Slow cooker olive pork stew

This is winter weekend cooking improv' at it's best. Try it and let me know what you think!

INGREDIENTS (4 people):
- 2 lbs country style pork ribs
- 3 carrots
- 2 russet potatoes
- 1 shallot
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/3 cup dried tomatoes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 thyme sprig
- 1 cup olives (I used a mixture of kalamata and green olives with lemon)
- 1/2 cup white wine (I used the rest of flat champagne I had from a dinner a couple weeks ago)
- 1 cup vegetable broth


RECIPE:
- peel and chop the shallot, garlic, potatoes and carrots

- put everything in the slow cooker

- cook on high for 6 hours or on low for 10 hours

Note 1: if it gets a bit too dry during cooking, you can add more wine, broth or water
Note 2: you can also cook this on the stovetop over very low heat until the pork is fork tender (about 4-5 hours)
- yes, it's that easy

- enjoy!

Turkey and chickpeas crockpot "chili"

Hi guys!!!

How have YOU been doing?? Like I said in my last post, a cute little furry life event has been the reason for the sluggish blog output at PITK these past two months.

But I'm back! And today is a snowday here in Boston. So let's kick-start the 2015 PITK season in style and make a crockpot chili :)

Enjoy!




INGREDIENTS (2-3 people):
- 1.5 lbs ground turkey
- 3 rashes of thick cut bacon
- 1 large Idaho potato, peeled and diced in bite sized cubes
- 1/2 large or 1 medium onion
- 1x 15oz can of chickpeas, juice reserved
- 1x 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
- 1tbsp salt
- 1tbsp ground cumin
- 1tbsp smoked paprika
- 1 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 1/2 tsp chili powder

RECIPE:
- in a dutch oven, fry the chopped bacon until crispy and golden over medium high heat then add the chopped onion and saute until translucent over medium heat

- add the ground turkey and cook until golden, using a wooden spoon to break off any large chunks

- when the meat is brown, but not completely cooked, place in the slow cooker together with the chickpeas, diced potato, tomatoes and spices

- stir well and cook on HIGH for 4 hours

- stir every 30 minutes and adjust the consistency to your liking with the reserved chickpea liquid

- serve sprinkled with grated cheddar and a few slices of avocado
- enjoy!

Perfect mini-meatballs

Those versatile, delicious little balls of meat perfection are my favorite!

They are so easy to make, freeze beautifully and never get dry. You can use them in hearty soups and stews or on top of pasta lathered in tomato sauce. The mix can also be used in a meatloaf format.

I tell you: versatile and perfect.

Here's how I make them.


INGREDIENTS (for ~100 mini-meatballs):
- 1 lb ground beef (I used 80-20 mix)
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup of panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp granulated onions
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- some flour to dredge
- 1/2 cup chopped blanched kale (you can use 1/4 cup chopped parsley instead, I just happened to have this leftover frozen blanched kale and wanted to use it).



RECIPE:
- in a large bowl, mix all the ingredients except the flour and mix until well combined

- form into small balls (this batch yielded about 100 mini-meatballs for me)

- dredge in the flour and either use immediately or freeze.

Note: freeze the meatballs in a single layer, and transfer in a ziploc bag once they are frozen. This way they will not stick together.
- enjoy!