A New Business and Turkey Meatballs with Blackberry Barbeque Sauce

Where has the time gone?

Seems like just yesterday we were complaining about the heat and humidity of mid-summer. And now, suddenly, we've jumped full-on into the lap of autumn.

I'm not one to complain, as I really love it when there's a slight chill in the air and the breeze smells of musty leaves. But, I'm shocked that I didn't even see it coming this year.

One of the reasons is that I've been spending quite a bit of my free time doing research, talking with designers, and crunching numbers for a new endeavor that Peef and I are taking on this fall.

The business will be called "From Milwaukee With Love" and it will be an online retail store specializing in gift boxes filled with artisan food products made right here in the Milwaukee area. 

The concept has been a long-time in coming - and more details are forthcoming - but for now, let's suffice it to say it's been a labor of love that's really served to bring together my freelance writing, my love for the city of Milwaukee, and my desire to really showcase all the amazing food that's being produced right here.

I won't bore you with too many of the details here, but I'll let you know when we get things up and running, and you'll be able to follow our progress on Facebook and Twitter in the upcoming weeks.  Until then, I hope to keep up with at least a modicum of the recipe development and delicious food sharing I've always enjoyed so much here at Burp!

For today, I figured I'd dig down in my recipe file and share something deliciously different -- but seriously useful. I know you've all got football parties and family gatherings coming up, so I thought I'd take the time to share a recipe that should come in handy for any number of those things.

Barbequed meatballs commonly make their appearance on appetizer spreads or church pot-lucks. This homemade version made with blackberry barbeque sauce capture all the sweet-tart-vinegary goodness of a traditional sauce, while offering up a beautiful color and distinctly fresh flavor. 

Meatballs made with turkey lighten things up a bit, but maintain a rich flavor and caramelized exterior when browned in real butter. And this recipe is perfectly amiable to the use of either fresh or frozen berries, so you don't have to wait for the next batch of fresh berries to make it happen.

Serve as part of your next party spread, or simply served alongside mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables for a distinctly different weeknight meal.

Blackberry Turkey Meatballs

©BURP!

The Best of Burp! 2012

 Difficult to believe we're coming to the end of another great year. As it gets to be this time, we always find ourselves looking back, reflecting, and planning for what's ahead -- and that includes a whole new look for 2013. We've been working with a friend and very talented graphic designer, Noel Tanner, to revamp our logo and give the site a bit of a new look in 2013.  If you want a preview, check out our new icon on Facebook. Otherwise, just stay tuned.

In the meantime, we'd like to thank you for your readership, your comments, and your feedback. Burp! wouldn't couldn't exist without you!

As a thanks to all of you, we figured we'd share the top 12 posts on Burp! from 2012 (in order of popularity) ... just in case you missed them.

Top 12 Posts of 2012
These are in order of popularity, # 1 being the most popular post.

1. Crockpot Turkey Meatloaf and Lessons Learned
2. Sweet and Spicy Butter Roasted Chickpeas
3. Roasted Radishes with Tarragon Butter
4. Kicking off Grilled Cheese Month: Melthouse Bistro
5. St. Patrick's Day Recipes
6. No Fuss Spiral Sliced Ham with Pineapple Chutney
7. Coffee Rubbed Ribeye with Chipotle Butter
8. Wonton Crisps - Four Ways
9. Roasted Cauliflower with Rosemary Browned Butter
10. Uses for Sumac: Za'atar Potatoes
11. Easy Baked Chimichangas
12. Creamed Celeriac Soup with Potatoes, Sausage, and Kale 
    

Share in the Comments

As always, we're always listening and open to your feedback.  What was YOUR favorite post? What would you like to see more of in 2013?

©BURP! 

Crockpot Turkey Meatloaf and Lessons Learned

 This isn't the first time that we've admitted to you that, sometimes, recipes don't turn out exactly the way we'd hoped.  And, undoubtedly, it won't be the last.  After all, we feel pretty strongly that blogging isn't only about sharing the wins and making yourself look like an all-star culinary genius. Sometimes, it's more about sharing the journey. And about all the things we've learned along the way.

So, today, let's talk meatloaf.

This was our first attempt at crockpot meatloaf. And it's not likely to be our last.  But, if we attempt this recipe again, there will definitely be some tweaking.

First, some great things about this recipe.  We managed to create a deliciously tender loaf using only ground turkey -- not a small feat, if you've ever made turkey meatloaf before. The trick, add a grated apple to the filling.

