RECIPE: Spicy Pork Pocket Sandwiches

You all know how much I hate wasting food. This is one of my favourite ways to use up little odds and ends of leftovers (especially when it's not soup season). I almost hesitate to call this a recipe - it's more like a loose set of guidelines. You can tuck just about anything you want into these cute little sandwiches (leftover curries, stir fries and stews would all work wonderfully) and if your kids are anything like mine, they will excitedly gobble them up. There's just something about that crispy, crunchy, bready pocket that makes even the humblest leftovers seem special. I also make these when I want to stretch out a bit of leftover meat for a second meal, and I created this variation (shown above with Black Bean and Roasted Vegetable Salad) when I had some leftover pork begging to be used up.

Ingredients:

1/2 - 3/4 lb uncooked cubed pork, or finely chopped leftover cooked pork
1-2 medium onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
about 2 oz cream cheese, cubed
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/3 recipe (1 loaf's worth) Whole Wheat Refrigerator Bread Dough (p. 239 in my book)

Instructions:
In a medium saucepan, saute the onions and garlic in olive oil until they start to soften. Add pork and cook until onions are tender and pork is fully cooked. Add cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and cream cheese. Cook over medium heat until cream cheese melts. Add cheddar and stir until completely melted.

Divide the bread dough into 6 or 8 equal pieces (depending how big you want the sandwiches - smaller ones work well for younger kids). Roll a piece of dough out into a rectangle until it's about 1/4" thick. Spoon filling onto one half of the rectangle; fold over and crimp edges to seal. Repeat with remaining pieces of bread dough. Cut 2-3 slashes diagonally across the top of each pocket to allow steam to escape. Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise 20-30 minutes (you can skip this step if you're in a real hurry, the crust will just be thinner and not as fluffy). Bake at 375F for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Makes 6-8 sandwiches.

What would YOU put in a pocket sandwich?

I shared this recipe at Tasty Tuesday.

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RECIPE: Basil & Oregano Flatbread

Now that soup and stew season is here, one can never have too many quick and easy recipes for breads to serve alongside. This simple flatbread gets raves every time I serve it (and when I take it to potlucks, I get lots of "oohs" and "aahs") The best part is, it only takes a couple of minutes to put together if you've got some refrigerator dough handy! You can use whatever herbs you prefer - I'm not a rosemary fan but if you are, it would certainly work well here.

Ingredients:

1/3 of a recipe (1 loaf's worth) of Whole Wheat Refrigerator Dough (dough should have already completed its first rise in the fridge)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp each basil and oregano
pinch of salt and pepper
cornmeal for sprinkling
Optional: 2 tbsp Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

Line a pizza pan with parchment paper. Sprinkle 1-2 tbsp of cornmeal over top. Pat the dough out into a circle to fit the pan. In a small dish, mix the oil and seasonings. Brush mixture over top of dough. Sprinkle with Parmesan (if using). Bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top. Slice into wedges and serve.

I shared this recipe at Tasty Tuesday, the GCC Recipe Swap, and Friday Favorites.

RECIPE: Turkey Pinwheels

I took a blogging break this weekend to focus on our family's Thanksgiving celebrations (for my international readers, yesterday was Thanksgiving Day here in Canada). So now that I'm back - with a fridge full of leftover turkey - I thought it would be fitting to share this quick recipe. It's a fantastic way to use leftover turkey to make a lunch dish that looks much fancier than your standard turkey sandwich. If you don't happen to have a post-holiday stash of leftover turkey, you can use leftover ham or roast chicken in place of the turkey (or even a couple cans of tuna). These pinwheels also make a satisfying light supper with some soup and salad on the side.

Ingredients:

1/3 of a recipe (1 loaf's worth) whole wheat refrigerator bread dough
2 cups chopped leftover turkey
1/2 a medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 a red pepper, diced
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2-3/4 cup grated cheese (mozzarella, Swiss or cheddar)

Instructions:

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the bread dough to a 15"x12" rectangle. In a medium bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Spread turkey mixture evenly over the bread dough. Starting with the long side, roll up tightly, jelly-roll style, pinching the end slightly to seal. Put log seam side down and slice into 12 pieces (I find a serrated knife works best for this). Place slices on parchment covered baking sheets, leaving about 1-2 inches between them. Cover with a clean tea towel and let rise for about 30 minutes. Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

I shared this recipe at Tasty Tuesday, the GCC Recipe Swap and Friday Favorites.

