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Shrimp needs to be firm to the touch, and opaque if cut into. Stir in the chopped basil and the oregano.

Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss well to combine.  You can always add more crushed red pepper when finished.

This was really delicious and light. Joel of course picked out every piece of asparagus, and put them in my bowl. That was fine with me because I love asparagus.

*this dish will easily serve 4, if you like you can always add another 1/2 lb. of shrimp for 4 people.

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Chicken Meatballs

Posted on May 3, 2024 | Leave a comment

I made these delicious meatballs last Sunday night and they are from my Italian Wedding Soup recipe. I served with my Sunday Night Sauce ( Marinara) and Spaghetti. These are delicious, moist meatballs that I bake in the oven. I don’t fry these . I highly recommend these for pasta and of course in soup!

Perfect Meatballs and Spaghetti but made with Chicken and Sausage . If you can find Chicken Sausage use it and if you can find ground chicken made with dark meat I would recommend using that. I couldn’t find dark meat ground chicken so used what I could find and I used Hot Spicy Pork Sausage because I couldn’t find Chicken Sausage here in Colorado.

This is how I make my Chicken Meatballs. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 lb. Ground chicken — I prefer ground chicken to ground turkey but you can use it as well. Again if you can get ground dark meat chicken use that.

1/2 lb. Chicken Sausage, or Pork Sausage and you can use Sweet or Hot

3 slices Bread for Bread Crumbs — using the food processor I remove crusts and using steel blade make crumbs — app. 1 cup you can use whole wheat bread or white bread — whatever you have in the house — of course you can use regular Italian Flavored Bread Crumbs but I find the bread crumbs that you buy are a little dryer than the fresh bread crumbs. I also would substitute Panko bread crumbs which work out well.

2 -3 Garlic Cloves – minced app. 2 teaspoons

1/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese

3 Tablespoons Milk — I have 2% and it’s fine so whatever you have in the house

1 Egg – lightly beaten

1 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper ( coarse black pepper)

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

I use Silicone liners for baking sheet but if you don’t own these absolutely fantastic Silpat liners use parchment paper or just use cooking spray, or parchment paper or aluminum foil.

Place all ingredients for meatballs in a large bowl and mix till just mixed with a fork or your “clean” hands. I use a teaspoon as a guide and made 1- 11/2″ balls. Don’t over mix and when you make the balls don’t pack super tight. Just loosely roll balls with wet hands. Place onto cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes, until cooked through and lightly browned. Set aside and add to your Sunday Night Sauce or whatever sauce you’re making and place in sauce before you’re ready to eat and heat through.

That’s it! Enjoy!

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Easy Israeli Salad

Posted on April 30, 2024 | Leave a comment

This salad is so delicious and fresh and works so well with grilled chicken, fish or really any protein.

I just love it for lunch or dinner and it’s so easy that anyone can do it. Add in feta cheese, olives, or canned chick peas to add to this wonderful deliciousness.

Whatever and whenever you decide to serve this it will be most wonderful.

Just a word about making ahead… I chopped and diced all the vegetables and put in a bowl and put in the fridge. I juiced my lemon and had it set aside. Right before serving I added olive oil and lemon juice stirred it up well and tasted for salt and pepper.

If you add oil and lemon juice too soon it will be very soggy and I don’t like it that way at all. So just have it all ready to serve and add dressing right before.

Ingredients;

this is what I used feel free to substitute or add in whatever you’d like. ( Canned Chick Peas are also delicious in this) Olives, Scallions, Feta Cheese, whatever you feel like.

1 Large Seedless Cucumber or remove the seeds from a seeded one or just keep the seeds if you don’t care

1 box grape tomatoes halved

1 yellow pepper, diced or an orange one. I used orange and yellow about 1/2 and 1/2

1/2 cup diced red onion

2 Tbsp. Fresh Parsley , chopped

3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice

2-3 Tablespoons Olive Oil– I used 3 but you can start with 2 add the salt and pepper and add for more flavor after

Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Directions:

In a large bowl, toss together all the vegetables. Add the lemon juice, olive oil and chopped parsley and mix thoroughly to coat.

