Turkey Tacos

These are really good but I can't get the kids to eat them. You can use ground beef but I prefer ground turkey.

Beef Tacos (from Cook's Illustrated)

Makes 8 tacos

Beef Filling

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 small onion, chopped small (about 2/3 cup)

3 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through garlic press
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt & pepper
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 teaspoons vinegar (preferably cider)
1 teaspoon packed brown sugar

1. Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering, about 2 minutes; add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander, oregano, cayenne, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add ground beef and cook, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon and scraping pan bottom to prevent scorching, until beef is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce, broth, vinegar, and brown sugar; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently and breaking up meat so that no chunks remain, until liquid has reduced and thickened (mixture should not be completely dry), about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Using a wide, shallow spoon, spoon mixture into taco shells.

Slow-Roasted Beef

From Cooks Illustrated. Serves 4 to 8. Try not to open the oven door too much; don't want heat to escape.

1 (3 1/2 to 4 1/2 pound) boneless eye-round roast
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoons pepper

1. Season all sides of roast evenly with salt. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate 18 to 24 hours.
2. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 225 degrees. Pat roast dry with paper towels; rub with 2 teaspooons oil and season all sides evenly with pepper. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Sear roast until browned on all sides, about 12 minutes. Transfer roast to wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet. Roast until meat registers 115 degrees (for medium rare), 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 hours, or 125 degrees (for medium), 1 3/4 to 2 1/4 hours.
3. Turn oven off; leave roast in oven, without opening the door, until meat registers 130 degrees (for medium-rare) or 140 degrees (for medium), 30 to 50 minutes longer. Transfer roast to carving board and let rest for 15 minutes. Slice meat as thin as possible and serve.

Easy Salmon Cakes

Easy Salmon Cakes

Published July 1, 2011. From Cook's Illustrated.

Why this recipe works:

We wanted our salmon cakes recipe to be simple to prepare, so we broke out our food processor. Pulsing small pieces of salmon allowed for more even chopping and resulted in small, discrete pieces of fish. We also found a way to ditch the egg and flour steps of the breading process in our salmon cakes recipe. Instead, we coated the salmon cakes with panko, which we also used to bind our salmon cakes. (less)

We wanted our salmon cakes recipe to be simple to prepare, so we broke out our food processor. Pulsing small pieces of salmon allowed for more even chopping and resulted in small, discrete pieces of fish. We also found a way to ditch the egg a...(more)

Serves 4

If buying a skin-on salmon fillet, purchase 1 1/3 pounds of fish. This will yield 1 1/4 pounds of fish after skinning. When processing the salmon it is OK to have some pieces that are larger than 1/4 inch. It is important to avoid overprocessing the fish. Serve the salmon cakes with lemon wedges and/or tartar sauce.

Ingredients

·         3tablespoonsplus 3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

·         2tablespoonsminced fresh parsley

·         2tablespoons mayonnaise

·         4teaspoons lemon juice

·         1 scallion, sliced thin

·         1 small shallot, minced

·         1teaspoon Dijon mustard

·         3/4teaspoonsalt

·         1/4teaspoon pepper

·         pinch cayenne pepper

·         1(1 1/4 pound) skinless salmon fillet, cut into 1-inch pieces

·         1/2cup vegetable oil

Instructions

1.        1. Combine 3 tablespoons panko, parsley, mayonnaise, lemon juice, scallion, shallot, mustard, salt, pepper, and cayenne in bowl. Working in 3 batches, pulse salmon in food processor until coarsely chopped into 1/4-inch pieces, about 2 pulses, transferring each batch to bowl with panko mixture. Gently mix until uniformly combined.

2.       2. Place remaining 3/4 cup panko in pie plate. Using 1/3-cup measure, scoop level amount of salmon mixture and transfer to baking sheet; repeat to make 8 cakes. Carefully coat each cake in bread crumbs, gently patting into disk measuring 2 3/4 inches in diameter and 1 inch high. Return coated cakes to baking sheet.

3.       3. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Place salmon cakes in skillet and cook without moving until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Carefully flip cakes and cook until second side is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer cakes to paper towel–lined plate to drain 1 minute. Serve. 

Seared Scallops with Warm Tuscan Beans

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 1/2 pounds sea scallops

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup prechopped onion

1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup dry white wine

1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1 (19-ounce) can cannellini beans or other white beans, rinsed and drained

1 (6-ounce) package fresh baby spinach

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Preparation

1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle scallops evenly with salt. Add scallops to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until done. Remove scallops from pan; keep warm.

2. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil and onion to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Add pepper and garlic; cook 20 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in wine; cook 1 minute or until most of liquid evaporates. Stir in broth and beans; cook 2 minutes. Add spinach; cook 1 minute or until spinach wilts. Remove from heat; stir in basil.

Grilled garlic bread is great for dipping into the brothy beans. Heat a grill pan over medium heat. Brush 1 tablespoon olive oil evenly over 4 (1-ounce) slices French bread. Add bread to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Rub one side of each bread slice with cut sides of a halved garlic clove.