Garlic Ginger Ground Turkey with Peas

If you've followed my recipes on County Meanderings, you know that one of my favorite guilty pleasures is Chinese takeout. For me, it's not about the convenience. I simply love the dept of flavor and the "I can't make this at home" uniqueness that American Chinese dishes have. What I don't love is the MSG and unnecessary fats that come along with that. I've spent the last few months in the kitchen exploring ways that I can zap those cravings with a healthier and more cost effective alternative. Using inexpensive and lean ground turkey, this recipe takes a health spin on the delicious brown sauce that my pallet aches for. If you're a fan of ginger and garlic, I know you'll love my last Asian creation. 

Bonus...This is a one-pot dish - you have to love that, right? Easy prep, easy clean-up. That's my style. 

Ingredients

Turkey
1lb lean ground turkey
1/2 yellow onion
1-2 inch piece of fresh ginger
2-4 cloves of garlic (depending how much you like!  I went 3 medium cloves)
1 cup frozen green peas

Sauce
1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
1-2 tbsp brown sugar
Pinch of red chili flakes
1 tbsp thai chili sauce
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

1. Dice onion, garlic and ginger (you can also grate the ginger if you aren't a huge fan of it). 
2. Saute the onion, ginger and garlic over medium heat (any oil is fine but I love to use chili oil from the asian food isle) until it becomes very fragrant and the onions are translucent (5-8 mins).
3. Add ground turkey and cook until no longer pink (medium-high heat for about 10-15 minutes).
4. Add frozen peas and cook through (5 mins). 
5. Whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, chili flakes, chili sauce (could also add any other heat you like!) until the sugar dissolves. 
6. Cut the heat to medium-low and pour in the sauce. Simmer on low for 10mins - 30 mins depending on how long you want everything to meld together. 
7. Serve over rice, green beans, or in lettuce wraps. 

Discovering Hints - Culinary Tips of the Past

My ideal night involves cheap wine and well anything, especially when related to food. If you follow me here at County Meanderings, you know I have an undying passion for anything food (and thrift store) related. As I was working on a piece of writing for a local foodie magazine tonight, I stumbled upon something I thought was too brilliantly lovely not to share. 

There's a warm nostalgia that wraps itself around me when I happen upon notes of the past. If you've ever recieved an old book from your Grandma, you know what I'm talking about. You're flipping through your handed-down gift and bam - something intimate and personal strikes you. Tonight, I had one of those moments in the recipe book I was working through. I stumbled upon a page a midst a bunch of recipes, fresh from the typewriter circa 1938 that was titled "Hint." I'll share a photo but incase the clarity doesn't do it justice, I've transcribed it with all original punctation (or lack thereof). 

Take a look:

Hint

When mashing potatoes heat the milk and butter before adding to potatoes then you wont be so apt to have lumps. 

When cooking fresh green beans, asparagus or any other green vegetable add a lump of sugar to  the water  and the veg. wont change color and it brings out the taste. 

When cooking any cut veg. in small pieces they cook quicker and taste much nicer it also saves vitamins and gas bills. (LOL!)

When cooking veg. either pour boiling water over them or put them into boiling water it saves flavor. Most veg. need just enough water to cover them. 

If a recipe calls for onions it usually adds to the flavor if they are browned a bit before adding. 

If you cook fresh beets don't cut the stems off too close or they will lose all their color.

And give them plenty of time to cook; bacon or salt pork added to the water they are cooked in is a nice addition if you like it. (My kind of gal!) 

Get a scraper for peeling potatoes, carrots & things it sure helps. 

When cooking anything in the oven be sure to preheat the oven before putting the food in. 

If you want whole leaves of lettuce for a salad remove the core of the head and run cold water in it this will seperate the leaves so they can be removed easily without tearing. 

If you'd like the recipe for Gawumpkis (?) I'll have Elsie write it out for me. (Totally want to know what a Gawumpki is!)

I've got a million ideas but it takes more time than I have I shall have to let this be continued. (Ugh!) 