Season with Salt and Pepper to your liking. Serve cold or at room temperature. I like it cold but it’s delicious either way.

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Green Goddess Salad

Posted on April 27, 2024 | Leave a comment

I first came upon this recipe from Melissa Benishay on Instagram . It is simple , delicious and nutritious. I make it my way which means I pretty much follow her recipe but add chicken, chopped bacon (sometimes), feta, scallions and cucumbers. I also will add chopped up jalapeños for a spicy kick and avocado would be perfect as well. You can make this completely vegan of course but I just like to zuzh it up a bit. Add whatever you like and make it your way. Enjoy!

The ingredients are interesting and you may need to buy a few of these items. For the dressing

Lemons — which give it the fresh taste and the acid it requires

Olive Oil– for the good Fat

Rice Vinegar– a bit of sweet flavor and tang

Shallot– for the sweeter onion flavor

Garlic– because it’s garlic– need I say more

Basil–for that pesto like consistency and flavor

Spinach– for extra nutrients and a lot of green color and don’t tell my hub

Nutritional Yeast– I know I know why???? Because it adds cheesy like consistency and B12 vitamins –it’s kind of like powdered cheese and full of flavor but vegan and has now become a shelf staple in my house for vegan cheese sauces, vegan dips, soups, scrambles, stews and you get the drill.It’s super nutritious and full of protein, B Vitamins, and anti-oxidents.

Walnuts– a nutty base

Salt– to pull it all together and highlight all the layers of flavors and way to bland with no salt

*you’ll need a blender for this one

You can make the dressing ahead like I do in the morning or the day before and it will keep in the fridge for 2-3 maybe 4 days.

Salad Dressing Ingredients:

juice of 2 lemons

1/4 cup olive oil

2 Tbsp. Rice Vinegar

2 largish cloves of garlic

1 smallish shallot

1/3 cup chives

1/4 cup walnuts, cashews, or nut of your choice — I always have chopped walnuts so that’s my nut of choice

1 cup fresh torn Basil Leaves

1/3 cup Nutritional Yeast– I got mine at Trader Joes but you can get this in almost any supermarket

1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt

For the Salad:

I like 1 head ofIceberg Lettuce chopped up and finely diced or you can use a head of green cabbage

3-4 mini cucumbers finely diced–optional see above paragraph on ingredients

1/4 cup chives, finely diced — also optional I used green onions/scallions tonight — use what you have even red onion diced is fine

1 bundle green onions / scallions

Directions:

Place all salad ingredients in a large bowl once they’re chopped up

Add all liquid dressing ingredients to a blender give it a whirl, and then add dry dressing ingredients and blend until smooth.

Yummmmmmmm and Thank You to Melissa Benishay or Baked by Melissa as most of you know

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Judy’s Apple Matzoh Kugel for Passover

Posted on April 16, 2024 | Leave a comment

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If you ask me, kugels are the best part of Passover. Put together in a casserole dish these sweet and savory dishes are my absolute favorite dish on the Seder table.  It was always about the kugel with me from the time I was a kid. This is an awesome recipe from a family friend which came to me via Karyn, so thanks Judy and thanks again Karyn. I used to make this recipe all the time and over the years I replaced it with something else and completely forgot about till another friend asked me for the recipe. Karyn came to the rescue. This is a delicious sweet addition to the table and if I remember correctly everyone loved it. It is easy and not too many ingredients and hardly any steps at all. Enjoy!

Plan ahead:

Kugels can be made a day or two ahead. On the day of the serving, allow the dish to come to room temperature. Then heat it, covered in a preheated 350 degree oven until warm, 30 – 40 minutes. My experience has always been that the kugels hold together better when they are pre-made.

Ingredients:

12 sheets matzoh

9 eggs beaten, use eggs at room temperature

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

6 large apples, peeled and sliced (any kind will do)

3/4 cup vegetable oil

3 Tsp. cinnamon

1 1/2 cups white raisins

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Break matzoh into colander and run warm water over it, just to soften, then drain and put in a large bowl. Add beaten eggs, add salt , sugar , apples, oil, cinnamon and raisins and pour into a pre-greased ( or cooking sprayed) baking dish . Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 50 minutes. Enjoy!

