Read Rachael Ray's 30-Minute Get Real Meals Online
Authors: Rachael Ray
Rachael Ray's 30-Minute Get Real Meals (6 page)
These are too easy. Scrambles are my favorite go-to snack. You are only limited by your own imagination when it comes to add-ins for scrambled eggs. Here are a few of my favorite combos.
1
SERVING
| 1 | tablespoon butter |
| 2 | large eggs, beaten |
| 2 | ounces (2 big spoonfuls) cream cheese, softened |
| 2 | tablespoons chopped fresh chives (optional) |
| Salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| A couple slices of smoked salmon, cut into strips |
Heat a small nonstick skillet over medium-low to medium heat. Melt the butter in the hot skillet and beat the eggs with the cream cheese, chives, salt and pepper, using a whisk. The cream cheese breaks up into little pieces and it makes the eggs look lumpy and kinda gross, but it tastes awesome. Add the eggs to the pan and scramble them up. The cream cheese melts into the eggs and makes them ROCK! Scramble the eggs to desired doneness. Stir in the salmon and transfer to a plate.
For Cheryl.
1
SERVING
| 1 | tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) (1 turn of the pan) |
| 1 | patty of Italian sweet sausage or 1 link, split open and casing removed |
| 2 | eggs, beaten |
| 1 | teaspoon (several drops) hot sauce, such as Tabasco |
| Salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| 2 | deli slices sharp provolone, cut into 1-inch dice |
Heat a small nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the EVOO and break up the sausage into the pan. Cook until browned all over, about 5 minutes. Beat the eggs with the hot sauce and salt and pepper. Add the eggs to the sausage and scramble to desired doneness. Add the cheese. Loosely cover the skillet with foil and let stand for 30 seconds or so to start the cheese melting over your scrambles. Slide the sausage scrambles onto your plate and eat.
I always keep a box or bag of chopped broccoli and chopped spinach on hand in the freezer, because they are so useful in so many recipes. If you have trouble separating the broccoli, zap it in the mic on Defrost a couple of minutes.
1
SERVING
| 2 | tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) (eyeball it) |
| 1 | large garlic clove, finely chopped |
| ½ | teaspoon crushed hot red pepper flakes |
| 1 | cup frozen chopped broccoli (a couple handfuls) |
| Salt | |
| 2 | large eggs, beaten |
| Freshly ground black pepper | |
| Shaved Asiago or Parmigiano-Reggiano, for garnish |
Heat a small nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the EVOO, garlic, and red pepper flakes, cook a minute or so, then add the frozen chopped broccoli. When you add the broccoli to the skillet, break it up and let the broc cook off all of its water and fry up a bit at the edges, 3 or 4 minutes. Season the broccoli with a little salt and beat up the eggs with some salt and pepper, too. Add the eggs to the skillet and scramble to desired doneness with the broccoli. Use a vegetable peeler to shave cheese on top of the eggs. YUMMO!
Lamb Mini Burgers on Mixed Salad with Fennel4
SERVINGS
, 3
MINI BURGERS EACH
| 1½ | pounds ground lamb |
| 2 | to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary |
| 1 | large navel orange, zested, then peeled and sectioned or sliced into disks |
| ¼ | red onion, finely chopped |
| Salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| 1 | romaine lettuce heart, chopped |
| 1 | head radicchio, chopped |
| ¼ | red onion, sliced |
| 1 | bulb fennel, trimmed of fronds and tops and quartered lengthwise |
| ¼ | cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley |
| 2 | tablespoons red wine vinegar |
| ¼ | cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) (eyeball it) |
Preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat the broiler to high. Combine the lamb, rosemary, orange zest, chopped red onion, salt, and pepper. Make 12 balls and flatten them into 3-inch meat patties. Grill for 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Hold the cooked patties on a plate under foil.
Combine the lettuces in a shallow bowl with the sliced onion. Cut the core out of the fennel pieces and thinly slice, then add to the salad. Scatter the oranges and parsley around the salad and dress with the vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper, to your taste. Top portions of the salad with 3 mini lamb patties and serve.
