Lunch Archives - Page 33 of 65 - What the Forks for Dinner?

Minestrone Salad

Soup turned salad……..Minestrone Salad.

Thick Italian minestrone is a combination of vegetables, pasta, beans, and tomatoes. Perfect for a snowy winter warm up.

But, it’s summer….and, its hot. I really don’t want soup. But the flavors of Minestrone sound really good…..lets try a salad!!

Since there is no set recipe for minestrone…..according to Wikipedia. so add what you like. It’s usually made from in season vegetables. But, to be true minestrone according to cookbook author Angelo Pellegrini,minestrone must have beans.

Well far be it from me to make an untrue minestrone, so we have beans. Two kinds…..dark red kidney, and white kidney or cannellini, as they are commonly referred too.

Fingerling potatoes, green beans, cherry tomatoes, zucchini, and carrot, celery, and onions, are added to al dente gemelli pasta and the beans. Any small pasta will do, I just like the twisted look of the gemelli.

Instead of a “salad dressing” I used sundries tomato pesto. It has the right flavor for minestrone and it gives the Minestrone Salad the tomatoey look of the soup.

Top with parmesan cheese and garnish with parsley. Cool minestrone……

Minestrone Salad can be a main dish salad, served with a crusty loaf of bread, or as a side dish for your favorite meat.

Minestrone Salad

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Author: Marty Boyd
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 8
Category: Salad
Method: Cook
Cuisine: American

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Ingredients

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6 fingerling or baby red potatoes
2 cups green beans, cut in half
1 cup carrots, diced
1 cup celery, sliced
1 small onion, diced
1 small zucchini, cut into chunks
1 can 15 1/2-ounce kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can 15 1/2-ounce cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 pound gemelli, cooked al dente and cooled
1small jar sun dried tomato pesto
Parmesan cheese for serving
Chopped Parsley for garnish

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Instructions

Slice fingerling potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are just tender, about 8-10 minutes. Rinse under cold water to cool. Set aside.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add 1 teaspoon salt. add green beans and blanch the vegetables just until they’re bright green, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain and rinse them with cold water, and set aside.
Toss all ingredients until the pesto coats the veggies, pasta, and beans. Top with parmesan cheese and garnish with parsley if desired.

Chicken Piccata Burger

Burgers are normally a cookout item. Want to get fancy smancy? Chicken Piccata Burger.

I think chicken piccata is a wonderfully delicious dish. Why couldn’t it be a burger? No reason I can think of!

I have many ground chicken recipes on What the Forks for Dinner? Check some of them out. We have a recipe index, so look around!

Ground beef is always perfect for a burger, but sometimes you want to shake it up or make it a little more upscale…….well as upscale as a burger can be…….

So, Chicken Piccata Burger is born. Ground chicken with cappers, and parsley. Shaped into patties and then given the one…two….three treatment.

Flour, egg, and panko crumbs. Set up a dipping station using three shallow bowls, and the afore mentioned ingredients. Dipping the chicken burger and cooking until golden brown and crunchy.

Herb Lemon Butter makes this dish. A compound butter with fresh herbs, lemon, salt, and pepper. If you have never used compound butter before, try it……its a wonderful topper to steaks, or burger, and makes corn on the cob a taste delight.

A dollop of the butter on top of the burger, with leaf lettuce and sliced tomatoes on a ciabatta bun. Piccata perfect.

Next time you want to switch up a burger, try Chicken Piccata Burger.

Chicken Piccata Burger

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Author: Marty Boyd
Yield: 6

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Ingredients

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2 pounds ground chicken
1 tablespoon capers, chopped
2 tablespoons parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 -2 cups panko crumbs
oil
6 Ciabatta buns
Lemon Herb Butter (see recipe)
Leaf lettuce, tomato for garnish

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Instructions

Combine ground chicken, capers, and parsley until combine, do not over mix.
Form into 6 patties.
Set up a dipping station with flour, egg, and panko crumbs in shallow dishes.
Heat enough oil in a large skillet to cover the bottom of the pan. Once the oil is hot ,dip each patty into, flour, then the egg, then panko crumbs. Place in hot oil and cook until golden brown and cooked through, turning often.
To serve, put lettuce and tomato, and chicken burger on the bottom of the ciabatta bun. Place a slice of the Herb Lemon butter on top and allow to melt slightly. Place top on bun and enjoy.