*first time baking it keep it uncovered, when you re-heat you will cover it so it doesn’t dry out.

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Un-Stuffed Cabbage

Posted on April 14, 2024 | Leave a comment

photo 3 (4)photo 2 (2)photo 3 (4)photo 3 (5)photo 4 (3)photo 2I love stuffed cabbage and my Grandmother made the most amazing stuffed cabbage ever . I love stuffed cabbage but do not feel like dealing with the actual stuffing of the cabbage, it is way too labor intensive for me.  I have made several variations of this and found this one to my liking the best. You can play with the ingredients which is what I did . Original recipe is from Kosher by Design and it is perfect for Passover by just leaving out the rice and substituting matzoh meal in its place. Most perfect for Rosh Hashana and use rice.  Basically this is meatballs in a sweet and sour sauce with cabbage . I doubt very much that Joel would ever eat real “stuffed cabbage” but he liked this. The cabbage cooks down so much that you don’t even realize you’re eating cabbage. I also used 1/2 chicken ground meat and 1/2 beef ground meat , this is entirely up to you. I wouldn’t do all chicken because it might be a bit dry, you can definitely make this with turkey but use dark meat turkey or the balls will also be very dry. You can also make this ahead for the holidays which is always a very good thing and feel free to freeze it.  This is the original recipe adjust amounts for how much you’re making – this recipe is for 3 lbs. if you’re making for less people and only use 2 lbs. of meat you can cut ingredients accordingly.  You’ll want to use a large pot for this recipe. Enjoy!

*for passover substitute matzoh meal for rice

Follow me on Instagram @cookingwithcandi

Ingredients:

Meat

3 lbs. ground meat– I used chicken and beef (dark meat turkey is best here) white meat turkey tends to be very dry. Mixed with beef it’s fine but if using alone you’ll need to use dark meat ground turkey.

2 large eggs, lightly beaten. Use room temperature eggs they work best.*see my post about eggs–a little note on my blog.

3/4 cup uncooked long grain white rice, for Passover use matzoh meal and omit the rice – for Passover if you observe use 1/2 cup Matzoh Meal

1/4 cup water

1 onion finely chopped

Kosher Salt to taste–app. 1/2 to 1 tablespoon

Pepper to taste–app. 10 grinds on a pepper mill, or app. 1/4 of a tablespoon

*garlic powder if you like

Sauce:

2 packages of shredded cabbage, probably about 1 head of cabbage finely shredded, no need to do it when you can buy it pre-shredded (not red cabbage)

1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil

Kosher Salt to taste ( app. 1/2 tablespoon)

1 1/2 tablespoons Kosher Salt

1 1/2 cups tomato juice

4 8 ounce cans tomato sauce ( or 32 ounces)

1/2 cup brown sugar ( use whichever brown sugar you have in house , it won’t make a difference. Light or Dark, I actually used dark.

1 cup sugar

3 lemons squeezed , I got about 1/2 cup , they were smallish lemons

1/2 cup raisins

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl combine the meat, eggs, water, rice and onions. Season with Salt and Pepper , and if you like garlic powder. Gently mix by hand, and I do mean gently, if you over do it the meat will be like concrete. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the shredded cabbage and about 1/2 tablespoon of kosher salt. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the tomato juice, tomato sauce, brown sugar, sugar, lemon juice and the raisins. Stir till well combined and continue cooking sauce at simmer setting.

Gently form meatballs out of the meat mixture, I made a rather nice size meatball, not too large and not too small. Make whatever size you’d like. Just do not over-handle the meat because it will cause meat to toughen. Add to cabbage mixture, just drop into the hot sauce and do not stir, you can pile them on top of one another because they will cook down.

I left it to simmer for about 1 1/2 hours . I didn’t touch the meat balls for at least the first 1/2 hour, you’ll want them to cook through and form into nice balls before you stir, so just leave them to cook. After the first 1/2 hour or so you can gently stir and move the meatballs around. They don’t require a lot of stirring around .

