Teriyaki turkey burgers with Pineapple Salsa

I asked a couple weeks ago "what is your ultimate burger" to my neglected Facebook fan page. A high school friend Michele, replied Teriyaki turkey burgers with a slice of pineapple. That sounds good. Thanks for the inspiration!

I'm a huge turkey burger fan. In fact I prefer ground turkey over hamburger. Unfortunately my kids are not so much. They tolerate it. I can use it without worry in spaghetti, tacos, meatloaf and such but Burgers always get a bad "uhh where's the beef?" I really have to dress up the turkey.

I really planned on grilling some fresh Pineapple but the Pineapple I bought was a little too ripe. I was only able to get enough for my Pineapple Salsa (for shrimp tacos) but then thought, "what the heck!" Lets try it on the burgers! It was great!

Teriyaki turkey burgers with Pineapple Salsa
Ground turkey
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs or any sort
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce
1 TB fresh grated Ginger root
1 TB crushed garlic
2 TB cilantro

Mix Burgers up and cover both sides with a little olive oil.


Grill until cooked thoroughly.


Cover with Pineapple Salsa! It is easy to make. In fact you can make it up while the burgers cook!

Pineapple Salsa
Chop and dump the following items;
1 small red onion
1/2 of a fresh pineapple chopped into small chunks
1 jalapeno seeded and minced
handful of cilantro chopped (no stems please)

Squeeze one lime over and stir well. Its that easy! Refrigerate while you cook the shrimp.

Grilled Vegetable Sandwich with Garlic Mayonnaise

The Fireman calls this chic food. I guess you could call it vegetarian although I don't know about the mayo. To be honest I am too much of a meat eater to know what constitutes as vegetarian!! I find I crave this sandwich in the summer when you don't require as heavy of a sandwich. My favorite is topping it with sprouts but I can't be bothered to go to the store while soaking up the sun!

I'm grilling only the vegetables I need for my sandwich. Slice or two of eggplant, zucchini sliced lengthwise, onions, and bell pepper.

Heat your grill pan.

Rub with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place oil side down on the grill. Repeat the process on the other side.

Grill til perfect.

While grilling toss enough mayo for how many sandwiches you are making into a bowl with one clove of garlic minced (one clove per sandwich) and just a tad (tsp) of parsley. Mix well.

Assemble sandwich.

Enchilada Casserole

On most days when the Fireman is working I starve the kids. Ya right. We just eat "stuff" he wouldn't eat for dinner. Tonight I am bringing him dinner. It only happens maybe twice a month. He needs dinner tonight. I have asked over and over again "what would you like?" and I keep getting non descript answers. "what ever is easiest for you". Great!

Enchilada Casserole is a busy day recipe. You literally throw it all together. You could assemble in the morning, refrigerate all day and cook at night. This is great to assemble and freeze too. I'm using cheap hamburger but you could use ground turkey or chicken. If you use chicken, swap out the red sauce for green.

Enchilada Casserole
2 LB ground beef/hamburger
1 onion diced
1 can Ortega chilis diced
1 pack of Corn Tortillas
1 cup Sour cream
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese for filling
1 cups shredded cheddar cheese for topping
(Monterrey Jack or Mexican blend works great too)

Brown the beef with the onion and chilis. Salt and pepper to taste. Don't over salt. The sauce is salty. Drain off all the fat.

Mix the beef with the sour cream and cheese. This will be your filling.

Spray 9x13 casserole pan with cooking spray. Pour enough sauce in the pan to coat the bottom and be generous. My family hates a dry enchilada.

Place a layer of tortillas on the bottom of the saucy tray. Tear the tortillas to completely cover all areas.

Cover the tortillas with the filling.

Cover the meat with more tortillas and cover with sauce.

Start the process all over again repeating until you are out of filling or the pan is full.
Cover the top with the remaining cup of cheese.

Bake 350 oven for 30 minutes. You are only heating and melting the cheese since the filling is cooked.

Let sit five minutes before cutting into generous squares and devouring.

Chocolate Chip Muffins

The Fireman complains that I don't bake as much as I used to. Good grief have you seen my spare tire? It is true. In the early parts of our marriage I baked all the time. It's my blood. My grandmother baked. When she took on the role of being our Guardian Angle, my grandfather took over. He would bake so many cookies that the grumpy old man got the nickname of the "Cookie Monster" but he loved it. He would drop containers to each of the Fire Stations and the Forestry Service where he was employed.

But something happened as I cooked more than I baked. I found this freedom to make each dish my own. Baking is a science. A precise measurement. I don't measure when I cook. Measuring to bake became almost too rigid. So I ended up baking less and less. I have oodles of baking recipes. I will try to include some with each new menu.

My grandmother believed in eating dessert for breakfast. Pie, a piece of cake or even a cookie was acceptable. You see why us grandchildren loved her!!

I have to hide my chocolate chips from The Ballplayer. He will take the entire bag unintentionally to his room. He doesn't mean to. They just beg him to eat them.


Chocolate chip muffins

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. I don't think I have cupcake wrappers so I just spray the bejeezers out of the muffin tin.

In a bowl gather all your dry ingredients
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder

In another bowl (I use a 4 cup measuring pitcher) gather your wet ingredients.
1 cup whole milk
1 egg
1/3 cup plus 1 TB vegetable oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Mix the dry with the wet (don't over mix!!!) And then add 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Pour batter into muffin pan, about 3/4 the way. I am guilty of over filling. But this batter does well for over filling.

