How do I make that?
Ground beef, pork, or turkey is often the cheapest “cut” of the animal, and this is good when you are stretching your dollars to prioritize grass-fed and humanely-raised meat. In addition to being affordable, ground meat recipes lend themselves easily to the addition of organ meats like heart or liver, which are affordable, packed with minerals and B-vitamins. Some folks don’t like the flavor of liver, but mixing it into other muscle meats can mellow the flavor for a sensitive palate. Over the years I have necessarily figured out strange but satisfying ways to prepared ground meat, but the following are tried, true, and difficult to mess up.
MEAT PIES with Organs + Herbs
I often make this dish in a round pie plate or casserole dish, but when I have the time and fancy, its pretty fun to make these pies in muffin tins. Then you can freeze the pies individually and pop them in the toaster for lunch.
I’ll be honest, I’m not much of a baker, so I usually rely on my more patient sweetheart for the pie crush, er, pie crust. So find a crust recipe you like and refrigerate the ball of dough while you prepare the filling.
+ Beat 2-3 eggs in a bowl with two cups of ground meat — I like to use 3/4 ground heart and 1/4 ground liver.
+ Add chopped onion, minced parsley, minced garlic, and spices. My favorite spices for these pies, which are especially good in wintertime, include cinnamon, paprika, and ground or whole coriander seed.
+ Sprinkle small tablespoons of flour — I like to use dark buckwheat flour or fine cornflour — over the mixture until it has a sticky-but-not-tough quality.
Roll the pie crust, press it into the pans, and pour the meat mixture in. Bake at 375 until a knife comes out clean from the middle. Serve with a vegetable of your choice.
SPRING ROLLS with Peanut Sauce
T
his quick dish is a low-maintenance assemblage that I borrow from Vietnamese cuisine. The spring roll wrappers are made from tapioca and water (and are thus gluten free) and the rest of the dish require little beyond a quick stirfry.
+ Sautee onion and ground meat in coconut oil until the meat is juice but not pink. I think dime-sized crumbles of meat work best in the wrappers.
+ Chop red cabbage and carrot in long thin strips. Wash arugula and lettuce leaves.
+ Assemble the spring roll! Soak wrapper in water for 10-15 seconds, and then lay it flat on a plate. Lay lettuce leaves flat on one side of round wrapper and sprinkle small amount of meat and onions on top. Lay cabbage and carrot slices on top of meat, and roll spring wrapper tightly. This is where you get to practice your arts and crafts skills!
+ To make peanut sauce, sautee garlic in coconut oil at a low heat. Add tamari, a pinch of cayenne, a cup of coconut or almond milk, and a scoop of peanut butter. Stir over a low heat until mixture becomes smooth and saucy!
Stay tuned for the next installment of How do I make that? Whole Foods Recipes on a Budget Part III!