We also learned a great new aluminum foil trick to make it easier to remove a crockpot meatloaf from your slow cooker.  A few strips of strategically placed foil make all the difference -- and you won't have to fiddle around trying to get a spatula down into and underneath your meatloaf ever again.

Another great thing about this meatloaf was the flavor.  Herbs de Provence adds a great counterpoint to the subtle sweetness that the apple adds, and the flavors held up really well to the long slow cooking in the crockpot.

But, there are a few things we'd change.

First, we'd fiddle around with the amount of vegetables we put into the loaf.  While it felt virtuous to get a boatload of extra nutrients into a meatloaf, the additional vegetable "filler" made the meatloaf a bit TOO moist.  Although we're fans of a deliciously tender loaf, we'd prefer one that held up a bit better to slicing.  Before we pull out all the vegetables, though, I think we'll try adding an egg or two to the mix.

We also found that, although quite a number of meatloaf recipes call for you to "flatten" your meatloaf and shape it to the shape of your slow cooker (which, as you can see, we did), in our opinion it resulted in too squatty of a loaf.  So, we won't be doing that next time.

All things considered, this wasn't the worst weeknight meal we've ever had. Especially when served up with a hearty scoop of creamy mashed potatoes and our favorite stovetop braised brussels sprouts with blue cheese.  But, as usual, our cooking is in a constant state of evolution. And so is our meatloaf.

Got any great crockpot meatloaf secrets to share?

Crockpot Turkey Meatloaf

 ©BURP! W here Food Happens

Post-Thanksgiving Turkey Panini with Goat Cheese & Cherry Chutney

I promised there would be talk of the sandwiches we made with our delicious Maple Brined Cherrywood Smoked Turkey. And I can't leave you in suspense any longer.  After all, these little morsels were so stellar that you're going to want to try them out for yourself just as soon as you have some of your own Thanksgiving turkey leftovers on hand.

Before we get to the details of the sandwiches themselves, I'm going to take the opportunity to put in a plug for this cherry chutney recipe, which is quickly becoming one of our all-time favorite condiments.

Though it might not be quite as traditional as your usual cranberry sauce, I'm going to challenge you to consider making up a batch to put right out there on your Thanksgiving table.  It's tart and delicious.  And it goes perfectly with turkey. And stuffing.  It's also delicious spread on one of those dinner rolls you're bound to have left over.

Which brings me to the sandwich at hand.  These little beauties make use of leftover dinner rolls, one of the holiday staples that seem to get thrown out more than re-heated.  So, I like to think that these sandwiches are born of thrift.  They're also super fast to throw together, which makes them the perfect dinner for one of those busy weeknights that become inevitable as the holidays draw closer.

Since the goal here is to make you hungry, let me give you a quick glimpse into the sort of sandwich I'm talking about.  Just imagine a crisp, warm panini-pressed sprouted grain dinner roll spread with a liberal amount of fresh goat cheese, dolloped with cherry chutney and topped with delicious smoked turkey and fresh arugula.  Sweet-tart, tangy, smoky, peppery -- all of these flavors come together in glorious harmony as you bite into this crisp little slider.

Reminiscent of the holidays, but definitely more than just a repeat, these delicious snack-sized sandwiches are sure to please. The best part  is that, since they're small, you can even gobble up more than one.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Eat well. Enjoy family and friends.  We'll lift our glasses to you at our holiday table!

Post-Thanksgiving Panini with Goat Cheese & Cherry Chutney

 
©BURP! Where Food Happens

Near Perfection: Maple Brined Cherrywood Smoked Turkey

Since it's never too early to start thinking about what to prepare for the upcoming holidays, we've decided to share our perspectives on the infamous Thanksgiving bird -- the source of much hype, frustration, and experimentation.

When it comes to turkey, it seems everyone is looking for the same thing – a perfectly browned bird with a crisp exterior and a lusciously juicy interior. We want it to taste great and produce collective “ooohs” and “aaahhhs” when it’s taken from the oven. And I'm not sure any of us really want to spend days and days of effort to get those delicious results.  Especially when there are so many delicious side dishes to turn our attention to!

But, the fact remains that turkeys are notoriously easy to overcook and they often come out of the oven dry and tasteless (Admit it, this has happened to you! It's definitely happened to us!). In addition, your typical grocery store turkey is a mass-produced Broad Breasted White Turkey, factory-farmed and injected with a slew of chemical antibiotics and hormones. So, it’s not necessarily the most healthy or sustainable choice.

