Spaghetti with Tomato, Turkey, and Spinach

I have a dream of going grocery shopping on a Saturday, and using every single thing I bought from the grocery store the following week, in 5 or 6 delicious meals, without one thing going to waste. That is my goal. And this recipe gets me one step closer to getting there.

Remember the Tuscan Tomato Soup from Tuesday? Well, since that soup uses real (or canned) chunky tomatoes, it is a thicker soup, which means that it doubles as a wonderful pasta sauce! Let's get do the details:

INGREDIENTS:

1 - 1-1/2 lb. ground turkey

1-2 cups leftover Tuscan Tomato Soup

1 jar spaghetti sauce (I prefer Prego Chunky Garden)

1-2 cups fresh spinach

1 lb. cooked whole wheat spaghetti (or any type of pasta)

DIRECTIONS:

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the ground turkey. When all the meat is browned, slowly drain the liquid from the pan. To the turkey, add Tuscan Tomato Soup and 1 jar store-bought spaghetti sauce. Mix together and let simmer for 5 minutes. Add spinach leaves and stir until leaves are just wilted.

Add sauce to cooked pasta and enjoy.

Grilled Nectarine Summer Salad

When summer comes around, there is a lot of talk about grilling. I love it. There's nothing like a fresh meal that has been cooked outside in the open air. BUT...grills are for boys. BIG tools, BIG fire, and BIG slabs of meat. So, my feminine touch on grilling ironically involves a very masculine man...George Foreman. The George Foreman grill is perfect for small bites. Easy clean up. And you can use it year-round. This recipe, of course, can also be done outside--a great option if you're already heating up that fire-breathing bad boy.

INGREDIENTS:

(for the dressing--adapted from organicauthority.com):

1 nectarine, peeled and pitted

3 Tablespoons olive oil

3 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar

2 Tablespoons honey

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (slightly less if you have a mild palette)

(for the salad):

6-10 oz. fresh greens (spinach, spring mix, or butter lettuce would all work well)

1-2 oz. fresh goat cheese (or fresh feta cheese)

2 firm, but ripe, nectarines, pitted

1-2 Tablespoons pine nuts (can also substitute almonds or pistachios)

DIRECTIONS:

Make the dressing. Blend all dressing ingredients together in a blender or food processor. Pour into a serving dish, cover, and let chill in refrigerator.

Prepare the salad ingredients. Slice each nectarine into 8 pieces. On a well-oiled grill (or George Foreman ;) ), place the nectarine slices. Let cook for about 2 minutes and flip, using tongs. Cook about one more minute. Set aside on a plate and let cool. 

Heat a small saucepan over medium-high heat and add pine nuts. Let sit for a minute and stir around. Once toasted, remove pine nuts from heat and let cool.

Once pine nuts and nectarines are cool, mix all ingredients together and let the summer sizzling begin!

SERVING SUGGESTION:

For a more filling alternative, serve with sliced grilled chicken or blackened chicken on top.

Spanikopita!

Like, Couscous, this is another really fun word to say... SPANIKOPITA! Thank you Greece, for your delicious food, fun words, healthy diets, and amazing gathering traditions ("OPA!"). In San Pedro, CA, there once existed a beautiful, delicious Greek restaurant called Papadakis Taverna. Sadly, sadly, after 37 years of wonderful dining experiences, this family-owned restaurant closed in January of this year. One of my memories of eating at Papadakis as a young child includes chomping on a delicious Phyllo dough appetizer called spanikopita.

*Adapted from Closet Cooking

INGREDIENTS:

2 pounds spinach (steamed, squeezed, drained, and chopped) or 1 package of frozen chopped spinach, defrosted

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled (I prefer the block cheese to the pre-crumbled cheese -- pre-crumbled feta is very dried out)

1/2 to 1 cup goat cheese, crumbled

1/4 cup dill, chopped (I didn't have this so I substituted with about 2 Tablespoons Oregano and Italian Seasoning)

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

2 eggs, lightly beaten

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup olive oil

phyllo dough

DIRECTIONS:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Saute onion and garlic with 2 Tablespoons olive oil over medium heat until onions are browned.

Mix browned onions and garlic with the spinach, feta, goat cheese, dill, parsley, eggs, salt, and pepper in a large bowl.

Brush the bottom of an 8x8 inch baking dish or pie plate with olive oil. Place a sheet of phyllo dough in the pan and brush with olive oil. (You may have to cut the phyllo dough to fit the pan... I used a pizza cutter for that.) Repeat until you have 6-10 layers.

Spoon the spinach mixture on top of the phyllo dough. Pat down gently to make level.

Place another sheet of phyllo dough and brush with olive oil. Repeat until you have another 6-10 layers. Place in the oven and bake until golden brown on top, about 30-40 minutes.

Let cool and cut into diagonals.

"Opa!!!"