Herb Lemon Butter

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Author: Marty Boyd

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Ingredients

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1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
salt and freshly ground black pepper

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Instructions

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a bowl. Add salt and ground black pepper to taste. Scoop it all onto the parchment paper and roll the form a cylinder then twist the ends closed. Refrigerate until the butter is firm. May be frozen to use later.

Brussels Brats with Honey Mustard Sauce

In the realm of summer grilling, nothing beats a bratwurst. Except maybe Brussels Brats with Honey Mustard Sauce.

Packed with flavor, hot and juicy off the grill with a twist of a topping and honey mustard sauce.

Last weekend was Memorial Day and a lot of grilling went on. I can’t leave well enough alone with traditional things, I have to mess with them……I know it’s a curse!

I have a minor obsession with brussels sprouts. Well, if they are cooked in bacon. Once again the praises of bacon are endless and they bring glory to the ho-hum brat.

Let’s have a brat lesson……According to Wikipedia…….Bratwurst, often shortened to “brat”, are a common type of sausage in the United States, especially in the state of Wisconsin. Germany ancestry. It is a common sight at summer cookouts, alongside the more famous hot dog.

Wisconsin is also the origin of the “beer brat”, a regional and my favorite, where the bratwurst are simmered in beer (generally a mixture of a pilsner style beer with butter and onions) prior to grilling over charcoal.
Bratwurst has also become popular as a mainstay of sports stadiums, especially baseball parks, after Bill Sperling introduced bratwurst to Major League Baseball in Milwaukee County Stadium in 1954. The brats, which sold for 35 cents then, were grilled and placed into a container of a special tomato sauce before being served. ( I may have to check out said tomato sauce)

Every year, during the Memorial Day weekend, the city of Madison, Wisconsin hosts the Brat Fest, which is billed as the “world’s largest bratwurst festival.”

I boil my brats in beer, onions, and throw in a few peppercorns. Boiling them first makes them much easier to grill……less chance of burning them. Plus, it add a little flavor and gets rid of a bit of the fat. Let’s be clear….. brats are not a healthy fat free food, but they taste damn good!

Ketchup, mustard, onions, sauerkraut and relish = traditional. Brussels Sprouts, bacon, pecans, and cranberries = untraditionally super yummy!!!

Brussels Sprouts, sliced thin, I like my mandolin for this……watch your fingers…..and sautéed in bacon fat. Add pecans and cranberries for a few seconds and you have yourself a delicious topping for a brat.

Top that topping with honey mustard sauce, and crispy bacon…….Brussels Brats with Honey Mustard Sauce.

When I made these the first time, I had two fails. First go-round I tried it with a hamburger….not so much in the taste department. Plus the pictures……..definitely not!!

Second go-round….swap beef for a brat and the pictures are…..well I don’t want to brag, but they are pretty awesome.

The brussels sprouts remind me of sauerkraut, in a far fetched way, but they are both cabbage, and I have a vivid imagination.

I wasn’t too sure about the whole idea of pickles with the topping for the brat, but they are the perfect side piece. Bite of brat, a bite of pickle. Make sure it’s a dill pickle……

Mustard is a must with a brat, but with the brussels sprouts, and bacon, honey mustard sauce…..oh yeah!!

Shake up your next cookout with Brussels Brats with Honey Mustard Sauce and you will own the cookout!!!

Brussels Brats with Honey Mustard Sauce

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Author: Marty Boyd
Yield: 4

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Ingredients

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1/2 lb. bacon
1/3 lb. Brussels sprouts, thinly sliced
1/4 c. pecans, roughly chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries
kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 brats
4 hot dog or hoagie buns
Honey Mustard Sauce (see recipe below)

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Instructions

Cook the bacon until it’s crispy. Set aside.
Sauté Brussels sprouts about 1 tablespoon bacon fat until they are just wilted.
Add the pecans and cranberries. Stir for about a minute, then remove from heat and set aside.
Boil brats in beer and grill or sauté in skillet until well browned.
Place the brat in a hot dog or hoagie bun, top with brussels sprout mixture, honey mustard sauce and bacon. Serve with dill pickles.

Honey Mustard Sauce

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Author: Marty Boyd

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Ingredients

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1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons mustard
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

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Instructions

Mix all ingredient until well blended. Refrigerate.