Category Archives: Savory

Avgolemono is one of my favorite soups of all time. It features the perfect combination of lemon & egg to create a creamy soup. This pasta a similar technique as one would use to make avogolemono but applies it to pasta and makes it a sauce.

Spicy Rosemary Turkey Meatballs add the perfect contrast. Turkey meatballs, and ground turkey is a staple for work week lunch and dinner prep, here’s how I make them.

1. Assemble meatballs. Add finely chopped shallot, rosemary, parsley, and sage to large bowl with ground turkey. Salt and pepper to taste and add garlic powder.

2. Add one egg, breadcrumbs and 1/2 lemon worth of lemon juice. Mix together. Add Calabrian chillis according to desired spice level. Amount listed above is mild.

3. Cook meatballs. Heat pan at medium heat, add drizzle of olive oil to the pan. Form meatballs and cook on each side until golden brown. Finish cooking in oven at 350 for an additional 10-15 minutes until fully cooked (dependent on the size of your meatball).

4. Assemble sauce. In a small bowl, whisk too eggs and 1 lemon worth of lemon juice. S&P to taste.

5. Bowl pasta according to packaging instructions. Reserve a small amount of pasta water before draining. I used a small espresso glass about half full.

6. Temper the egg mixture. Add a small amount of the pasta water to the egg mixture, no more than a TBSP and quickly whisk and temper the eggs.

6. Drain pasta and turn off the heat, remove the pot from the heat. Add drained pasta back into the pot. Add in egg mixture while quickly mixing.

7. Add pecorino to pasta. Place pot back on the portion of your stove you used to cook the pasta, but do not turn on. Quickly stir the pasta until the mixture thinkers and remove from heat once it does.

8. Garnish with herbs & pecorino, serve and enjoy!

Pickled zucchini recipes here.

Ingredients:

• 1 can of hummus
• 1 lemon worth of lemon juice
• 1/4 cup of tahini
• 10 green onions
• 1 TBSP of chopped dill
• 2 TBSP of olive oil
• S&P to taste

1. Char green onions. In a pan at high heat, add green onions until charred on all sides.

2. Add all ingredients to a blender, add cold water by TBSP and blend until fully incorporated.

It’s chopped salad szn!!!!

How I served it. I served this dressing with a finely chopped Romaine lettuce, castelvetrano olives, kalamta olives, red onion and feta.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup of olive oil
• 1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup of lemon juice
• 1 bulb of roasted garlic
• 1/4 cup of chives
• 1/4 cup of artichoke hearts
• 1/4 cup of finely shredded Parmesan
• S&P to taste

Combine in food processor and blend until fully incorporated.

What makes it different from a traditional carbonara? Chives, basil & Italian flat leaf parsley seamlessly integrated to the egg mixture.

Traditional carbonara recipe here

Another Trader Joe’s meal prep for your repertoire.

Ingredients:

• 10 oz of Tuscan Kale
• 1/2 lemon worth of lemon
• 1 yellow onion
• 3-5 cloves of garlic
• 3-5 sprigs of basil, chopped
• 3-5 sprigs of parsley, chopped
• 8 oz can of chickpeas
• 1 eggplant, diced
• 4 TBSP of EVOO, separated
• S&P to taste
• 2 TBSP of paprika, separated
• 1/4 cup of grated pecorino Romano
• Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage

1. Sauté kale. Add 1 TBSP of olive oil to a pan at medium-low heat.
2. Add finely chopped garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes.
3. Slowly add chopped kale, coat in olive oil and garlic. S&P to taste.
4. Add chopped parsley & basil.
5. Add lemon juice and cook until halved in size, not completely wilted but still has a crunch to it.
6. Roast eggplant. Heat oven to 350. Add chopped eggplant, tossed in 1 TBSP of olive oil, S&P to taste, and 1 TBSP of paprika.
7. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, increase heat to 450 for final moments of cooking.
8. Caramelized onions. At medium-low heat, add 1 TBSP of EVOO to a pan. Add sliced onion. S&P to taste.
9. Cook until golden in color for approximately 20-30 minutes depending on temperature.
10. Crisp Chickpeas. Add final TBSP of olive oil to pan at medium-high heat.
11. Drain chickpeas, and rinse. Add chickpeas to pan and coat in paprika and S&P to taste.
12. Cook until crispy, for approximately 15 minutes stirring occasionally.
13. Remove, and allow to cool.
14. Cook chicken sausage. Slice sausage into 1/4 inch thick slices.
15. Cook in air frier at 370 for 15 minutes.
16. Assemble. Add all together, sprinkle with pecorino and enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas (with a handful set aside)
• 1 TBSP of tahini
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 TBSP of olive oil (separated)
• 1 avocado
• 1/2 lime worth of lime juice
• 2 TBSP of chopped basil & parsley
• S&P to taste
• 1 TBSP of paprika
• 1 TBSP of water

1. Assemble hummus. Rinse chickpeas, and add to food processor with tahini, garlic, 1 TBSP of olive oil, and avocado. Combine on high, add water 1 TBSP at a time to aid in blending / incorporation.
2. Once fully incorporated, add parsley & basil and pulse to combine.
3. Crisp chickpeas. Heat pan at medium heat, add remaining EVOO.
4. Toss remaining chickpeas in S&P and paprika until fully coated.
5. Add to pan, cook for 10-15 minutes or until desired crisp is reached.