RECIPE: Grilled Flatbread

Whew! We are in the middle of a brutal heatwave here in Southern Ontario. We often don't see temperatures like this until mid-August around here. When it gets this hot, even a foodie like me doesn't feel interested in much more than ice water, popsicles, and ice cream, lol!

By dinner time yesterday I just wanted to lie down on a bed of ice cubes and really didn't care what we ate!! None of us were feeling like a heavy meal in this heat. But I figured I better come up with something. No way was I turning on the oven and preferably not even the stovetop as I was already dripping with sweat.

My solution? Grill some flatbread up on the barbecue, whip up a batch of hummus, and pull the leftover Creamy Cucumber Salad out of the fridge. There was plenty of fresh fruit stashed in the fridge for nibbling on, too (blueberries, pineapple, cherries, and cantaloupe).

How to Make Grilled Flatbread

(Makes 6 single-serving size flatbreads)

You will need:
1/3 of a recipe of Whole Wheat Refrigerator Dough (1 loaf worth)
Olive oil

Preheat both sides of your barbecue on high for a few minutes. While the barbecue's heating up, divide the bread dough into six equal pieces. Roll each piece out to about 1/4" thick or so. You may need to sprinkle the dough with some flour to make it more manageable if it's gotten a bit sticky. You can make the flatbreads round or oblong, whatever floats your boat :) Mine always turn out a bit misshapen (wait, that would be "rustic hand formed" wouldn't it? ::grinning::) Brush one side of the flatbreads generously with olive oil (I use a pastry brush to do this) and place them on a large platter or cutting board to carry them out to the barbecue.

Turn the heat on the barbecue down to medium. Carefully place two of the flatbreads, oiled side DOWN, on the grill. Close the lid and let them cook for about 3-4 minutes or so, then open the lid to check how they're doing. They should have some "bubbly" spots on the surface of the dough (I would have taken a photo of this but it started raining pretty hard while I was barbecuing last night!). Brush the tops with olive oil, then flip the breads over and cook 2-3 minutes on the other side. Remove to a clean plate and repeat with remaining dough.

You can serve these whole, or slice them into strips. Last night I cut ours into strips for spreading with hummus. Lots of delicious possibilities for these yummy grilled treats! If you want to get really fancy, you could mix some herbs or spices in with the olive oil before you brush it on the dough, but these are fabulous without any embellishment, too.

I shared this recipe at Friday Feasts, Friday Favorites, Foodie Friday and the GCC Recipe Swap.

RECIPE: Pull-Apart Garlic & Parmesan Breadsticks

I whipped these up to go with a spaghetti dinner last week and my family thought they'd died and gone to heaven! An enticing bread can make even an "ordinary" meal seem extra special. Fortunately, these breadsticks are quick and easy to prepare, so you can be rewarded with lots of "oohs" and "ahs" without having to go to a lot of trouble. Get them rising before you start your main meal prep, and they'll be done in time to serve them fresh from the oven.

Ingredients:

1 loaf worth (1/3 recipe) Whole Wheat Refrigerator Dough
1/4 cup melted butter
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2-4 tbsp Parmesan cheese

Drizzle a small amount of the butter in the bottom of a 7x11" lasagna pan, and spread around so the entire bottom of the pan is coated. Divide the bread dough into 12 equal portions. Using your hands, roll out each portion into a long, skinny rope just a bit shorter than the width of your lasagna pan. Place the breadsticks in the pan, arranging them so they are evenly spaced across. Add the minced garlic to the remaining butter and drizzle over top of the breadsticks, then sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over top. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rise for about 15-20 minutes. Bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Bread Baking & Yard Raking

The weather this week has been glorious here in Southern Ontario. We've gotten an early reprieve from winter with a very welcome heat wave. I've been spending as much time as possible outside, since I know it won't last. It's entirely possible that we'll still see some snow again next week!