Now sprinkle chocolate chips over the batter. About seven each but who's counting?

Bake for 20 minutes and then hide from the kids.

Oops a child found me taking pictures of muffins! I tried!

Shrimp Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

Finally! A Taco Tuesday that I don't have any baseball to run off to! Don't get me wrong, I love baseball. And not only because My Ballplayer is amazing at it, but because it is slow enough that I understand it! But enough of that for tonight. Tonight I am making Shrimp Tacos with Pineapple Salsa. The Shrimp is a recipe I have done before. It is so simple. Toss some garlic, olive oil and some Chipotle Adobo and grill them up! Add some Pineapple Salsa and you almost feel like you are on vacation. Almost!

Here's the tip on frozen shrimp. Leave them frozen. Dump into a colander and run some COLD water over. They will defrost in a minute. Drain off really good. I actually line my bowl with a couple paper towels and dump the shrimp onto it. Let sit a minute and then pull the paper towel out from under it.

Shrimp Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

You actually need to make the salsa first. But it only takes a couple minutes.

Pineapple Salsa
Chop and dump the following items;
1 small red onion
1/2 of a fresh pineapple chopped into small chunks
1 jalapeno seeded and minced
handful of cilantro chopped (no stems please)

Squeeze one lime over and stir well. Its that easy! Refrigerate while you cook the shrimp.


Chipotle Shrimp
1 bag of uncooked frozen shrimp (get the biggest the store has)
2 TB chipotle adobo sauce ( that's the tomato sauce the chipotle peppers are packed in)
1 clove of garlic minced
juice of one lime
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 pack of corn tortillas
bag of shredded cabbage (you only about a cup)

Dump onto the raw shrimp the 2 TB chipotle adobo sauce ( that's the tomato sauce the chipotle peppers are packed in), 1 clove of garlic minced, and the juice of one lime (same lime you zested). Drizzle a little olive oil and some salt and pepper.

Mix well and let sit for 10 minutes.


While the shrimp are marinading, place the grill pan on the stove and turn on to high. Let it get smoking hot!
Spray the grill pan with some cooking spray. Place the shrimp in a even layer on the grill pan. By the time you get each on onto the pan it will be time to flip. I am stickler on this! Do not over cook the shrimp. They cook literally a minute on each side! You want them juicy and cooked perfectly! Dump onto a plate and cover loosely with foil. (just to keep them warm) This also keeps my husband from eating them all before I stuff them into tortillas.


Assemble the tacos! I place four shrimps in two warmed corn tortillas (we double the tortillas), top with Pineapple Salsa and shredded Cabbage.

Easy Peasy Spanish Rice

The only way Spanish rice gets easier is to buy it from the corner Mexican restaurant. And I am guilty of that. My son LOVES Spanish rice. He likes it flavorful. I like it more bland since all my Mexican dishes are pretty full of flavor. This is a compromise.
I am using regular rice versus minute rice. You can use whatever is easiest for you. You can even use brown rice. The measurements for liquid are based on the rice I am using. Regular rice is a 2 to 1 ratio water/rice. Minute rice is 1 to 1. Adjust accordingly.

Easy Peasy Spanish Rice
1 cup rice
1 can diced tomatoes (I prefer with jalapenos and onions but only have regular. Use what you like) undrained
1/2 cup diced onions
1 clove garlic minced
1 small can tomato sauce
1/4 cup water
1 TB olive oil

In a medium sauce pan cook the onions until translucent. Do not brown. Do this over medium heat.

Add the garlic and just cook it but again do not brown it.

Add the uncoiled rice. Turn heat up. You want to coat ever piece with the oil in the pan. Toast it gently. You really aren't looking for any color.

Add the tomatoes (tomatoes with jalapenos would be great, but you know I cant!), tomato sauce and water. (you could add 1/2 tsp of cumin but then I wouldn't be compromising would I?) Bring to a boil. Cover and turn heat down to low. Set a timer for 20 minutes. Do not over cook.


Serve with you favorite tacos or top with shrimp or chicken. I'm serving mine with Enchilada Casserole.

Lemon Garlic Stir Fry

I am craving junk food in the worst way. Thankfully I need to take The Fireman dinner tonight. This is easy, fast and very good for you. You could bypass the carb loaded rice and have a healthy dish. Don't be too literal with the veggies I used. You can use whatever you have on hand or even a bag from the veggie isle or the freezer.

Forgive some of the dark photos. I could find my camera. In between flipping chicken I finally found it dead in The Ballplayers room. Finally found some hidden rechargeable batteries which I charged while cooking. I tried to take some photos with my iPhone but it's not the best. I finally got the batteries charged enough to take a final pic.

2 chicken breasts sliced into strips
2 zucchini sliced into half domes
1 yellow squash sliced
1 bell pepper sliced
3 cup broccoli cut into small florets
1 green onion sliced
4 cloves garlic minced
2 TB Marsala
1 lemon

Coat the bottom of a pan with some oil. I used olive oil. You can use whatever you have or even butter. Butter would have been great but my conscience took over and olive oil ended in the pan. Cook the chicken over medium high heat. Season with lemon pepper seasoning

Place the chicken on a plate. Set aside.

Put all the veggies into the pan except for the green onions and garlic. Season with salt and pepper.

Here is where I over cooked in search of the camera. Not advised. I like the veggies a little crunchy but cooked. Add the garlic and green onions.

Add Marsala and finish cooking the veggies.
Serve over rice or by itself.