How amazing is it that decades later essentially all these "hints" are still relevant? Anyone who spends any amount of time in the kitchen will undeniably appreciate at least one of these. I'm eager to try the lettuce one this weekend! 

Just thought I'd share, as this little page brought me some much needed joy this evening! As did my $6 Entwined Food Network Chardonnay - give that a try, too. 

Cheers,

-Karen 

For the Love of Lipstick

On a warm spring afternoon, I slink into the bathroom. My stubby fingers fumble to get the door closed tightly behind me. I climb the obstacles; a step on to the toilet top, then the tank, making my way across the sink, straddling the basin - I stand. Slowly, I pry open the squeaky medicine cabinet. Each little motion evokes a suspenseful creak. I can't be caught. Mom will have my head if she catches me in here again. Finally, with enough space to reach my little hand in, I grasp it.

Red Lipstick. 

An oddly small shape, one inch in length, the tube is covered with a clear cap revealing the vivid red stick. The red makes my young mind wander; cherries, fire hydrants, America. It is one of the many mini samples of colors in the cabinet but I am so intensely drawn to its striking beauty, I see no other suitable option. My six-year-old spirit bubbles as I hold the tube up to my round face, straight in front of my pursed lips.

I flip my ratty blonde hair as a pluck off the top like a sassy pin-up salon girl, smacking on a piece of perfectly pink bubble gum. Cigarette in one hand, lipstick in the other. "Pucker up." I tell myself.

With a white knuckled grip, I draw the vibrant stick closer to my flushed, chubby cheeks. In a breath of confidence, I touch the stick to my pursed upper-lip. Instantly, I am twenty-five; beautiful yet brash, I am striking up a conversation with a woman who joins me in a smoky bathroom as we carefully reapply. She's painting on layers of rouge while alternating with a spritz of Aqua Net to her perm. I'm slightly in awe of her unknowing grace as she puts herself together. We both lean in to our reflections, lipstick in hand, putting the final touches on our boozy bathroom masterpieces.

With my sweaty feet straddling the sink basin, my confidence blooms. Another flip to my ratty blonde hair and instantly, it becomes a slick bun. I spin around in my office chair, finding the perfect light to gracefully touch a bold shade of red onto my lips. This red is deep, elegant, sumptuous. It has just enough gloss to give it some sass but not so much as to confuse intentions. The color is far more intense but it goes on smoother with each precise glide over my soft lips.  I stand, straighten out my pencil skirt and am off to pitch my latest proposal, carefully slipping my luscious red lipstick into my lacy bra - for good luck, you know?

I draw my young, round face closer to the mirror with a slow tilt. Lining the mini tube up to my puckered lips, another swipe lands me at the corner seat of a lowly lit restaurant. I sit perched with the same tilt, this time my blonde strands are neatly curled and I stare, awestruck into the eyes of handsome date. He excuses himself for the restroom and I slip my hand into my clutch to quickly touch up the ravishing red on my lips. Steadying my nervous hand, I swipe my lips before he returns. Instantly, I realign my posture, sitting graceful, tall and sure.

My love for lipstick was born straddling that sink with pudgy cheeks and clammy feet. Sneaking into my Mom's makeup took me to places the same way little girls are carried away as they watch Cinderella for the first time. From that moment, I craved the confidence I felt with a glide of crisp crimson. The way it blanketed me with assurance and grace. The guise of glamour it draped over my being. The subtle mysterious glow it painted upon my face. I knew from this very moment of play, that red lipstick would someday be my signature.

There is something so striking about a red lip. It's lively, it's vivacious, it's powerful - with just a dash of mystery. From the most stressful of days in office to the nerves of a first date, my ravishing red lip has often given me just the boost I needed. Each morning, I rise when the clock strikes 6 and my tired eyes are instantly awoken by the vibrancy of red. Just like that little gal playing in her Mom's makeup, my spirit still bubbles as I make that bright swipe over my lips.