This dish brought back memories of my childhood and was a most satisfying main dish.

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Homemade Chicken Soup with Not-So-Homemade Matzo Balls

Posted on April 11, 2024 | Leave a comment

IMG_4514I always make my own chicken soup. It is delicious broth. I usually make a few batches and freeze them because it’s a great thing to have frozen in quart containers as stock and will last for up to six months frozen. When the holidays come—whether Rosh Hashanah or Passover—I always make my chicken soup with matzo balls. I make the soup a day ahead and skim whatever fat is on there before adding my matzo balls. Keep reading for my “secret matzo ball recipe”.

INGREDIENTS: CHICKEN STOCK:

1 5lb. organic roasting chicken (I throw away the insides)

1 package of chicken wings (this was suggested to me a long time ago by my BFF Karyn and she was oh so right. It adds some fat, which translates into a lot of flavor and you will skim off the fat the next day. Thanks, Karyn…yes, I remembered!)

1 large, yellow Spanish onion; unpeeled and quartered

A big bunch of dill

4 celery stalks with leaves, cut into thirds

4 carrots, unpeeled and halved

Bunch of flat-leaf parsley (Use this only if you want. This time, I didn’t have it so I used only the dill.)

A bunch of thyme (if you wish)

1 head of garlic, cut in half cross-wise (skin and all)

2 tbsp. kosher salt

2 tsp. whole black peppercorns

DIRECTIONS FOR SOUP:

I place the chicken, chicken wings, onion, carrots, celery, whatever herbs I’m using, garlic, salt and pepper in as large a  pot as I can find (usually about a 16-20 qt. stockpot.) Add cold water to cover chicken by at least 2 inches above the chicken but not to the top of the pot because it will boil over (very messy). Bring to a boil and then simmer, uncovered, for about 3 hours. I skim the soup skum (sounds lovely) off for the first half hour or so—after that, you shouldn’t have much more. I remove the chicken from the broth after an hour or so, because it is cooked and it will taste like a rubber chicken if you plan on eating it. Sometimes, I like to shred it and return it to the soup. If you are not using the chicken (what a waste of good chicken), just leave it in. It will fall apart in there. I leave the wings and discard them at the end of the 3 hours. Next, I strain all of the soup, discard all remnants, fill my containers and put in the fridge. The next day (or the day of the holiday), I usually skim off the fat that has risen to the top and make my matzo balls (recipe below).

MATZO BALLS:

This has always been my secret, but now it’s out. Okay, I own it. After years of making matzo balls from scratch, my mother (yes, my mother, the cook) turned me on to Manischewitz boxed matzo ball mix! It just wasn’t worth it. My balls weren’t as consistent as I would have liked, whereas these are always perfection! Light and fluffy and everyone always loves them. No sinkers here!

I follow the directions on the box carefully. They sell just the mix box. You will need vegetable oil and 2 eggs per box. I do add a little piece of dill inside each ball, but that’s it! Now my secret is out. Sometimes this is really the only way to go. It saves time and ingredients and is really good. No MSG or trans-fats either! So make the soup, cheat with the balls, and enjoy. There is no substitute for homemade chicken soup, though.

*You can also add thin soup noodles to this recipe, if you like. (obviously not on Passover)

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Skillet Chicken with Lemons and Onions a la Ina Garten

Posted on April 5, 2024 | Leave a comment

I absolutely love this recipe and I must admit to making a few small changes but if you want to see her original recipe you can google it. You’ll have to buy a chicken some place that will be able to spatchcock it (butterfly it)– Whole Foods butcher will do this as well as your local butcher. Then when you get home and are ready to cook with it just press down on the chicken and sort of flatten it out. You’ll also need a cast iron pan large enough to hold it. I used a 12″ size pan and it was perfect. Believe me this is one of the most satisfying meals I can think of. Serve with whatever sides you like — we had homemade cranberry sauce , rice pilaf and roasted string beans. Perfection on a plate. Ina Garten has created some of the best recipes for home cooks today. The ingredients are all accessible and the presentation is beautiful and the food is delicious. This particular way of roasting a chicken is particularly delicious. This is what I did the other night and it was nothing short of fabulous.

