Sourdough Bierocks and Empanadas

My friend, LeAnn, shared a wonderful bierock recipe with me. The ingredients are very simple and the end result is so delicious. I did substitute my own recipe for the dough since I am trying to ensure all my grains are prepared to maximize their nutritional benefit. I was worried the substitution might change the taste overall, but it did not. In fact, this dough is really wonderful and very close in taste to my friend's original recipe.

 

It was so good that I started filling it with all kinds of yummy stuff. So, you'll find the recipes below for Bierocks and also for Bacon Cheeseburger Empanadas and a *bonus* for Breakfast Empanadas in the Comments. I am sure you will also come up with lots of delicious fillings for this wonderful dough - please leave your ideas in the comments.

Ground Beef and Cabbage

Have you ever had one of those days where you decide what you're going to make for dinner 5 minutes before you start cooking? Well, I have them all the time! And this recipe is one of the success stories. Now it doesn't sound like much, but I hope you'll give it a try because it is surprisingly delicious and so easy to make.

Hamburger Skillet (Easy & Flexible)

I have a confession... my husband and son love hamburger helper. LOVE IT. Before I married my husband, it was one of his regular meals. Now, when I am away for work sometimes I will come back and see the boxes in my cabinets. I have a fit. They thinks it's scrumptious.

I have never eaten the stuff. I think it sounds terrible - I mean you can't hardly get much more processed than hamburger helper.

So anyway, all that being said, and with love for my family and a desire for this journey to be easy for them (and a reason to throw away that last box of hamburger helper peeking out from behind jars of pickles) I thought I would try to make something reminiscent of hamburger helper without all the nastiness in the box version.

Lettuce Wraps

We love the lettuce wraps at PF Chang's and make a version at home that is really good. They are also pretty fast to make. It's a great change to the menu rotation that the little one and husband really love. I hope you'll give them a try.

Bolognese Sauce with Green Olives

I love pasta. I mean, looooove pasta. And one of the most disappointing parts of transitioning to a real food lifestyle (for me) was eliminating pasta, since it was primarily made using white flour. However, as food choices have improved over the years, there are now really great alternatives to the white flour pasta noodles of days past and my family enjoys pasta once or twice a month now. If you have not tried the Jovial line, I highly recommend it. This meat sauce goes really well with whole wheat pasta, brown rice pasta, or even rice. Or get creative and try serving over gnocchi, pierogi, spaghetti squash, Portobello mushrooms, or even potatoes.

Hamburger Stroganoff

I love the idea of making a "hamburger" stroganoff because it's so easy and relatively inexpensive and everyone loves it. Holy cow, the trifecta of a smart dinner! :) We enjoy this version a lot.

Stuffed Peppers II (with Stuffed Pepper Bowl variation)

Salisbury Steak

I think this is the second Salisbury steak recipe that I've posted, and in my opinion, the better tasting version. This was not a quick and easy recipe, however, but only about 5 minutes chopping and the rest involved "over-seeing" the various ingredients cooking. Finally, this takes about 3-4 pans to cook, which is not ideal, but the end result is very delicious and I would recommend as an occasional treat.

Overall, it takes about 45 minutes, which is not horrible, and it's not a lot of hands-on, but you would mostly want to be in the kitchen watching over your pans, etc.

Meatloaf

Fall is the perfect time to break out the big guns-- the big pile of seasoned, baked meat. Men everywhere love to eat meatloaf, and when prepared nutritiously, women everywhere can be happy to serve it at their tables.

 

Beef & Bulgur Kabobs

This recipe is a great change of pace that you will really enjoy. It is relatively easy to make with a moderate prep time but super fast cook time. My husband loves the leftovers as well, and they are really convenient "to go".

Ingredients:
2 medium onions, chopped
2-3 tbsp lemon juice
2 cups bulgur (finely ground), try this
2 pounds ground beef, try this
1/4 cup finely chopped nuts (pine nuts preferred but any will likely do)
3-5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

YOGURT SAUCE:
2 cups greek yogurt (plain), try making your own!
1/4 cup tahini
1 tbsp fresh-squeezed lemon juice
1 tbsp lemon zest, grated
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dill

Mix together, refrigerate until needed.

How To:
1. Make Onion Liquid: Using a blender or food processor, puree the chopped onions and then strain them through a fine mesh to extract all the liquids from the onions. Use a spoon or spatula to press the pureed onion through the mesh. You won't need the solids so either discard or find another use for them. Add the lemon juice and water to make 1 1/2 cups of liquid.