Yesterday I took advantage of the lovely weather to do the Big Bad Spring Cleanup. The one where I find out exactly how much dog poop was hiding under all that snow (the answer is always the same: way more than I want to think about!) I found a total of TEN tennis balls as I was making my way around the yard, picking up the poop and the garbage and all the little toys that seem to be there every spring, no matter how hard I try to get the yard cleaned up in the fall!

I started taking the leave mulch off the garden beds, too - the strawberry plants are already growing! I don't see any signs of rhubarb poking its way up yet. I'm hoping the rhubarb will really kick in this year (second full growing season since planting) and that I'll have enough to freeze some for the colder months.

Bread baking was also on yesterday's schedule; I used my tried and true Whole Wheat Refrigerator Dough and did one loaf plain and one loaf fancy. There's about 1/2 of the second loaf left; bread doesn't have much chance to go stale around here!

Our house-wide decluttering project slowed down for a while but we're still working away at it. I spent some time helping my dh wrestle the junk in the basement - there's a lot more to go but it already looks a lot less scary than when we started.

Next up: continue the decluttering, deal with my mending pile, and start getting ready for Easter!

The "Magic" Bread Solution - Refrigerator Bread Dough

Baking your own bread is one of the best ways I know to stretch your food budget. Our family can easily go through a loaf a day, and at over $2 a loaf even for the "cheap" bread, that eats up a major percentage of our monthly grocery budget. While making your own bread on a regular basis *can* be quite time consuming, there is a way to make from-scratch homemade bread without a lot of time or effort: Refrigerator Bread Dough! This is one of those golden recipes that feels like it changed my culinary life. I can easily have bread ready-to-go whenever I need it without feeling like I'm chained to the kitchen. If you've never tried making your own bread before, rest assured that it's actually pretty simple as long as you attend to a few key details. This dough is incredibly versatile and forgiving. I will be sharing lots of different ways to use it in the future, but let's get started with the basic recipe:

Whole Wheat Refrigerator Bread Dough

Time: 15-20 minutes

5 tsp active dry yeast
2 cups warm water
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup mashed potatoes
1/2 cup canola oil
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp salt
4 cups whole wheat flour
3-3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1. In a large bowl, combine the yeast, water, and sugar. Let stand 5-10 minutes or until yeast is thick and foamy. (Note: This is the most critical step for beginners! If you don't get a thick, foamy solution after 10-15 minutes, your yeast is not active - either it's too old or the water temperature was too hot or cold. You'll need to try again!)

2. Add mashed potatoes, oil, egg and salt. Mix well.

3. Gradually add the whole wheat flour, stirring until well combined.

4. Slowly add all-purpose flour as you begin to knead the dough. Knead for 5-8 minutes, adding flour as needed, until dough is smooth and elastic (it should no longer feel sticky).

5. Place dough in a large bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place in fridge.

It's all done until you're ready to use it! The dough will complete its first rising in the fridge and will keep for about a week. There is enough dough for 3 loaves of bread.

To make loaves:

Time: Hands on prep:5 minutes shaping
Waiting: 1 hr rise, 25 minutes baking

1. Divide dough into three equal portions. You don't have to bake all three loaves at once, so if you only want to make one or two loaves, return the remaining portion or two of dough to the bowl, cover and store in the fridge; dough will keep for up to a week from the day you made it. For each loaf you're making, roll out a portion of dough into a rectangle, approximately 9"x12".

2. Roll up, starting at longer edge of dough. Pinch seam together to seal. Turn seam side down. Tuck edges of loaf under (so that the loaf is the same length as the baking pan).

3. Place loaves in greased loaf pans. Place in a warm location and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let rise 1 hour or until doubled in size.

4. Bake at 375 degrees F for 25 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when tapped.

5. Cool on a cooling rack for 5-10 minutes, then remove from pan to finish cooling.

Tips:

-Buy yeast and flour in bulk to keep the cost as low as possible (bulk yeast can be stored in the freezer)

-This is a great way to use up those leftover mashed potatoes you might have in your freezer if you've been keeping up with your Sunday Night Fridge Cleanout

-I don't usually have enough leftover mashed potatoes to keep up with the demand for bread dough, so I'll cook up a big batch of potatoes, mash and freeze in 1 cup portions to have on hand for dough making