Enjoy and thanks again to Ina Garten.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds

Kosher Salt and Freshly ground coarse black pepper

1 Lemon — sliced 1/4″ thick slices

2 large garlic cloves, minced she says thinly sliced but I prefer to mince

1 yellow onion, halved and sliced 1/4 ” thick

1/3 cup good olive oil

1 app. 4 lb. chicken, backbone removed and butterflied ( spatchcocked)

1/2 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio

Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees

Place the thyme, fennel seeds, 1 Tablespoon Kosher Salt and 1 Teaspoon pepper in a mini food processor and process until ground.

Pour the olive oil into a small glass measuring cup and add the herb mixture and set aside

Distribute the lemon slices on bottom of 12″ cast iron skillet and distribute the onion and minced garlic on top of the lemon slices.

Place the chicken on a separate baking sheet and pat it dry then turn the chicken skin side down and using a brush add about 1/2 the olive mixture to chicken. Turn the chicken skin side up, make sure it’s dry using paper towels ( very important for crispy skin) and brush remaining mixture all over the top of the chicken. Place chicken on top of the onions and lemons skin side up.

Roast the chicken for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and pour the wine into the pan but not on the chicken just into the area that’s open around the chicken. Roast for another 10-15 minutes until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers 155-160 degrees.

Remove the chicken from the oven and sprinkle with the lemon juice, cover the skillet tightly with aluminum foil and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes. Cut the chicken into quarters or however you like and serve hot with pan juices, cooked lemon and onions. I spoon some of the juice onto the top of chicken before serving.

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Sheet-Pan Chicken Thighs with Spicy Corn

Posted on March 26, 2024 | Leave a comment

I saw this delicious recipe in the NYTimes Cooking Section by Melissa Clark and since I almost always consider her recipes to be winners I tried it. This is what I did and please feel free to check out the original recipe .

It’s slightly spicy and the corn gets a little roasted in the sheet pan alongside the chicken thighs and it’s simple and very tasty.

Very delicious and I served hot out of the oven but it was pretty delicious as a cold leftover the next day served on a bed of lettuce with some avocado .

This is what I did. Enjoy! http://www.nytimescooking.com

Ingredients:

2 lbs. boneless, skinless, chicken thighs

1 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt

2 Tablespoons Mayonnaise

1/4 cup finely chopped basil plus more for garnish if you like

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/3 cup chopped pickled jalapeños, plus brine from the jar

4 cups fresh or frozen corn (app. 4 ears of corn if you’re buying fresh corn) I used frozen

3 Tablespoons Olive Oil, plus a little more for drizzling

4 scallions, thinly sliced

1 lime halved

Directions:

Pat dry the chicken thighs, season the chicken thighs all over with salt. In a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, basil, garlic and 2 Tablespoons of jalapeño brine. Add the chicken to the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour and up to 8 hours overnight.

Heat oven to 425 degrees. In a medium bowl, toss together corn, pickled jalapeños, olive oil, remaining 1 teaspoon kosher salt and half of the scallions. (save remaining scallions for serving)

Arrange the chicken on a sprayed baking sheet, spacing it out, roast for 12 minutes. Spoon the corn mixture onto the empty parts of the baking sheet. Drizzle chicken with a little oil. Continue to roast until the chicken is cooked through, 10-15 minutes longer, and give the corn a little stir once while roasting somewhere in the middle.

Turn the broiler on high and broil the chicken and corn until golden brown in spots, about 2-4 minutes and watch carefully so it doesn’t burn, though a little blistering is nice on both corn and chicken.

garnish chicken with basil, remaining scallions and you can squeeze some fresh lime juice over this. Serve hot or at room temperature.

This would be a perfect summer dish served at room temperature outside for lunch or dinner.

