Turkey Schnitzel

see, doesn't it look better on white?!

I was in the checkout line at Trader Joe's today and the gentleman next to me was telling the clerk that he only came in for one thing but left with a basket full of God knows what... I immediately replied and told him that Target is the exact same way. But then I began to think; to me, Crate & Barrel and Sur La Table are equally, if not more, dangerous. On Sunday, my mom needed plain white dinner plates. Well, after about 30 minutes in Crate & Barrel, we left with 8 dinner plates, 8 restaurant pasta bowls, 3 large serving bowls, and 4 ice cream dishes. In my personal opinion, everything looks better served on white so it just gave me more ammo to cook a great Sunday night dinner. On the menu was turkey schnitzel and spaghetti. What's different about schnitzel versus milanese is that milanese adds parmesan to the crust while schnitzel is simply bread crumbs and seasonings (it's Kosher, generally). You can certainly add a little bit of parmesan for extra flavor. Either way, it's fried and delicious. 

What you'll need:

6 slices turkey breasts

1 cup panko bread crumbs (they fry much better and are super crunchy)

1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs

1 tsp. herbs de Provence 

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

2 eggs

1/2 cup flour

vegetable oil (for frying)

1. Set up a dredging station: one bowl flour, one bowl eggs (whisked!), last bowl salt, pepper, herbs de Provence, bread crumbs, and panko. Dip your turkey in the flour, shake off excess, then eggs, and finally bread crumbs. 

2. Heat the oil in the pan on medium-high heat and fry the turkey until golden brown on both sides (about 2 minutes). Lay on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Serve over your favorite pasta, along with some garlic bread.

enjoy :)

Herbed Garlic Bread

Daniel is out of town for the week so I spent the weekend hanging out at my mom's house. I was pleasantly surprised to find that i had 27 episodes of Barefoot Contessa recorded. Needless to say, all I wanted to do was cook today so that's exactly what I did. For dinner we had spaghetti with turkey schnitzel and this AMAZING herbed garlic bread I saw my dear Ina make. I HATE HATE HATE parsley but this dish required it (ughhh). It was... SO DELICIOUS!!!!! I did have to make some changes from the original recipe because I'm not a fan at all of fresh oregano (sometimes it's just TOO strong) but nonetheless, it was just divine. Serve along side your favorite spaghetti and meat ball and enjoy! Oh, and if you're looking to save some for tomorrow for leftovers, good luck with that.

What you'll need:

5 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup flat leaf Italian parsley
1/4 cup fresh basil
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbs. unsalted butter
1 ciabatta loaf

1. Preheat your oven to 375*. In a medium sauce pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Slice the ciabatta horizontally and set aside on a baking sheet.
2. Meanwhile, while the oil is heating up, chop the garlic until it is finely chopped in a food processor. Add the parsley, basil, salt, and pepper and chop until well blended.
3. Sauté the herb mixture in the oil for one minute, then spoon the herbs using a slotted spoon (try not to get the olive oil on the bread or else it'll get soggy) onto one half of the bread. On the other half, spread the butter.
4. Wrap in foil and bake for 15 minutes in the oven. Remove the foil and bake for another 5 minutes. Serve immediately!

enjoy :)

Copycat In-N-Out Spread

In case you've been living under a rock for the past 60 something years, In-N-Out burger is just about the best burger in the entire world (or west coast) according to moi. Their food is fresh and the menu is small (unless you are hip to the "secret menu"). The best thing that they have there is the special spread. Usually I ask for about 10-15 extra packets so I can take them home and have them on hand. Well tonight was a sad night because I was completely out. I made my own version of it and it was really pretty good! Top it on a burger or serve it alongside fries or onion rings (or both!!!) and you have a great copycat recipe that In-N-Out itself will be very proud of.

What you'll need:

1/4 cup mayo
2 tbs. ketchup
2 tbs. sweet relish
1 tsp. white vinegar

1. Mix all ingredients. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes so the flavors come together.

enjoy :)

Burrata with Tomatoes Sautéed in White Wine

I saw this recipe on Pinterest a few weeks ago and I've basically been staring at the recipe ever since. Last week I decided it was a good idea to try it, even though Daniel and I don't like tomatoes and Emily (my roommate) doesn't like cooked tomatoes. However, we all are mildly obsessed with cheese, and burrata is so simple and soft that I couldn't help but buy an unnecessary tub of it at an Italian market for $10. Well I am happy to report that 3/3 of us liked it! The key was drizzling a balsamic glaze at the very end that added an extra sweetness that balanced out the tanginess of the garlic and tomatoes. This is a great appetizer to make next time you have company over, or it works great with a side salad as a light summer dinner.