Fast forward twenty years and here I am, sprawled out on my Craigslist mattress, wrapped in a hand-sewn quilt made by my lipstick-loving mother. After a ten hour day and three hour commute - I sink into my bed, still in my disheveled thrift store threads, a wrinkled blouse spilling over the top of a crinkled up pencil skirt and my hair almost as ratty as that pudgy little six-year-old girl straddling the sink in the spring of '97; I can't help but laugh at the looks of my twenty-something Tuesday night. My filled-to-the-brim glass of cheap chardonnay is hardly the posh bubbly I'd imagined but the remnants of my daily rouge remind me of simple times and the wandering naivety of childhood.

That little kiss reminds me of my first dance with red lipstick and instantly, I sit up a little taller - knowing that this headache tomorrow will be nothing that a little 6am ravishing rouge can't fix.

Source

Spicy Orange Shrimp and Snow Peas

Have you ever experienced one of those stop-in-your-tracks, must-have-it-now cravings? Well, that's me every single time I think about chinese takeout. It's my one weakness that I've absolutely loved since I was a kid. We only had takeout when something fun was happening: a birthday, a visit to my Aunt Nancy's, a girls-night out with my Mom. It was something we always had to celebrate! 

It's certainly great for celebrating considering most of it has enought MSG to keep our bodies well salted for literally days. In my efforts to continue to be a healthy gal, I try not to order it often now! While I do splurge now and again, I've been trying to recreate my favorites at home. Today's recreation was a spicy take on shrimp and snow peas mixed with my personal favorite, orange chicken. I did a combining of the two for a much healthier, affordable and delicious recipe! You can certainly sub out some of the spicy stuff if that's not your thing. Swap the chili oil for stir fry or peanut oil, swap the chili sauce for honey and leave out the chili flakes. That will give you the same dish, just without the spice. 

I love plating and garnishing my homemade dishes. It makes it feel like restaurant-quality! 

Keep in mind, this sauce I've created can be used on any of your favorite proteins. Whether it's tofu, chicken, pork or beef, this makes a great, less-guilty sticky-style sauce that will curb your takeout cravings. 

Ingredients

For the Shrimp and Snow Peas:

1 bag raw, deveined, tail-off shrimp (I used small 60-80 count because they are always $5 at Walmart!)

2 cloves fresh garlic

1-2 spring onions 

1 bag fresh snow peas 

Sauce necessities!

For the Sauce:

1/2 sugar free orange marmalade (could use sugared but makes it lighter with this kind!)

1/2 sweet chili sauce

1/4 low sodium soy sauce (add more if you like salty food - I am not a fan of super salty)

1 splash (probably 2 tbsp) rice vinegar

1 tbsp chili oil 

1 tbsp ground ginger

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp chili flakes

1 - 2 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in a splash of cold water

Directions:

1.) Thaw frozen shrimp in collander by running cold water over them for 3-6 minutes. Place in a quart size ziploc bag. Set aside.

2.) In a small mixing bowl, add orange marmalade, chili sauce, soy sauce,  rice vinegar, ginger, garlic and chili together. Whisk until combined. Pour 3/4 of the batch over the thawed shrimp the bag. Marinate for approximately 30mins to an hour. Reserve the last 1/4 for the cooking process.

3.) Drizzle medium size skillet with stir fry oil. Add two cloves of minced garlic over medium heat. Sweat the garlic for about 2 minutes. Add in snow peas. Saute for 3-4 mins so they are still crisp and keep their bright green color. Take out of pan and set aside. 

Garlic sauteeing!

4.) Over medium high heat, dump marinading shrimp and excess mix from the bag into a skillet. When shrimp begin to turn pink, stil continuously adding the remaining sauce. 

Raw shrimp mix!

5.) When shrimp are almost done - completely pink and firm throughout, dissolve one tbsp of cornstarch into a splash of cold water. Bring the sauce to a boil with the shrimp and add cornstarch. Turn back the heat and allow to thicken. May require doing this once or twice. 

Perfectly bubbly sauce!

5.) Serve shrimp over top of garlic snow peas and enjoy! 

In Good Taste,

-Karen

Summer Cinnamon Zucchini Bread

The spontaneous summer torential downpours and steamy sun are finally starting to pay off here in Southern Maryland as gardens begin producing the fruits of all our spring labor. Well, really my Dad's spring labor considering he is the one who planted our garden. Even if it is at my house, it's definitely his baby - I'm just lucky enough to be the closest one to reap the benefits. Win, win if you ask me! 

