Baked Coconut-Basil Turkey Meatballs

Remember that lesson on combinations and permutations in math class back in the day? That one where you had to figure out how many different combos you could make from a list of items? {Yeah, me either. Math never was my thing.} That's what I think of sometimes when I'm grocery shopping and cooking each week.

If you look in my fridge or pantry, I will almost always have the same staple ingredients from which I make our weekly meals and anything else I'm inspired to cook up. One of the benefits of cooking at home often is that you start to build a well-stocked pantry with items that can be used in various ways. For the most part, certain things like spices, dry goods and condiments last a while, which can be a good thing if you're up for a challenge in creativity... but a bad thing if you can only think of a handful of ways to combine them in a recipe. {"What the HECK am I supposed to do with the rest of this jar of poultry seasoning?!"}

Even though I'm always coming up with new things to share on the blog, the truth is that we get into eating ruts just like everyone else. Ground turkey meat is almost always on rotation in our house because it's inexpensive, relatively healthy and liked by all who live here. BUT, there are only so many variations of sloppy joes, chili and meatballs I can make before we all want to say a permanent goodbye to the gobbler.

The more ingredients you have on hand, the more combinations you can make so that will help you use up ordinary ingredients in extraordinary ways! {Your taste buds and family members will thank you.}

I often look up recipes for different types of cuisines and figure out how to use every day ingredients in exotic new ways, and these Coconut-Basil Turkey Meatballs did not disappoint. I found the idea for the recipe while flipping through an old Cooking Light magazine, and substituted some of my own pantry items for the ingredients I didn't have. {Yes, I totally used puffed rice cereal in meatballs. That's called ingenuity, folks.}

Since I already had this stuff in my pantry and fridge for every day cooking, all I had to do was combine the flavors in different ways to create something new, fresh and really good! I loved how the coconut added another layer of flavor to the spicy meatballs. The sweet and sour tang of the honey and citrus juices made a perfect accompaniment for dipping, too.

You don't have to use basil strictly for Italian cooking, or coconut flakes explicitly for baking. The honey you drizzle over your morning bowl of oatmeal doesn't have to stay in the breakfast category. Like I said, even a box of cereal came in handy since I rarely have bread crumbs around!

I challenge YOU to look at the ingredients you buy every week with new eyes and see how many ways you can combine them into something original! Now THAT'S a lesson on combinations that's worth remembering... and eating! :)

Coconut-Basil Turkey Meatballs 
Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine, January 2011 

1 pound ground turkey {or chicken}
2/3 cup crisp rice cereal {or panko bread crumbs}
1/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1/4 cup chopped basil
1 tablespoons chili paste {like Sambal Oelek}
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons low sodium tamari or soy sauce
1 egg, beaten
Pinch of salt


For Sauce:
Juice of half a lime
Juice of one small orange {I used a blood orange, but any will do}
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon vinegar {preferably rice vinegar}
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce or tamari
Pinch of red chili flakes

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Prepare a large baking pan by lining with a piece of aluminum foil and brushing lightly with olive oil. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, mix together all of the meatball ingredients until well combined.

3. Using a standard ice cream scoop, scoop out the meat mixture and shape into balls. {You should get about 10 medium-large meatballs.} Place meatballs a few inches apart on the prepared baking pan.

4. Brush the top of each meatball with a drop or two of oil. Bake for about 15 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.

For Sauce: Place all the sauce ingredients in a lidded jar. Secure the lid tightly and shake vigorously to combine.

Serve hot meatballs with a side of dipping sauce.

These make a great appetizer or a good dish to serve alongside rice or asian-style noodles.

Pumpkin Crackers

Every Friday morning, Cole and I head to Trader Joe's and do our grocery shopping for the following week. It has become such a part of our routine that the store employees recognize him and ask where he is if I ever pop in without him.

Now that the novelty of shopping at the uber-popular retailer has worn off {our location opened a little over a year ago}, it's become a lot easier to shop without distraction. I see you, Cookie Butter... but we've only got room for fruits and veggies in this basket.

I do, however, enjoy browsing the aisles for TJ's seasonal items because they often have creative twists on ordinary foods that inspire me to make my own spin-offs in the kitchen.

Now that we're halfway through October, shelves are filled with all sorts of pumpkin-filled treats. {For the record, the Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancakes are the only item that have managed to sneak into my shopping cart. They were good.} From Pumpkin O's cereal to pumpkin bagels to pumpkin soup... the most popular gourd of the season is in no short supply at TJ's.

When I spied their Pumpkin Cranberry Crisps last week, I felt inclined to try my hand at homemade crackers.{Naturally.} The only time I ever think to buy crackers is when I'm entertaining because they go well with spreads and cheeses and round out a party tray nicely. Plus, crackers and bread = my husband's kryptonite, so I try not to have them readily available to keep temptation at bay. Even though I probably wont make homemade crackers very often, I figured it's still a nice skill to have under my belt.

Three ingredients, no funny stuff, and way cheaper than those fancy "artisanal" crackers that come 5 to a package... I couldn't think of a reason why I shouldn't give it a try.

These really couldn't be simpler to make. Just toss flour, pumpkin and water in a mixer to whip up a simple dough, then roll, roll, roll those babies super-duper thin {and engage your core while you're at it for a quick "ab roller" style work out}, then bake until brown and crisp.

Voila. Seasonal crackers. {Admittedly, they really don't taste much like pumpkin, but do get that nice orange hue for some fall flair.}

I kept mine pretty plain -- just a sprinkle of sea salt on top -- but you could get creative and add fresh herbs to the mixture or sprinkle some seeds on top if you really want to jazz them up. And if you want to get really cute, punch out some shapes with a cookie cutter to drive the pumpkin point home.

Pumpkin perfection without any risk of falling into TJ's clever end cap snares! Sounds like a deal to me.

Pumpkin Crackers

1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon salt {plus extra for sprinkling}
3 tablespoons canned pumpkin puree
About 4 tablespoons water*

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a baking pan by lining with parchment paper, or simply use a pizza stone. Let the pan or stone heat up with the oven.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine flour, salt and pumpkin puree. Add water 1 tablespoon at a time until a firm dough forms -- you don't want it to be too wet or sticky, so adding water slowly and watching for the desired consistency will help ensure that you don't add too much liquid.

3. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead it a few times until slightly elastic, shaping it into a ball. Set it aside and let it rest for about 20 minutes.

4. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece out as thin as possible using a rolling pin -- you want it to be as thin as you can get it so they bake up nice and crisp. Give it some elbow grease & work those abs, then you won't feel as bad as eating a few extra crackers. {If desired, cut out pumpkin shapes using a cookie cutter or a pizza cutter, or simply roll out into one thin, "artisanal-looking" piece.} Repeat with remaining dough.

5. Optional: Spray dough with a little olive oil {I just use my Misto} or non-stick cooking spray and sprinkle with desired seasonings like salt or sesame seeds.

6. Place rolled dough onto hot baking pan or pizza stone and bake for about 8-10 minutes or until they are browned and crisp.

Remove from oven and allow to cool -- they'll crisp up a little more. Once cooled, break large pieces into smaller shapes. Serve with spreads, cheese or dips.