Monday, April 15, 2013

Veggie-Pumped Picadillo--Tax Day Meat Stretching

Veggie-Pumped Picadillo--Tax Day Meat Stretching

A flavorful hearty main dish of ground meat and vegetables, seasoned with raisins, olives and sherry. Served over rice, this is a family-friendly way to stretch a pound of ground meat and use loads of vegetables.


http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/04/veggie-pumped-picadillo-tax-day-meat.html




My spouse eats a lot of olives during his deployments.  He tells me it's a combination of wanting to eat more vegetables yet not trusting the safety of the raw veggies available.  He returns from deployments dumping Tabasco on everything and asking me to fry eggs (only powdered "scrambled" eggs in theatre) and buy olives.  Lots of olives.

If you had asked before my spouse ever deployed to the Middle East if I liked olives, I would have told you a resounding "No!".  I'd tried but not liked black olives on a pizza, and I'd avoid green olives on a relish tray because I tarred them with the same olive branch brush.  So it surprised me, when he returned and ordered a pizza* with green olives on it, that I actually loved green olives on pizza.  In fact, I liked eating green olives off a relish tray.  I do like green olives after all.
Insert your own Dr. Seuss reference here.  I've already done a Dr Seuss-themed post
With my new-found love of green olives, their use in a recipe from my mom's old cookbook caught my eye.  I thought I could change it up (brown 1 pound of ground beef in 1 cup of oil?  really?) and it would be an excellent way to throw in extra put up veggies to stretch meat.  The result is sort of like "weird sloppy joes" according to my kids.  Unusual, but tasty all the same.

If you've waited until the last minute to file your taxes because you are not anticipating a refund, consider this recipe as a different way to stretch a pound of ground meat.  It works with beef, chicken, lamb, turkey, probably even venison.  Please note that this recipe calls for marinating the meat for a couple of hours before cooking.  You could do this in the morning and leave it in the fridge for the day, or throw it together in the afternoon if you are around.

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/04/veggie-pumped-picadillo-tax-day-meat.html

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/04/veggie-pumped-picadillo-tax-day-meat.html

http://www.farmfreshfeasts.com/2013/04/veggie-pumped-picadillo-tax-day-meat.html




Veggie-Pumped Picadillo

Ingredients


  • 1 pound ground beef 
  • 2/3 cup (160 ml) dry sherry, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 1 Tablespoon oil
  • 1 cup diced onion (these veggies can be fresh or frozen/thawed)
  • 1 cup diced green pepper
  • 1 cup finely shredded zucchini
  • 1 cup chopped blend of carrot/celery/onion/chard stems
  • 3 cloves minced garlic
  • 1/2 cup chopped green olives
  • 1 6 ounce can tomato paste
  • 2 tomato paste cans of water
  • 1/2 cup sliced or chopped almonds
  • 1/2 cup golden raisins
  • hot cooked rice

Instructions


  1. In a medium bowl, mix beef, 1/3 cup dry sherry, salt and pepper.  Cover and refrigerate for 2-8 hours.  
  2. When you're ready to cook, preheat a pretty purple pot with oil over medium heat.  
  3. Sauté the veggies (onion through olives) for 8-10 minutes until softened.  Add meat, stir to combine, cover and cook 5 minutes.  Drain fat.  
  4. Stir in olives, tomato paste, water, almonds and raisins.  Reduce heat and simmer 1 hour, partially covered (I rest the lid slightly askew), stirring occasionally.  
  5. Stir in remaining sherry and serve over hot cooked rice. 
  6. Serves a bunch and the leftovers keep well.

*I know you're thinking "What?  Ordering a pizza?"  Yes.  We were in the midst of moving (500 miles, our shortest move thus far) and in addition we'd bought a gas stove and a house.  We donated the electric stove that came with the house so it was gone, but the gas line didn't get hooked up in the kitchen for a few weeks.  So yes, he ordered a pizza.  I'm grateful for the opportunity to learn I love green olives.


A flavorful hearty main dish of ground meat and vegetables, seasoned with raisins, olives and sherry. Served over rice, this is a family-friendly way to stretch a pound of ground meat and use loads of vegetables.

This post is playing with the other kids at the Clever Chicks Blog Hop at The Chicken Chick, What's Cookin' Wednesday at Buns In My Oven, the Wednesday Fresh Foods Link Up at Gastronomical Sovereignty, What's In The Box at In Her Chucks, Taste and Tell Thursdays, Frugal Fit Family, and the Farm Girl Blog Fest at Let This Mind Be In You.

20 comments:

  1. Love the idea of marinating the meat here. I make picadillo often (and I love green olives), but I'll try this way and compare.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lydia,
      I'd think the extra time required could be a pain if you're not used to it, but please let me know if you try it!
      Thanks!

      Delete
  2. Typically, I only like olives when stuffed with garlic or blue cheese, but my boyfriend loves olives of all types. I think he would really like this dish - I'll have to try it! Thanks, Kirsten!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa,
      I'm starting to branch out to stuffed olives--I had some up in Michigan at a sled hockey tournament that were black olives, stuffed with cream cheese, and wrapped in ham. Yum!
      Thanks!

      Delete
  3. I am a big olive fan - almost any and all kinds - especially on Pizza!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alyssa,
      How do you feel about anchovies? (I thought I was weird to love them but not olives, but now it's all good).
      Thanks!

      Delete
  4. Looks amazing. I just made my version of picadillo (sans olives) the other day.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Marlene,
      I'd never heard of picadillo until I was flipping through my mom's old cookbook. I don't consider myself a sheltered cook, but maybe I need to re-think.
      Thanks!

      Delete
  5. I love olives, all types, all sizes, all colors, but growing up the only kind I would touch were black, and I liked to stick them on my fingers and run around the house, more than actually eating them. I'm glad you found your olive flame, and I absolutely went Dr. Seuss in my mind and then you did it in print. Great minds....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Meghan,
      My friend's son Gavin did that, and until I saw him enjoying olives it never occurred to me that anyone under a certain age could actually *like* them.
      My kids still aren't there, and that's OK. If I could change, they can too.
      Thanks!

      Delete
  6. I like the new taste for me: beef and almonds... and the recipe is delicious for a whole family, I am glad I found you... I am your newest follower.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Elena,
      It is a new taste--but also familiar at the same time.
      Thank you for stopping by!

      Delete
  7. This looks like something I could take to a family get together to look like a stud!! Thanks for sharing it. I am not an olive fan BUT my family is!!! I am hosting today at http://www.frugalfitfamily.com - swing by and share if you can!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Heather,
      I'm happy to help you, or anyone else, look like a Kitchen Stud!
      Thanks!

      Delete
  8. Great sounding recipe.....Thank you for sharing with the Clever Chicks Blog Hop this week; I hope you’ll join us again!


    Cheers,
    Kathy Shea Mormino

    The Chicken Chick

    http://www.The-Chicken-Chick.com


    ReplyDelete
  9. Not a fan of olives, black or green. But I love olive oil. Go figure. My grandpa always said if you ate seven olives you would become an olive-lover. Never tested that theory. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sarah,
      As a former non-olive fan, I don't think I could have choked down 7 olives in a row to test your grandpa's theory. As it is, I like olives *in* things these days, but could not eat too many on their own.
      Thanks!

      Delete
  10. This looks awesome! I love your tips on stretching meat as well as sneaking in more veggies into every meal.

    Thanks for sharing and linking up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Heather,
      When the farm share gives you veggies, you've got to stick them somewhere, you know?
      Thanks for hosting!

      Delete