So, what's a food-loving, perfection-seeking blogger to do?   Well, we think we might have some suggestions.

First, we opt for a locally raised organic turkey. These birds might be more expensive than regular grocery store birds, but they're well worth the cost. Not only are they good for the environment (just an added bonus, in this case), they are more flavorful than your average bird.  To add to the magic, we like to brine our bird for about 24 hours before setting it up to cook in one of our favorite “kitchen” tools, our Orion Convection Cooker, an outdoor barbeque tool that uses indirect heat, generated by charcoal, to cook (and optionally hot smoke) foods.

I should probably clarify before I begin all my raving that we haven’t been paid to talk about this cool gadget. In fact, it was just dumb luck that got us hooked on backyard convection smoking. We got the Orion Cooker a few years back after spending some time reading the entries in the Orion Community forum while looking for a recipe for ribs. After drooling over entries about succulent smoked ribs, brisket, and chicken, we decided we needed one for our very own. So, we splurged on one for our 10th wedding anniversary. And gosh, we’re glad we made the leap.

Not only does the cooker produce stellar smoked ribs and absolutely fabulous smoked summer corn, but it’s an absolute wonder for cooking turkey. Moist, juicy, and delightfully smoky, we’ve never had a bad turkey come out of the Orion. The best part is, we can produce a full cooked, smoked 12lb Thanksgiving turkey in about an hour and a half.

The biggest time investment we now put into making turkey is tied up in the brining process – and even that is pretty minimal. Our favorite brine is made with maple syrup, soy sauce, garlic, and freshly grated ginger. It provides the perfect subtle flavor for the turkey, and it ensures that even the breast meat of the bird is ultra-moist.

And, oh my, you should smell it while it’s cooking… To. Die. For.

This bird was smoked with cherrywood for an early Thanksgiving celebration with friends. And trust me when I say that everyone was scrambling for the leftovers. We’ll be blogging about an awesome sandwich we made with some of ours in the next few days.

Since we realize that not everyone has access to a smoker or convection cooker, we’d like to assure you that a maple brined turkey roasted conventionally in the oven is also pretty darned impressive. For crisp skin, be sure you start the bird off at a high temperature (and unplug your smoke detectors for a bit) to get the bird nicely browned. Then proceed for the remainder of the cooking time at 350F.

It will take about an hour, but once your kitchen fills up with the smell of that delicious maple turkey, you will wonder why you ever did it any other way.

Maple Brined Turkey – Smoked or Roasted

And be sure to pay a visit to our friends over at Haute Apple Pie.  They're doing a Thanksgiving recipe round-up that shouldn't be missed (including our turkey recipe!)



©BURP! Where Food Happens

Soup. And more Soup: February Soup Night Highlights

It's that time again... time for us to tell you about our monthly soup night & all the joy it brings to a Sunday evening in the middle of winter.

February Soup Night turned out to attract a fantastic mix of both new faces & good old stand-bys.  Everyone brought great dishes to pass, and I'd venture a guess that a pretty great time was had by all.

New faces included Rachel from Cream City Green. You may recall a little fund raiser we did last fall called the Gumbo Git Down -- well, Rachel was the other mastermind behind that event.  We've been trying to keep in touch ever since, so it was great that she and her hubby, Greg, were able to join us this month.

Other welcome new guests included Joe from Eating Milwaukee and Nicole (from On My Table), with husband Nate (of NathanAle's Brewery), who happens to be brewing up some pretty amazing beer. Nate was kind enough to bring a variety pack of his craft brews for us to sample!  And both Joe & Nicole supplied our table with some pretty amazing bread, including this Soda Bread, which was served with beer butter!

We were also pleased to see our good friend Rebecca from CakeWalk, whose return to Soup Night was a particular delight.  After all, she brought samples of a truly amazing cinnamon plum Panna Cotta that you should read about. A.Maze.Ing.

It was a great night of food and conversations, and again we both feel so blessed to have so many great people in our lives. So what did we have??

Here goes...

Roasted Red Pepper and Fennel Soup
This soup is a great remake of a favorite served at one of our favorite local restaurants, Kil@wat.  It brings together the lovely, sweet flavor of roasted red sweet peppers, the pleasantly licoriced aroma of roasted fennel, and a hint of kick from jalapeno peppers.  Whirred together into a soup with leeks, celery, and cream, this soup is one of our favorites.

