In Memory of Michael Oro

This blog is bittersweet today.  It is written in memory of my nephew, Michael Oro, who recently passed away.  Among Michael's many loves was cooking, especially healthy cooking.  Michael enjoyed cuisine from all over the world.  He especially liked octopus from Galicia in Spain.  Our family also enjoyed going to Bosphorous Turkish Cuisine Restaurant in Winter Park, Florida. We would all normally order the Chicken Adana Kebab dinner.  On that evening, I would usually cheat a bit on my yeast-free lifestyle and have the naan bread.  However, Michael was really proud of the fact that I was sticking to yeast-free living about 90% of the time.  He enjoyed working out at the gym, writing electronic music, and making everyone laugh.  Michael was loved by his family and friends.  So, I am running the post "Michael's Sauce" again as a tribute to him today.  This remains one of my favorite dinners.

Michael Oro

Last night I made one of my favorite yeast-free dinners.  Then I realized that I never shared it on this blog.  I actually got this idea/recipe from my nephew, Michael.  He was making this sauce one day when I was over visiting him.  He works out and eats a healthy diet, so it was normal to see him cooking with ground turkey.  He doesn't know it (I guess he will when the blog is published), but I am naming the recipe "Michael's Sauce".

Here is the recipe:

• 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of ground turkey
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon of minced garlic
• 1 bag of fresh spinach
• 1 cup of spaghetti sauce
• 2 tsp. of Italian seasoning 
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• Red pepper flakes (a few)--Optional

Heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the chopped onion and cook until softened.  Add garlic. While the onion is cooking, in a separate pan, brown the ground turkey.  Add the cooked ground turkey to the onion and garlic mixture.  Begin to add the spinach a few handfuls at a time to the turkey mixture until the spinach is wilted.  Add the spaghetti sauce and seasonings. Simmer for 10 minutes or so until the sauce is heated.

Serve over quinoa or brown rice.

There are many variations you can make to this recipe.  Mushrooms can be added if you are not on a yeast-free diet.  Also, green, yellow, or red peppers can be added.  In addition, you could add fresh tomatoes.  Broccoli can be used instead of spinach.  What is nice about this recipe is that you can use leftovers you may have in your refrigerator or pantry to complete the sauce.  I actually had most of a yellow onion and part of a jar of spaghetti sauce leftover which I used for the recipe I made last evening.  All I had to purchase was the bag of fresh spinach.  Everything else I had on hand.  That is why it is one of my "Go-To" recipies now.

I hope you enjoy making "Michael's Sauce" as much as Mike and I do!

 "Michael's Sauce" over brown rice

Michael at St. Augustine Beach