The first things to produce in my backyard have been the cukes and zucchini. Oddly enough, both are my absolute favorite things we grow. I was over visiting my parents and noticed a large loaf of something wrapped in foil in the fridge; a spark of excitement hit as I prepared myself for a snack (because there is nothing like a snack from your Momma and Daddy's no matter how old you are!). Zucchini bread! Mom and I sat down and had two big hunks, slathered in butter for lunch and I knew I had to give my hand at recreating this tasty treat. 

If you haven't had zucchini bread, you may think it sounds gross. Vegetables in what is supposed to a be a delicate, sweet bread? What? Don't let that get in the way of trying this recipe out. The zucchini works to both retain the lush moisture of this loaf as well as keep in perfectly bound together. Not to mention, it adds a great deal of fiber and vitamins. The zucchini is grated in this recipe so there is no strange textures or chunks for all you picky eaters out there. In fact, you literally cannot taste the veggie at all. After talking with my Mom and reading a few recipes, I decided to make one up and give it a try. My secret ingredient here is a cup of applesauce to add even more fiber, natural sweetness and nutrients. It also works to keep the loaf perfectly moist! Most recipes call for enough ingredients to make two loaves but I prefer to make only one so that is what this recipe will yield!

If you caught my last post, you know I've got a lot of cooking on my summer agenda. I thought I would kick of my culinary adventure by hopping right into a brand new recipe which I've penned as the first in my personal handwritten collection! 

Ingredients: 

• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Wesson Blend Oil (Vegetable Oil - could also do coconut)
• 1 Snack Size Cup Apple Sauce (about 1/2 cup)
• 1-2 Cups grated Zucchini 
• 1/2 Cup Light Brown Sugar
• 1/2 Cup White Sugar 
• 1 1/2 Cups Flour (could use whole wheat, white, etc)
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 - 2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Ground Ginger

This is my first handwritten recipe for my collection! Yay! 

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. Grate 1-2 medium zucchini. Keep in mind one medium size grates to about 1 cup. 
3. Combine all wet ingredients in mixer. Eggs, oil, applesauce. 
4. Cream in the sugar, baking soda, baking powder, spices. 
5. Slowly add the flour in, about 1/2 cup at a time until batter forms.
6. Add in grated zucchini, mix well. 
7. Grease 1 loaf pan with Pam-like non-stick spray. 
8. Pour in batter and bake at 325 for approximately 1 hour. 

This makes an amazing breakfast with a little butter and cinnamon sprinkled on top. It is a perfect pair to steaming cup of coffee or spiced chai. I like to heat a piece in the microwave for about 20 seconds to warm it but it is certainly fine cold, too! 

Enjoy!

My Grandma's Box

I can't remember a time in my life when I wasn't inherently drawn to anything and everything edible. Food has fascinated me from my first memory; the magic and art of its adaptability, the way it draws us together, the intricate processes of its sourcing, how we each interpret it differently - there is something about it that has undeniably preserved my childlike sense of wonder. 

Our history with food as Americans, at least in my lifetime, has seemed to dull the sparkle of what once was nothing less than the purest of arts. I've heard my Grandma recite how she could awake in the morning and make a fresh batch of biscuits without laying a finger on a measuring cup. Who in my generation can do that? I can't even tell you what's all in a homemade biscuit. I understand that times have certainly changed since Grandma could sling Crisco and flour together and magically make perfect biscuits seven days a week. Women are no longer confined to simply domestic duties, we've seemed to part with the majority of our agricultural roots and well, life just moves faster now. Fast and convienent foods have taken center stage in our diets as a culture, leaving the days of kitchen DIYs a thing of the past. Rarely do you see my generation passing handwritten recipes to family, give culinary gifts at holiday celebrations and tucking our baking tips in to novels we lend to our friends. While the technological revolution has been a wonderful part of my generation, its obvious that our instant-gratification needs are spilling over to our culinary (or lack there of) creativity. We've become accustomed to having what we want immediately. 

