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The other night, as I am on this 10 day Master Cleanse, I had the brilliant idea to take all the fresh vegetables I had in the refrigerator and make a favorite soup. Not the best idea as it is rather cruel to cook and not be able to eat, but as I have made this numerous times, I know exactly how it will be and season.

Being on the Master Cleanse you do not eat any food, it is strictly a internal cleansing phase, and a nice side effect is some weight loss. Unfortunately, the timing to make a soup while not being able to eat was tortuous and not advised! The Italian seasoned meatballs I use here are frozen and available at Costco. They are a great base for many dishes with sauces. i also have included a recipe in case you want to make from scratch!

Soup:

• 1/2 cube of butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 bunch green onions
• 2 cups sliced carrots
• 2 cups chopped broccoli
• 3 ribs celery, chopped
• 1/2 bunch of Italian parsley, chopped
• 1 bunch spinach, chopped
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 3 crushed garlic cloves
• 4 fresh leaves of basil, chopped
• 1/4 cup Marsala wine
• 1/2 cup pearl couscous, orzo or small pasta shells
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 4-14oz cans of chicken stock
• 24 Italian seasoned frozen meatballs, thawed or see recipe below

In a 8 qt pot melt the butter, olive oil and saute the onions, green onions and carrots until tender. Add the next 11 ingredients and bring to a boil. Set to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes covered. Add the meatballs and continue to cook on low for 15 minutes. Serve with broiled Garlic Parmesan bread. This can easily be eaten the next night after the flavors meld or be frozen for later – like in my case!

Homemade meatballs:

• 2 eggs beaten
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 3 tbsp chopped Italian parsley
• 3 cloves crushed garlic
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 lb ground beef or veal (or ground meat of choice)
• 2 tbsp olive oil

In a mixing bowl combine everything together thoroughly, and roll into 1″ balls. Saute in the olive oil until lightly browned on the outside. Set aside.

Tags: Italian, meatballs
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I’m sure this isn’t original, but I wanted to make chilies rellenos one day , and I also wanted a meat dish. I didn’t have any marinated steak, but I did have hamburger. So the idea to make these came about. I served these over rice and a nice garden salad.

Meatballs:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1-4oz can whole green chilis
• 1/2 lb pepper jack cheese
• 1/3 cup bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tbsp parsley
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 egg

Preheat oven to 450˚.

In a mixing bowl add bread crumbs, milk, egg, parsley, cumin and ground beef. Mix thoroughly and divide this into 10 portions.

Next, cut the green chilies lengthwise into 10 strips, about an inch wide – cut and reserve the extra pieces for the following sauce. Cut the cheese into 10 cubes, each 3/4 inch in size. Wrap each cheese cube with a chili strip and then mold the meat mixture around to completely cover the chili/cheese cube.

Place the meatballs in a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until browned. Remove from oven and place in a 2 quart casserole. Pour the sauce over the meatballs and bake for another 20 minutes uncovered.

Sauce:

• 1 onion chopped
• 2 cloves of crushed garlic
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 lb can of cut tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp dry oregeno
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• reserved green chili pieces, chopped

Place all the above ingredients in a sauce pan and and cook over medium heat until reduced by half. Take care to stir often. Pour this sauce over the meatballs.

Tags: green chilis, meatballs
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I love the ground turkey you get in the meat section of the supermarket. Versatile and it always picks up seasoning well. This is great with steamed rice and fresh green beans.

• 1lb pkg fresh ground turkey
• 1/2 cup peeled and shredded tart apple
• 3/4 tsp of salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup apple jelly
• 2 tbsp spicy brown mustard

In a mixing bowl combine the turkey, apple, salt and garlic. Shape into 16 meatballs. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the meatballs and cook until browned, about 8 minutes.

Stir together the jelly and mustard in a small bowl an dspoon over the meatballs. Simmer an additional 10 minutes or until glazed, tuenig over and draping the glaze over the meatballs. Sauce thickens as it cools.

Tags: meatballs, turkey
Posted in Dinner, Sauce | No Comments »