Creamy Smoked Turkey and Apple Soup
This soup is a brand new addition to our repertoire.  The creamy broth consists of pureed apples and onions, a pinch of thyme and just a hint of cream. But, the soup is made hearty with the addition of carrots, smoked turkey (we used leftover maple brined turkey that we smoked with a bit of applewood), and applewood smoked corn leftover from our summer harvest.

Lasagne Soup
This soup is our variation on the many great Italian inspired soups out there on the Internet.  Chock-full of Sweet Sicilian sausage, basil, oregano, and garlic, this soup is embellished with fire-roasted tomatoes and plenty of fresh spinach. YUM.

The Turkey and Apple soup was the clear favorite since the crock pot containing it was emptied well before 6:00pm. That might be a new record. But since we don't really keep track of that stuff, it's kinda hard to say.

Regardless, all of the soup was devoured and before I knew it, the house was emptied, the dishwasher was humming, and Lo and I were sitting and sipping on a glass of wine in front of the fireplace.

*Phew*
Soup. It's such rewarding work.



©BURP! Where Food Happens
Want more? Read Lo's latest ruminations at FOODCrush, her Milwaukee Magazine blog.

Das Truthahn Ist Sehr Gut: Turkey with Riesling & Sauerkraut

Our last name being "Fredrich" and all, you may have already guessed that there's a bit of German heritage floating around in Peef's veins.  We probably pay homage to that heritage best in the summertime when drinking a nice dark brew & indulging in one of those awesome Wisconsin bratwurst with kraut.  However, this year's turkey feast makes me wonder if we should capitalize on that heritage a bit more often.

Peef first spied the recipe for Turkey with Sauerkraut, Riesling, and Pork Sausages in the latest issue of Saveur magazine.

"You've got to take a look at this,"  Peef said, with that tell-tale drooly look on his face that not-so-secretly declared that he'd experienced love at first sight.

I perused the recipe, first noticing that it called for four pounds of raw sauerkraut.  FOUR POUNDS.  I almost shut down right then and there. After all, four pounds of high quality raw kraut could run upwards of $50 in these parts... unless of course, you know someone who's brewing up a nice 5 gallon crock of fresh kraut made with local cabbage.  Heh. 

I immediately emailed my friend Steph to see if she could part with four pounds of her kraut. Upon her affirmative response, the challenge was ON.

Turkey. Check.
Onions. Check.
Bottles of Riesling. Check.
Locally grown Black Willow Twig apples. Check.

Once we had gathered all the ingredients and thawed the turkey, the process was simple.   There was no brine. No overnight marination. No puttering or futzing.  Just a few simple steps.

First, we chopped up 3-4 of the Black Willow Twig apples into julienned strips.  We mixed the apples with drained sauerkraut and set that mixture aside. We made a bouquet garni with garlic, juniper berries, cloves, thyme, and parsley and tossed it into a large roasting pan. After cleaning and seasoning it, the turkey was stuffed with the sauerkraut-apple mixture and laid atop a bed of Riesling-infused onions, slab bacon, and more sauerkraut. It was topped with more strips of bacon, tightly covered in a cloak of parchment paper and aluminum foil, and left to roast for 3 hours in a 350 degree oven.

We joked that our house was sure to smell like a nursing home with all that kraut cooking away in the oven.  But, the truth is, it wasn't until the last half-hour of baking that we began to smell the delicious odor of the roasted bird -- seeping quietly and subtly out from under the oven door.  It was like a perfume.  Barely sweet, scented with juniper and garlic, and not nearly as "cabbagey" as I'd expected.

It was the easiest turkey I've ever made. And quite possibly one of the most delicious.  The breast meat was meltingly tender, and the dark meat was succulent -- vaguely redolent of the sweetness of the apples, the savory notes of the saurkraut, and the perfume of those mysteriously piney juniper berries, it was a perfect match for the bottle of German Riesling we chose to serve with dinner.

Served here alongside a very delicious herbed stuffing (Peef declared it the "best stuffing ever") with mustard greens and some of that deliciously tender kraut.

Turkey with Riesling & Sauerkraut

Herbed Stuffing with Mustard Greens


©BURP! Where Food Happens
Want more? Read Lo's latest ruminations at FOODCrush, her Milwaukee Magazine blog.