Bruschetta Burgers

I really shouldn’t exhaust all my burger toppings before Mr. J’s bday in June. I always make a special never-before-had burger and I just made this Parisian Burger which was unbelievable. Now a rockstar bruschetta topped burger? How am I gonna top this one too? Seriously. I’m asking. How am I gonna come up with a special one in June?

The Three Bite Rule - Bruschetta Burger

Ingredients:

1/2 pound ground beef, chicken, turkey
2 burger buns
sea salt & black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic, chopped
6-8 fresh basil leaves, rolled up and chopped chiffonade
tomato, chopped
1 tsp Italian Dressing
2 slices fresh mozzarella
3 tbs mayo
1 tsp balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Heat the grill, or grill pan.
Mix the ground meat with a teaspoon of the chopped basil, garlic, salt and pepper.

The Three Bite Rule - Bruschetta Burger
Form into two patties.
Grill the burgers.
While burgers are cooking, mix together the tomato, basil, and salad dressing.

The Three Bite Rule - Bruschetta Burger
Mix together the mayo and balsamic.
Top the burgers on the grill with the mozzarella until melted.
Assemble the burgers with bruschetta topping and spread balsamic mayo onto the bun.

The Three Bite Rule - Bruschetta Burger
I loved this burger. I used ground chicken which cooked perfectly. It was juicy and the tomato and basil are a perfect match. The mozzarella stretched as far as a bite could take it, and the mayo had this fantastic tang. It was such an easy burger theme for anytime.

Leftover basil? Use it for creamy tomato basil pasta, or white bean and basil dip/spread, or strawberry basil sangria, or caprese stuffed chicken.

Any burger topping ideas I haven’t tried yet?

Calzone with Cabbage and flavors of a Reuben

One of my favorite pizza places is Portland Pie Company. I love seeing what their seasonal menu offers. I spotted a reuben inspired sandwich and thought I could vegetarian-ize it to skip the corned beef. I made it into a calzone and it was totally different than any others I’ve made. It has cabbage, peppers, swiss cheese, caramelized onions, and 1000-island dressing.

The Three Bite Rule - Reuban Inspired Veggie Calzone

Ingredients:

pizza dough
1/2 cabbage
2 tbs red wine vinegar
1 tsp whole grain mustard
1/4 red onion
1/2 bell pepper (green, yellow, orange)
8 oz swiss cheese
1/4 cup mayo
2 tbs ketchup
2 tbs relish
2 tbs onion, finely diced
salt & black pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven (and pizza stone, if using one) to 400-degrees. Chop the cabbage into thin slivers. Heat a large skillet to medium heat. Add the mustard and the vinegar, stirring to combine. Add in the cabbage, tossing to combine. The Three Bite Rule - Reuban Inspired Veggie Calzone
Cook for 5 minutes until softened, then remove from the heat. In a small skillet, caramelize the onions over medium heat. When the onions get tan-colored and caramelized, add the green onion chunks. Cook for 3-5 minutes. In a small jar, add mayo, ketchup, relish, onion, salt, and black pepper. The Three Bite Rule - Reuban Inspired Veggie Calzone
Shake up the 1000 island jar and taste. The Three Bite Rule - Reuban Inspired Veggie Calzone
Stretch the pizza dough out into a flat and even circle. Lay the dough onto a pan or pizza stone so the part of the dough that will become the bottom. Layer the cabbage, the onions and peppers, swiss cheese, and some teaspoons of 1000 island dressing. The Three Bite Rule - Reuban Inspired Veggie Calzone
Keep layering all the fillings to fill (and what feels like over-filling) the calzone. Fold the top over and pinch to close. Cut a few slits in the top to vent. Bake 30-minutes. The Three Bite Rule - Reuban Inspired Veggie Calzone
Let rest 5 minutes before slicing. The Three Bite Rule - Reuban Inspired Veggie Calzone
This was good. Maybe not amazing, but really good. I loved the acid of the vinegar, the light mustard flavor, and the creamy sweet 1000 island dressing. The veggies were crunchy and I liked that the swiss got to shine. I don’t eat corned beef but I can definitely see people liking that.

suggested adaptations: 
Reuben calzone + corned beef = a true reuben calzone
reuben calzone – pizza dough + wonton wrappers = reuben eggrolls

I like the idea of sandwiches as calzones, or pizzas for that matter. I’ve done a cheeseburger calzone that is sandwich inspired, and a sausage and peppers calzone that is sort of like a sandwich. Hmmm. Maybe my next calzone will be along the lines of a sandwich.

Warm Bacon Vinaigrette Dressing

In an attempt to throw together an easier dinner, I let this salad get out of control. I just kept adding and adding and adding ingredients.

The salad started with some basics, then I kept adding things to heft it up. That’s when I added a hard boiled egg. Then I figured white beans would be good. I had some carrots that just needed to be roasted.  Then some bread from the freezer became cheesy garlic bread. There was a lot happening on this salad.
The Three Bite Rule - Warm Bacon Vinaigrette
The dressing was a bit underwhelming. I loved the bacon flavor added to the salad. I don’t know if I’d make it again.

Ingredients:

2 slices of bacon
3 tbs red wine vinegar
3 tbs olive oil

Directions:

Fry the bacon until crisp. Cut into small pieces.
The Three Bite Rule - Warm Bacon Vinaigrette
Drain most of the fat and discard.
In the same pan, over low heat, whisk in the vinegar and olive oil.
The Three Bite Rule - Warm Bacon Vinaigrette

Cook for about 2 minutes, and remove from the heat.
The Three Bite Rule - Warm Bacon Vinaigrette

Add in the bacon pieces and pour over salad.
The Three Bite Rule - Warm Bacon Vinaigrette
The salad was good. It was just a lot going on. Between roasting the carrots, toasting up some garlic bread, boiling the egg, and then chopping all the ingredients. I need salad for dinner more often. Maybe I should have skipped the egg and tomato, just to simplify it.