Ingredients:

• 2 fresh jalapeños
• 1/4 cup of finely chopped fresh cilantro, dill & parsley
• 4 green onions
• 1/4 cup of tahini
• 1/4 cup of olive oil
• 1 fresh avocado
• 1 lime worth of lime juice
• 1/2 cup of green yogurt
• S&P to taste

1. Roast jalapeños. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Add jalapeños on a baking tray and roast for 20 minutes or until skin is blistered.
2. Remove jalapeños and allow to cool. Remove stems and seeds (the more seeds, the more heat).
3. Combine in food processor. Add jalapeños, cilantro, dill, parsley, green onions (without stems), tahini, olive oil, avocado, lemon juice & green yogurt to food processor. S&P to taste.
4. Combine until fully incorporated and blended. Use your discretion based upon consistency to add a TSP of water at a time to reach desired consistency.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of chicken thighs
• 2 TBSP of paprika
• 2 TSP of salt & pepper
• 1 TBSP of olive oil
• 5-7 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup of chopped parsley
• 1/4 cup of chopped basil
• 1 TBPS of olive juice
• 1 lemons worth of lemon juice
• 1/2 of a red onion, roughly chopped
• 8 oz of cherry tomatoes
• 1/4 cup of kalamata olives
• 1/4 cup of green olives
• 1 lb of asparagus, chopped into equal parts
• 1 TBSP of olive oil
• S&P to taste
• 1/2 lemons worth of lemons juice

1. Marinate chicken. In large bowl, add chicken thighs (skinless if that’s your preference). Cover completely in paprika, salt and pepper, olive oil, garlic, parsley, basil, olive juice and lemon juice. Mix chicken so each piece is completely covered.
2. Allow chicken to marinate for at least one hour.
3. Marinate Asparagus. Add roughly chopped asparagus into a bowl. Add olive oil, lemon juice and S&P.
4. Mix until fully incorporated, cover and allow to sit in fridge for at least an hour.
5. First round of cooking. Heat oven to 350. Line baking sheet with parchment paper and add chicken evenly spaced around the tray.
6. Add red onions and olives around the chicken.
7. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.
8. Second round of cooking. Remove tray from oven and increase heat to 400.
9. Add cherry tomatoes evenly around the chicken.
10. Bake at 400 for 5-7 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Optional, heat oven to a broil at last 2 minutes to create extra crispy texture.
11. Finishing touches. Remove from oven. Add marinated asparagus around chicken. Top with extra basil and parsley.

Spatchcock chicken is a great way to make an entire chicken in less time. This is also great if you don’t have a traditional roasting pan.

Some stores do sell pre-spatchcock chicken. Otherwise, you’d have to do it yourself, which is a lot easier than it appears but understandably something which may be intimidating. Here’s a great guide on how to spatchcock a chicken.

Ingredients:

• 1 whole spatchcocked chicken
• 3 lemons
• 1/4 cup of butter, softened
• 1/4 cup of parsley finely chopped
• 1/4 cup of sage, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup of rosemary finely chopped
• 5-8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• S&P to taste
• 1 TBSP of paprika
• 1/2 TSP of onion powder

1. Make garlic herb butter. Combine softened butter, herbs and garlic until fully incorporated.
2. Season the skin. Take spatchcocked chicken. Peel back skin from breast & thighs. The skin should easily separate.
3. Take the garlic herb butter and place underneath the skin, on the breasts and thighs. Try to ensure that as much of the herb mixture stays below the skin as possible.
4. Squeeze 2 lemons worth of lemon juice on top of the chicken.
5. Mix salt, pepper and paprika. Add spice mixture on top of chicken. For best results, allow to marinate overnight.
6. Slice remaining lemon into slices. Place as many desired on or around the chicken for baking.
7. Bake chicken. Heat oven to 350. Place chicken on baking sheet with raised grate. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.
8. At the 1 hour marker, remove chicken and baste. If desired, coat with 2 TBSP of chicken broth to help process.
9. Place chicken back into oven. Cook for an additional half an hour or until the internal temperature of your chicken is 165. The cooking time will vary depending on the size of your chicken, and the temperature is the best indication.

Ingredients:

• 1 head of cauliflower
• S&P to taste
• 2 TBSP of EVVO
• 1 TBSP of paprika
• 2 TBSP of garlic powder
• 2 TBSP of chili infused honey
• 2 TBSP of flour

1. Heat oven to 425.
2. Cut cauliflower florets from stem, cutting the larger pieces in half. Add to bowl.
3. Coat with EVOO. Add S&P, paprika, garlic powder, and honey. Mix throughly.
4. Sprinkle flour on top and mix throughly.
5. For best results, bake on baking tray with lifted grate. Evenly layer cauliflower.
6. Bake on 425 for 15 minutes and flip. Cook for an additional 10 minutes or until crispy.
7. Serve & enjoy!