Date Night Dinners - Tomato Paste Is Not Tomato Sauce
Despite reading the recipe three times before making the trip to the grocery store to purchase the ingredients we need for this dish, despite checking the pantry twice to confirm we had (or didn't have) enough of all of the ingredients, and despite making a list of the ingredients we officially needed to buy, I somehow still messed up. Maybe it's because I was too preoccupied with making sure my 2x gas points coupon worked or because I was day dreaming about the jumbo left over cookies I could eat once I got home. Maybe it's just because it is summer time and I am still 16 at heart - my brain wants to shut off, because really, who does work in the summer. Not this girl, who lusts for summer with long days, getting sun-kissed at the beach, all year long...at least that's how my mind wants it to work.
Lo and behold, Brenden and I were halfway done preparing our meal when something finally clicked in my brain and I realized the 6 ounce can of tomato paste we had in our pantry was not in fact the 8 ounce can of tomato sauce we needed according to the recipe directions. We were making a crockpot meal, and had decided to do the prep work the night before so that all we would have to do in the morning was turn the crockpot on. Leaving things to the last minute, I was not about to run back to the store at 9:30 at night to get the tomato sauce, especially when my intended bedtime is approximately 9 pm. Yes, I do like to go to sleep when it is still light out in the summer, like small children. Luckily we are always stocked up on pasta sauce, and with some quick thinking, we subbed in the arrabbiata sauce we have been topping our veggie noodles with lately.
In spite of mistaking tomato paste for tomato sauce, this dinner turned out quite well. I think our tomato sauce substitute really amped up the flavor profile that was already bound to happen with this meal. We scooped the meat and all it's juices over a bed of cauliflower rice we quickly whipped out and both our mouths were salivating. Each bite was a balance of spicy and earthy flavors. Our almost fool-proof picadillo had warm undertones and hints of Latin American flavor.
CROCKPOT PICADILLO
recipe adapted from skinnytaste.com, Crock Pot Picadillo
- 2.5 lbs ground turkey
- 1 cup yellow onion, chopped small
- 1 cup bell pepper, diced small
- 1.25 cups water
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup cilantro, minced
- 1 plum tomato, diced
- 8 oz tomato sauce
- 1/4 cup alcaparrado with brine
- 1.5 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 batch cauliflower rice
Brown the meat. In a large skillet on medium high heat, fully cook the ground turkey, breaking it into small pieces as it cooks. Once cooked, drained the turkey and set aside. Add the onion and bell pepper to the same skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the cooked turkey back into the skillet and combine for another 1-2 minutes.
Combine the ingredients. Once the onion, pepper and turkey are all cooked and combined, transfer the mixture into the crockpot bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients (except the cauliflower rice): water, garlic, cilantro, tomato, alcaparrado, cumin, garlic powder, bay leaves, salt and pepper. Quickly stir so all of the ingredients are fully combined.
Cook in the crockpot. Once all of the ingredients have been added and combined in the crockpot, set on lowest setting, cooking for 8-10 hours.
Serve and enjoy. Once the picadillo is cooked, discard the bay leaves and plate a few spoonfuls over the cauliflower rice, or enjoy it on it's own.
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