Anyway, knowing we were awfully late and wouldn't get much choice in what we grow for 2015, we spent a half hour or so picking through what was left. Eventually, we settled for a few basics - tomatoes, eggplants, zucchini, basil ... and a few new things - swiss chard, thyme.
Since there was a crowd, when we went to pay, I ended up killing time wandering in the gift shop. Imagine my surprise when I found out that new for the 2015 growing season, they were offering mix your own, organic spice and tea blends.
Now, don't get me wrong. There wasn't a TON of options (maybe 3-4 total), but one of the few they did offer caught my eye: herbs de Provence. This is a more boutique type spice, and I didn't yet have it at home. Combine that fact with the fact that I was unable to resist the novelty of mixing my own spices, and well ... yes, I ended to purchasing a jar for at home.
Naturally, that meant the following week I had to bust them out in a recipe, which is how the below came to be.
FYI - if you want to make your own, my Herbs de Provence jar ended up being filled with a 1 tbsp. each even mixture of lavender, rosemary, thyme, savory, marjoram, basil and ground fennel.
Additional note - the below utilizes the spiralizer I mentioned in Friday's post.
Enjoy!
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Turkey Mushroom Meatballs and Zucchini Pasta
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 large shallot, minced (about
1 Tbsp, you can substitute onion here if you wish)
- 1 clove garlic, minced (about 1
teaspoon)
- 6 ounces of mushrooms (a mix of
shiitake and cremini, or baby bella), finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon herbes de Provence
- 1 pound ground turkey meat
- 1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
(optional, plus more to sprinkle over when you serve)
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
(optional, if you have it use it)
- 1 Tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black
pepper
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
Marinara Sauce
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup minced onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced (about 2
teaspoons)
- 1-28 ounce can whole peeled
tomatoes
- Salt and pepper to taste
Zucchini Pasta
- 4 medium/large zucchinis
- Paderno spiralizer or similar
tool for converting zucchini into noodles
Directions
Sauce
Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a sauté pan on medium heat. Add minced onions and cook until translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one minute more. Pulse the canned tomatoes in their juices in a blender or food processor until chopped, but not completely smooth. Add the tomatoes to the onion garlic mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste. Simmer while you prepare meatballs.
Meatballs
Melt the butter in a small frying pan on medium heat. Add the minced shallots and cook gently for 3 to 4 minutes until softened. Stir in the minced garlic and the mushrooms. Continue to cook on medium heat until the mushrooms are cooked through and have given up some, but not all, of their moisture. Stir in the herbes de Provence. Remove from heat. Place in a bowl and quickly chill to cool.
In a large mixing bowl, place the ground turkey, parsley, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar, lemon zest if using, mayonnaise, salt, black pepper, and the cooled mushroom shallot mixture. Using your hands, gently mix the turkey and other ingredients together until well combined. Don't over mix. Once ingredients are fully incorporated, form meatballs, 1 to 1 1/2 inches wide, depending on your preference. Place meatballs on a tray.
**Before moving on, prepare a pot of water for boiling the zucchini and place it on heat. I prefer to use a pasta pot with a removable insert, as it makes flash boiling the zucchini much easier. You want the water to be just starting to boil as the meatballs near completion.
Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan on medium low to medium heat. Once the oil is hot, place the meatballs in the pan, allowing for space around each meatball. Do not crowd the pan; if your pan isn't big enough, cook the meatballs in batches. Gently cook the meatballs, turning them frequently so that they get lightly browned on all sides. If meatballs are not browning, increase the burner heat a little.
Zucchini
Spiralize zucchini with your cooking tool of choice, turning vegetable into a spaghetti noodle like form. When water (mentioned in meatball section above) is at a rolling boil, drop “noodles” into pot. Flash boil the “noodles” very briefly, just so that they are warmed through – do not overcook or they will become limp and even break apart. Lift insert out of pasta pot and drain quickly.
To serve
Plate “noodles”, add meatballs, top with sauce. Optional: sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley to serve.
Serves 4-6
Meatball recipe originally found here.
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