What you'll need:

3 roma tomatoes, diced

1/4 (maybe a little more) cup white wine

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbs. chopped basil 

1 tbs. olive oil

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 baguette, sliced and toasted

1. Mince your garlic and chop your tomatoes (not too small or it'll get mushy!)

 

2. Heat your oil over medium heat and sauté the garlic for about 30 seconds just to flavor the oil (do NOT let it burn!). Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, and wine. Let it cook for about 10 minutes, until the wine reduces by about half.

notice I chopped my tomatoes too small so I had to dice and add more

3. Slice your baguette and stick under the broiler for just a minute until it is toasted. Flip and repeat (again, do NOT let it burn!)

4. Pour the tomatoes over the burrata and drizzle with a balsamic glaze (Trader's has!) and garnish with fresh basil.

enjoy :)

Oven Fried Chicken

When I flip through my weekly gossip mags (don't judge me) I always love the section where they interview a particular celeb and they share what their favorite foods are and if they have to chose a last meal what it is. Nine times out of 10 it's fried chicken. Quick show of hands who likes fried chicken? That's right, EVERYONE loves fried chicken. We don't have a deep frier and I really didn't want to use buckets of oil to fry the chicken in so I found this amazing recipe from the Chobani website for oven friend chicken that marinates in non-fat GREEK YOGURT! Oh the tang! No buttermilk, no butter, no oil. It was amazing.  You can marinate the chicken from 30 minutes to 12 hours so this is a great quick weeknight meal that I promise promise promise your whole family will love!

What you'll need:

1 whole chicken, cut into pieces

1 cup non-fat Greek yogurt

1 tbs. dijon mustard

3 cloves garlic, minced FINELY

1 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. baking powder

1. Mix together the yogurt, mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper in a very large bowl. Toss the chicken in the bowl, making sure every piece is very well coated with the yogurt mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 12 hours.

2. Preheat your oven to 425*. Line a baking sheet with foil and lay a wire rack over the top of it (you NEED to use one of these if you don't want the chicken to totally burn and cook evenly). Spray the rack with non-stick cooking spray.

3. In a large plastic bag, add the flour, paprika, and baking powder. Shake off the excess yogurt from the chicken, place half of the pieces in the bag, and give it a good shake. Repeat until all of the chicken is coated in the flour mixture.

4. Bake for 50-60 minutes (until the juices run clear when you cut into the breast).

enjoy :)

Top Five

I hope you all had a relaxing and fun Independence Day weekend. I have to admit that after 4 days off of work it was a little difficult to be productive today. I stayed at my mom's house all weekend and watched the dogs as she and El were in Canada on vacation. As usual, I began to feel guilty while doing a lot of nothing so I baked and cooked up a storm this weekend. Daniel and I also tried to go out and explore some new place but it was just too darn hot! We did make it out of the house for my dear friend's engagement party which was an absolute blast! Anyways, here is a look at what I was obsessed with this past week!

you're never too old to build sand castles

patriotic chocolate covered pretzel sticks at the party we went to on the 4th

my first adventure to Bay Cities for the Godmother sandwich

homemade vanilla extract: vodka & vanilla beans. that's it! 

Sunday game night with Daniel... girls always win

Muffin Tin Recipes

If you haven't noticed, I've been a little obsessed with making anything in a muffin tin lately. I love the idea of taking one bite of something so jam packed with flavor, then having 40 more of them (hello meat loaf cupcakes!!!). My parents are out of town this weekend so I'm staying home with the dogs. During the commercial breaks from the Law & Order SVU marathon, I found myself searching on Pinterest (duh) and found this awesome website that has over 20 different muffin tin recipes. I'm definitely going to try the corn dog muffin recipe this weekend, and maybe the taco bites. Oh who am I kidding, I want it all!!! Which looks best to you?