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Sheet Pan Asian Style Chicken Meatballs and Burnt Broccoli —

Posted on March 24, 2024 | Leave a comment

This was a delicious twist on chicken meatballs. The meatballs were so amazingly moist and tasty and I served over Jasmine Rice and it was just perfect. The original recipe is from Bon Appetit and I took a few liberties with it. We like spicy food so I used some Sriracha along with the ketchup — you can make this as spicy as you like or not spicy at all depending on how much or how little Sriracha you use or use none at all. If you’re in the mood for something a little different this one’s for you. We just love meatballs and we’ll eat them any which way. Have fun with this one. And you all know that my husband absolutely still refuses to eat broccoli so it was his loss because it was delicious.

*a little note I use my mini chopper to chop ginger and garlic and I use it for onions as well . It gets it finely minced. If you don’t have one of these mini choppers I highly recommend it’s use to get garlic, ginger and onions and other vegetables finely grated when recipe calls for that.

Enjoy!

Ingredients: Sauce

2/3 cup Ketchup — I decreased the ketchup and added about 1/3 Sriracha – and it was very spicy but we like very spicy . So please either keep it 2/3 of ketchup for totally not spicy or decrease a little ketchup and add a little Sriracha.

1/4 cup Worcestershire Sauce

2 Tbsp. Water

2 Tbsp. Honey

4 tsp. Soy Sauce

1/2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely grated

1 garlic clove — finely grated — see note above about finely grating

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients: Meatballs and Broccoli

app. 1 lb. of Broccoli — you just want florets so if you’re starting with a head of broccoli you’ll have to trim and cut etc. I just bought a 1 lb. package of broccoli florets available in most grocery stores these days. ( not frozen)

2 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil divided — 1 for broccoli and 1 for Meatballs

2 1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt divided — 1 1/2 for Broccoli and 1 for Meatballs

* a pinch of Crushed red Pepper which is also optional

1 lb. ground chicken– I try to use 85/15 chicken the 90/10 tends to be very dry and really the best is ground dark meat if you can find it

1 large egg beaten to blend

4 scallions , thinly sliced

2 garlic cloved, finely grated

1 ” small piece of ginger , finely grated

1/3 cup Panko ( Japanese Breadcrumbs)

1 Tbsp. Sesame Oil — I use regular Sesame Oil but you can use Toasted as well

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Rice for Serving any kind you like , I used Jasmine this time but any kind will do

Directions:

Mix ketchup, Sriracha ( if you’re using) , Worcestershire Sauce, water, honey, soy sauce, grated ginger, and pepper in a small saucepan. I measured out about 1/4 cup mixture into a small bowl for glazing meatballs, later. Bring remaining mixture to a simmer over medium high heat stirring occasionally and reducing heat if necessary, let sauce thicken , about 5 minutes. Transfer sauce to a small bowl or leave in pan and remove from heat.

Meatball and Broccoli Assembly:

Place a rack in upper third of the oven; pre-heat to 450 degrees. I sprayed a sheet pan with cooking spray and lined it with aluminum foil. In a separate bowl I tossed florets with 1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil, 1 1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt, and a few pinches of crushed red pepper ( optional) I brushed the sheet pan with the remaining 1 Tbsp. of Vegetable Oil and then placed broccoli florets on the edges of the baking sheet to create space for my meatballs.

Mix chicken, egg, scallions, garlic, ginger, panko, sesame oil, pepper , 1 1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt, and 4 Tbsp. Water in a medium bowl and mixed all ingredients together till just combined — don’t overmix

Using wet hands form into 12 meatballs — Probably 2 inches apiece though I didn’t measure but I got 12 beautiful sized meatballs. Arrange on baking sheet; brush with some of the reserved glaze ( 1/4 cup) ( see photo) Bake until meatballs are cooked through, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven; heat broiler. Brush meatballs again with glazing mixture; broil until broccoli is charred and meatballs are browned in spots, app. 5 minutes but keep an eye on them. At the end of 5 minutes if you’re meatballs look ready but your broccoli isn’t charred enough, remove meatballs and continue to broil broccoli till it’s charred enough.

Spoon meatballs and broccoli over rice in a bowl. Drizzle with sauce and there you go!

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