2. Combine: In a large bowl, combine the onion juice liquid with the bulgur and soak for 10 minutes. Don't skimp on this step, and ensure all bulgur is covered by the liquid, or it may be a little chewy. In the meantime, combine the garlic and nuts in a food processor to mince (or mince by hand). After bulgur has soaked, add garlic, nuts, beef, salt, cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, and pepper and mix well.

 Make sure all your bulgur is covered by the liquid and soak the full 10 minutes and check to ensure that the bulgur has softened.

3. Shape: Using about 1/3 cup for each kabob, form the beef into about 17-20ish sausage shaped rolls. **Add a small amount of water if mixture is too crumbly.**  Thread onto metal skewers. Broil (4-6 inches from heat) or grill 8-10 minutes, turning as needed.

Comments: If using wooden skewers, start soaking them in water when you start your kabobs (about 30 minutes total soaking). Even easier - don't use skewers and place directly in broiler or on a pan in the grill. They do not look as nice but taste the same. Serve kabobs with yogurt sauce (recipe above), mustard, hot sauce, etc. My husband and six-year old LOVE these.

Total time is about 30 minutes prep and 10 minutes to cook. This makes about 20 rolls - each person will eat about two or three rolls.

***A note about bulgur.... the super cool thing about bulgur is that it is crushed whole wheat that has been parboiled (soaked, steamed, dried). What does this mean? Well, this means that since your bulgur is already soaked, you won't need to soak it yourself. Check the labels on the bulgur you have purchased and you will find an indication that it is parboiled.

On the other hand, you will want to soak your pine nuts for maximum nutritional benefit. Combine your pine nuts with a scant 1/4 tsp of salt and filtered water and let soak for 7 hours or overnight. Then dry using a dehydrator (or oven at lowest temperature overnight). When I buy nuts I try to soak and dry them right away and then store for future use. Pine nuts should be refrigerated for storage.

This recipe was shared on Traditional Tuesdays, Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Scratch Cookin' Tuesdays, Frugal Days Sustainable Ways, Real Food Wednesday. 

Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy

1 medium to small onion, mostly chopped with about 1/4 cup diced
1 to 1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin and ground turkey mix or ground turkey
1 package fresh mushrooms, sliced or quartered (about 2 cups sliced)
About 1/2 cup fresh mushrooms diced
1/3 cup red wine or marsala wine
2 cups beef broth, low-sodium
About 1 T arrowroot powder
1 t red wine vinegar
Black pepper, sea salt, garlic powder, onion powder
Parsley, about 2 T fresh chopped or dry 1T

In a large bowl, combine the ground beef and/or turkey with the diced onion, diced mushrooms, parsley, and seasonings. Form patties (about 5 or 6 per pound, 1/2 inch thick). Cook over medium to medium-high heat about 3 to 5 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set aside.

Rinse pan if necessary. Add olive oil and saute chopped onions and mushrooms until onions are soft. Add beef broth and seasonings, bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Mix about 2 T wine with 1 T arrowroot powder in a small cup (at room temperature) and add to broth. Cook and stir until thick, about 3 minutes. Add remaining wine and hamburger patties back to pan and sprinkle with red wine vinegar. Cook about 10 minutes or longer if necessary.

Comments: This is a pretty easy dinner other than making the hamburger patties, which does take some time. My husband said this meal was awesome and our six-year old loved it too. We served with Ms. Scratch.Love's roasted sweet potatoes, which is a new family favorite, and Hot Green Beans (boil green beans about 10-15 minutes, drain, add to pan with olive oil, salt, pepper, and hot seeds, and saute until done). I had intended to make the mascarpone mashed potatoes or some similar russet potato recipe; however, when I looked in the refrigerator we only had one potato left. I also have to comment about the use of red meat in these burgers. We do not eat much ground beef and the flavor was very strong to me. If you are used to eating ground turkey, I would suggest just using that with the beef gravy because the red meat may be too strong of a flavor if you haven't had it in a while.

These are my husband's favorite green beans and as you can see in the photo below, he did not leave many for me.

I had over 3 lbs of meat to use up tonight, so we made about 25 patties and I ended up taking turns simmering them in the sauce, which is why there is so much sauce in this photo (first batch). My husband ate four and I sent several over to my dad's, so it worked out well, but if you follow the recipe above, I don't believe you will have so much mushroom gravy!