4
SERVINGS
, 3
MINI BURGERS EACH
| 1½ | pounds ground sirloin or ground beef, pork, and veal, combined |
| Salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| 1 | egg yolk, beaten |
| ½ | cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (a couple handfuls) |
| 2 | tablespoons tomato paste |
| A handful of chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley | |
| 2 | garlic cloves, finely chopped |
| ½ | to 1 teaspoon crushed hot red pepper flakes |
| Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) for drizzling, plus about ¼ cup for dressing salad | |
| 2 | romaine lettuce hearts, chopped |
| 1 | can (15 ounces) quartered artichoke hearts, drained |
| 1 | jarred roasted red pepper, drained and chopped |
| 4 | or 5 peperoncini peppers, chopped, or ¼ cup hot banana pepper rings, drained |
| ½ | cup pitted good-quality olives, green or black, drained |
| 3 | celery ribs, chopped |
| ¼ | pound Genoa salami or slicing pepperoni, chopped |
| ¼ | pound deli-sliced provolone cheese, chopped |
| 3 | tablespoons red wine vinegar (eyeball it) |
| ½ | pound fresh mozzarella or fresh smoked mozzarella, diced |
| 2 | vine-ripe tomatoes, seeded and diced |
| 1 | cup basil leaves, torn or shredded |
Preheat a grill pan or large nonstick skillet over medium-high or prepare an outdoor grill.
Place the meat in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add the egg yolk, cheese, tomato paste, parsley, garlic, and hot red pepper flakes. Mix the meat and form 12 large meatballs, 2 to 2½ inches each. Flatten the meatballs and form patties. Drizzle
the patties with EVOO and add them to the hot pan or grill. Cook for 3 minutes on each side. Hold the cooked patties on a plate under foil.
On a large platter or in a salad bowl, combine the romaine with the quartered artichoke hearts, roasted red pepper, hot peppers, olives, celery, salami, and provolone. Toss the salad with vinegar first, about 3 tablespoons, then toss with EVOO—up to ¼ cup to your taste. (Just eyeball the amounts.) Season the salad with salt and pepper to taste. Scatter the chopped mozzarella, tomatoes, and basil across the salad. Arrange the cooked mini meatball burgers on top of the arranged antipasto salad.
When dressing an oil and vinegar salad, put the acid on first, then the oil. If you add the EVOO first, the oil keeps the acid from getting to the greens.
There are many flavors of sharp Cheddar out in today’s markets to choose from, so go plain or go wild! Among the choices out there in sharp Cheddars: five-peppercorn, smoked, dill, garlic and herb, roasted garlic, horseradish, chipotle, habanero, jalapeño—on and on!
4
SERVINGS
, 3
MINI BURGERS EACH
| 2 | pounds ground sirloin |
| ½ | cup finely chopped white or yellow onion (1 small onion) |
| 2 | tablespoons Worcestershire sauce |
| 1 | rounded tablespoon grill seasoning, such as McCormick’s Montreal Steak Seasoning, or coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper |
| Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), for drizzling | |
| 12-ounce brick of sharp Cheddar cheese, such as Cabot brand or Cracker Barrel brand, any flavor you like | |
| 3 | romaine lettuce hearts |
| 1 | cup sliced pickles, drained (choose from sweet, half-sour, or dill varieties) |
| 1 | cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved |
DRESSING
| 3 | tablespoons yellow mustard, such as French’s brand |
| 2 | tablespoons apple cider vinegar |
| ½ | cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) (eyeball it) |
| 2 | to 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives |
| 3 | tablespoons drained salad pimientos, or ¼ red bell pepper, finely chopped |
Preheat a grill pan or a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat or preheat an outdoor grill.
Combine the meat with the onion, Worcestershire, and steak seasoning or salt and pepper. Form 12 large meatballs. Flatten the balls into small patties. Drizzle the formed mini patties with EVOO to keep them from sticking to the cooking surface.
Slice the brick of cheese into ¼-inch pieces. Grill or panfry the mini burgers for 3 minutes on each side, then add the cheese to melt over the burgers, closing the lid of your grill to melt the cheese or tenting the mini cheeseburgers loosely with foil.
Coarsely chop the romaine and combine with the sliced pickles and halved tomatoes. Whisk together the mustard and vinegar, then stream in the EVOO. Add the chives and pimientos to the dressing and stir to combine.
Arrange the mini cheeseburgers on the salad and drizzle the yellow mustard dressing over the completed dish.
4
SERVINGS
| 1½ | pounds ground lamb |
| 2 | tablespoons Dijon mustard |
| 2 | garlic cloves, finely chopped |
| A handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped | |
| Salt and freshly ground black pepper | |
| ¼ | pound feta cheese, cut into ¼-inch dice |
| 3 | tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided |
| 2 | vine-ripe tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges |
| ¼ | cup pitted kalamata olives, roughly chopped |
| 4 | cups baby spinach |
| 15 | leaves of fresh mint, chopped |
| 1 | can (15 ounces) chickpeas, drained, rinsed, and dried |
| ½ | English (seedless) cucumber (the one wrapped in plastic), cut in half lengthwise, then sliced into half-moons |
| ½ | tablespoon dried oregano |
| Juice of 2 lemons | |
| 2 | pita flat breads, warmed and cut in half |