In an effort to slow down in my own life, I have been thinking a lot about how my love for food could help me do just that. My Grandma gave me a box of old recipes that she's written and collected over her lifetime. From Wisconsin to New York to good ole St. Mary's County, Maryland, this box is a curration of culinary creativity spanning from people all across the United States. As I thumbed through the sticky, plastic sheeted recipe cards, I noticed that so many of the recipes take not hours but days. Days devoted to one dish. 14 day pickles, 90 day wine, 3 day ice box cake, etc. I cannot even begin to wrap my mind around tending to pickles for 14 days. 

Here's the first look at some of the recipes I will be crafting from the box. 

Over the course of this summer, I will be making at least one recipe from my Grandma's box each week and sharing them with you right here. In between, I'll also begin to write down my own recipes and start currating a collection that I can someday pass down to my children. As a writer, I cling to the preservation of written word as not only a creative outlet but more importantly, as the purest form of pickling history. See what I did there? A little kitchen wit to get you excited for my summer behind the stove! 

Love these little vintage recipe cards I scored for $0.25 at at yard sale!

I hope you come by each week and check out what I've brought back from my culinary past. Who knows? Maybe you'll want to whisk through yours, too. 

In Good Taste,

-Karen 

Lessons from Life Post-Grad, Year One

The floods of pictures of caps and gowns, proud smiles and celebratory cheer have me feeling more nostalgic than ever this week. I cannot believe that one year ago today, it was me - the "not college material" gal who was walking across that stage, graduating in the top 4% of my class from St. Mary's College of Maryland. 

It is incredible how life changes. You meet people who can completely obliterate your entire thought process over a cup of coffee, you have experiences that widen your naive eyes, you open you heart to things that make it feel deeply and sincerely, you begin to loosen your white-knuckled grip on "your" ideas of right and wrong, you second-guess yourself, you speak with a sometimes shaky insecurity, you shed countless tears over (in retrospect) pointless assignments, you learn to connect with people who are so radically different than what you know in both wonderful and terrible ways but most importantly, you try incredibly hard to find yourself. 

I don't think I found myself on my path to college graduation but I do think that my time spent in college gifted me with the ability to reflect and grow in ways I never anticipated it would. I think of my degree as a toolbox. Bits and pieces of things that will help me shape my life, build my career and subsequently, create myself. For my time spent exploring myself and my ideas in the wonderfully liberal place I was educated has taught me that we don't just "find" ourselves - nothing comes that easily. We create. 

Countless lessons have been experienced by yours truly since last year but there is one that shines brighter than most this year. 

Advocate for yourself. We've all heard it - "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take." Everything I look to as an accomplishment in the past year is firmed rooted in advocating for myself. Own your talents, know your weaknesses and have the courage to step outside your own comfort zone. My biggest lessons and blessins' this year have stemmed from taking chances on myself. Even on days when I know I am my own worst enemy, I do my best to think back and reflect on how I got from being the condescending "not college material" county gal to the Summa Cum Laude graduate with two great jobs and an overwhelming sense of thankfulness. I put myself out there. I wrote what I felt and I shared it. I took risks by giving my opinion, I embraced differences and used them to reflect and create opinions rather than just riding the bandwagon like so many of us do in our adolescence. Being an advocate for yourself isn't selfish, its responsible. If you want something, ask for it. That includes those times where you are so incredibly overwhelmed that you are too afraid to ask for help. In my darkest times over the past year, asking for help and advocating for myself brought me the solidarity that I craved. Advocating for myself both personally and professionally is paving the way to the creation of a wonderful life. It isn't always easy but it challenges the creator to... well, be creative. 

While I'm only in year of life post-grad, I can only imagine the things I will be able to do with these tools. The things I will grow, the things I will continue to create, the things I will fail miserably at and thus - shatter, the things I will build with meticulous detail, the things that will just fall together. The creation of my life is forever changed by the opportunity that I have had to experience higher education. 

"The beautiful thing about learning is nobody can take it away from you."--B. B. King