Friday, May 02, 2008

The Last Dinner My Girls Ate Without Complaining Even A Little Bit

Actually, as these things go, we do very well. Usually one or the other of them needs to be urged to "keep taking bites," but it's getting less and less often that it becomes a huge deal. And that, friends, is a hassle I will not miss. If I never again hear myself say "Just EAT!" it will be too soon.

So when there is a meal that everyone eats, and nobody says "my belly is getting too full" or "this ___ is hurting my tongue!" or "it's too [adjective that doesn't apply]" even once? When everyone eats steadily until their plates are empty without being told to, and even sometimes asks for more? I notice those meals, especially if they're so good I'd make them for myself whether or not children had to eat it too.

Here was one -- it's modified from a Cooking Light recipe.

Turkey Breast Cutlets with Port Wine Sauce
1 pound turkey breast cutlets (Shady Brook Farms is the brand around here. It's not the least expensive cut, so I can't buy them often. If they go on sale I get a lot and freeze them.)
2/3 cup low sodium beef broth (Trader Joe's has a concentrate in little tubes. I dig it.)
1/4 cup port (keep a bottle of the cheap stuff around for sauces like this)
2 T chopped dried cherries (Trader Joe's is less expensive than anywhere for dried fruit)
2 t black cherry fruit spread (again, Trader Joe's is less expensive, but Polaner makes one too. No, I don't work for Trader Joe's.)
1 t Worcestershire sauce (no comment, but now that I'm in the habit of parenthetical notes after each ingredient, I can't stop; also, wanted to prove I could go a whole two lines without mentioning my favorite grocery store.)
1/2 t balsamic vinegar

1 t cornstarch
1 t butter
1 shallot, chopped
1 t. chopped rosemary (I sometimes use dried; 1/2 t will do of that)

Melt butter in large skillet. Add turkey, cook 3 minutes, then flip and cook till done (it's not long).
While the turkey's cooking, combine 1/2 cup of the beef broth with the port, cherries, fruit spread, Worcestershire, and balsamic.
Whisk the cornstarch into the rest of the broth.
Take the turkey out and keep warm.
Put the shallots and rosemary in the skillet, cook for 3 minutes, stirring.
Add the port mix, bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes.
Add the cornstarch mix, boil 1 minute.

In theory, you serve the sauce over the turkey. In practice, I cut the turkey into little pieces and put a scoop of sauce next to -- but not touching! -- it.

Good with wild rice and green beans or baby carrots.

This is really tasty. There are no leftovers.

4 comments:

  1. Yum - I'm going to try this!!

    Worcestershire sauce makes everything better. Totally irrelevant trivia: my dad is retired from a company that makes it as one of their many, many products and in the biz they call it woozy sauce for short. Now I call it woozy too and so can you!

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  2. "Woozy sauce," excellent! I love it too. Nothing quite like it.

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  3. That actually looks fairly easy...even I could pull it off.

    I am supremely lucky in that Liv is a very good eater. She is easy to please. My only problem is getting her to eat enough. She is very, very lean, about five pound underweight her md tells me...she is all colt legs. So, I am always trying to tempt her with big muffins and an extra helping.

    She is a light eater, always has been. I don't think she was ever one of those chubby babies, she was always lean.

    I have been told by every mother at Liv's school that I am lucky, that most kids are picky...

    Thanks for the good recipe. I will pass it on to Bing because you know what happens when I get near a stove...

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