Ultimate Chili Mac

 Ultimate Chili Mac

Serves: 6   Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Ingredients:

8 ounces (2 cups) elbow macaroni
Salt & Pepper

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 onions, chopped fine

1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped fine

6 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 1/2 pounds ground turkey (can also use beef)

1 (28-ounce) can tomato puree

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

10 ounces Colby Jack cheese, shredded (2 1/2 cups)

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in Dutch oven. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook, stirring often, until nearly al dente. Reserve 3/4 cup cooking water. Drain pasta and set aside.

Dry now empty pot, add oil, and heat over medium heat until shimmering. Add onions, bell pepper, and 3/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in garlic, chili powder, and cumin and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in turkey and cook, breaking up meat with wooden spoon, until no longer pink, 5 to 8 minutes.

Stir in tomato puree, diced tomatoes and their juice, sugar, and 3/4 cup reserved cooking water. Cover pot partially (leaving about 1 inch of pot open) and simmer, stirring occasionally until flavors have blended, about 20 minutes. 

Off heat, season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in cooked pasta, breaking up any clumps, then stir in 1 cup cheese. Pour into 13 by 9-inch baking dish. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 cups cheese over top.

Bake until bubbling around edges and cheese is spotty brown, about 15 minutes. Let casserole cool for 10 minutes. Serve.

Potato & Cauliflower Curry (Aloo Gobi)

Potato & Cauliflower Curry (Aloo Gobi)

From Milk Street 

Start to finish: 45 minutes 

Servings: 4

Note: Don't cut the potatoes into chunks smaller than 1-inch or they will be overdone and mushy in the finished dish. And don't stir the vegetables while they roast; allowing them to cook undisturbed in the oven results in better browning.

Ingredients:
2- to 2-1/2 pound head cauliflower, trimmed, cored and cut into 1-1/2 inch florets
1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
5 tablespoons neutral oil, divided
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Kosher salt and ground black pepper

2 tablespoons cumin seeds

1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger

1 tablespoon turmeric

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

1 tablespoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons packed brown sugar

1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro

1 tablespoon lime juice

Heat the oven to 500 degrees F with a rack in the middle position. Spray a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine the cauliflower and potatoes with 3 tablespoons of the oil. Sprinkle the cornstarch  and 1 teaspoon each salt and pepper over the vegetables, then toss well. Distribute in an even layer on the prepared baking sheet and roast without stirring until lightly browned and a knife inserted into a piece meets just a little resistance, about 15 minutes.

In a large Dutch oven over medium, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil until shimmering. Add the cumin seeds and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the ginger and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the turmeric, paprika, coriander, cayenne, sugar, and 1-1/2 teaspoons salt. Add the cauliflower-potato mixture and toss to coat. Stir in 2 cups water, cover and cook, stirring often, until the liquid has thickened and the vegetables are fully tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Off heat, stir in the cilantro and lime juice. Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Smashed Burgers

From Cooks Illustrated

Do not use a stainless-steel or nonstick skillet. You can use 85 percent lean ground beef, but 90 percent lean will produce a dry burger. Open a window or turn on your exhaust fan before cooking. Be assertive when pressing the patties. Use Kraft singles here for their meltability. Once the burgers are cooked, transfer to a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet, adding cheese to the burgers and keep warm in a 200-degree oven. Place on buns right before serving.

Sauce (for 2 burgers):
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped dill pickles plus 1/2 teaspoon pickle juice
1 1/2 teaspoons ketchup
1/8 teaspoon peppper

Burgers (four double patty burgers):
4 hamburger buns, toasted if desired
1 pound (16 ounces) 80 percent lean ground beef
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

4 slices American cheese

1. FOR THE SAUCE: stir all the ingredients together in a bowl. (make sure shallot and pickles and finely chopped/minced).

2. FOR THE BURGERS: Divide beef into 8 equal pieces (2 ounces each); form into loose, rough balls (do not compress). Place oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet. Use paper town to rub oil into bottom of skillet (reserve paper towel). Heat over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. While skillet heats, wrap bottom and sides of small saucepan with large sheet of aluminum foil, wrapping foil around the upper rim of the saucepan, and place large plate next to cooktop.

3. Increase heat to high. When skillet begins to smoke, place 3 balls of beef about 3 inches apart in skillet. Use bottom of prepared saucepan to firmly smash each ball until 4 inches in diameter and thin. Place saucepan on plate next to cooktop. Sprinkle patties with a little bit of salt and pepper. Cook until at least three-quarters of each patty is no longer pink on top, about 2 minutes (patties will stick to skillet - this is good and means that they have made full contact with pan and browned uniformly). Use thin metal spatula to loosen patties from skillet. Flip patties and cook for 15 seconds. Slide skillet off heat. Transfer 1 burger to each bun bottom and top with 1 slice of cheese. Gently scrape browned bits from skillet and return to heat (add more oil if needed). Repeat with the remaining beef balls. Spread sauce on bun tops and serve immediately.

Instant Pot Carnitas

I haven't made a recipe in a while that got inhaled by the girls as fast as this one!

Instant Pot Pork Carnitas

From Bon Appetit

INGREDIENTS

• 3 lb. skinless, boneless pork shoulder (Boston Butt), cut into 2" pieces
• 2 jalapeños, cut in half lengthwise, stems removed
• 4 large garlic cloves
• 1 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp. ground coriander
• 1 tsp. ground cumin

• RECIPE PREPARATION

  • Place pork, jalapeños, garlic, salt, oregano, pepper, coriander, and cumin in Instant Pot. Toss with your hands until well combined. Seal lid and cook on high pressure for 35 minutes.
  • Release pressure manually. Using a slotted spoon, transfer pork to a large bowl; fish out jalapeños and garlic and discard. Shred meat with two forks or your hands. Pour cooking liquid over meat and toss to combine.
  • Working in batches, transfer shredded pork to a large nonstick skillet set over high heat and cook, undisturbed, until underside is well browned, about 5 minutes. Toss and continue to cook, tossing occasionally, until some of the edges are caramelized and crisp, 5–7 minutes longer. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper towel–lined baking sheet. Cover with foil to keep warm and moist.

  Notes:

I diced up the jalapeno and garlic cloves. Added a little splash of orange juice to the Instant Pot. Was worried there wasn't enough liquid but it turned out OK; lots of liquid left over. Cooked this an additional 10 minutes since after 35 minutes the pork didn't shred and seemed rubbery but was good after an additional 10 minutes. Cleaned all the fat off the pork before shredding. Didn't use all the liquid after it cooked but using a slotted spoon pulled out most of the cooked jalapenos and garlic along with some liquid (the fat in the liquid helps when browning the pork).

Everyone ate this differently: in a bean and cheese burrito, in a sandwich, in a taco, and also layered on top of a tostada.