Do you make dressing? Any tips for me?

Roasted Onion Jam

I gave fewer food gifts this year. I’m not always sure how well they go over. Everyone used to get one but it meant a few things to make in the final few days of holiday prep and food might not really be a gift to everyone. I know Momma R likes them, so she got onion jam this year. It was really simple and packed with flavor. I thought this could have a million uses and figured it would be something new since I’ve made Bacon Jam before. Don’t worry. Go ahead and pin the bacon jam recipe or bookmark it. I’ll wait.

Ok, welcome back. How amazing is bacon jam? Well, I have no words. One of my favorite things to eat, ever. The bacon jam requires a few more steps and I figured onion jam would be super versatile and would be easy enough to do while I had other things cooking. I gave it as a gift with a spreader and now I’m thinking it would make a nice hostess gift in a basket with some appetizer plates or with a baguette or something. How fun, right? I’ll have to remember that 😉

This is also super easy to make and let it do it’s own thing. I roasted the onions while I had other stuff in the oven, but this could easily be prepped in stages popping it into the fridge until the next time you had a few minutes. It would be pretty easy to do on the stovetop too. The hardest part is not crying while slicing up the onions.

Ingredients:

3 white or yellow onions
1 tbs butter
2 tbs olive oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tbs garlic, chopped
1 tbs fresh thyme
2 medium roma tomatoes (remove the seeds if you’re into the esthetics)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400-degrees.
Chop onions into slivers (or chunks).
Roast the onions, butter, and olive oil in a baking dish, or a sheet pan that has sides.
Onions will roast for 30-45 minutes or they can cook in a dutch oven to speed the process up.
Once the onions are golden brown and caramelized, add them to a large pot over medium heat with the vinegar and brown sugar.
The Three Bite Rule - Roasted Onion JamCover and cook, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes.
By now a lot of the liquid will have reduced. Taste it. If you think it is too strong add some water (about a quarter or half cup).
Now add the tomatoes (optional) and thyme.
Cover and cook for another 20 minutes over medium heat.
The Three Bite Rule - Onion Jam

Turn off heat and allow to cool at room temperature.
I liked how chunky and “rustic” it was but you could give it a pulse or two in a food processor if you wanted it smoother.
Store in a glass jar. Enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Onion Jam
The flavors in this onion jam are unbelievable. It’s quite sweet from the brown sugar (and caramelized onions) but tart from the vinegar. A little goes a long way. I think it would be fantastic on a burger or in grilled cheese. It could go on a flatbread or just as a dip…I picture it warm or room temperature, spooned on top of some warmed cream cheese. I would love it as a spread on a sandwich or panini. Onion jam could even get stuffed into chicken breasts before baking them. Don’t even think for a second I wouldn’t put a few dollops onto pizza or pasta. The possibilities are endless.

Whip this up for company. You can do all the work (and clean-up) days in advance and then it will make hosting your meal super easy. It would freeze well too so make a double batch and you’ll thank yourself later.

some suggested adaptations:
this onion jam recipe – thyme + rosemary/chives/fennel/oregano/whatever herbs you like = you own fav flavors
this onion jam recipe – tomatoes + roasted garlic cloves = different flavor
this onion jam recipe – apple cider vinegar + balsamic vinegar = less acidic taste
this onion jam recipe – tomatoes + sun dried tomatoes/roasted red peppers/tomato sauce = a more pantry-ready option

 

Brussels Sprouts with Apples and Mustard Dressing

I love brussels sprouts. I was wanted a really fall-inspired side dish. This was a really quick side dish that actually has tons of room for customization. I used Israeli couscous because it is really fast and versatile especially for a his & hers night. I don’t eat red meat and Mr. J isn’t into fish so we share side dishes. Mr. J had some venison tenderloin and I made some shrimp.

The brussels sprouts dish was sweet from the honey mustard and has really crisp apples. It is really comforting and took less than 15-minutes to whip up.
brussels_cous_bowl_590_390

Ingredients:

2-3 cups brussels sprouts, halved or quartered
1 cup Israeli couscous
1 cup vegetable broth
1 cup water
1 medium apple, chopped
3 tbs dijon mustard
3 tbs honey

Directions:

Heat a medium stock pot to medium heat.
Add couscous and 1 tbs olive oil, stirring to toast couscous.
brussels_cous_couscous_590_390
In a large flat pan over medium heat, add brussels sprouts, and 1 tbs butter or oil.
brussels_cous_bruss_590_390
Add 1 cup of vegetable broth and 1 cup of water to the couscous, stirring well and reducing heat to medium-low.
Cook the couscous through, about 4 minutes.
Mix up the mustard and honey.
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Add the couscous and honey mustard dressing to the brussels sprouts.
Stir well, turn off heat, and add the apples.
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Gently stir again and serve.
brussels_cous_bowl_590_390
Couscous is a pasta so there’s literally zero health benefit from it. I like the soft nutty flavor from couscous but this brussels sprout side dish would be good with brown rice, or barley, or quinoa, or beans. There’s a lot of nutritious alternatives. Nuts would be good in here for crunch. I love the honey mustard with the apples but you could swap the apples for dried cranberries.