september

PLUMERIA

plumeria

LASDI ©

Remember when you tried to grow your bangs out, and there was that weird time where they were too short and not quite long enough? That’s how I feel about September. It’s not really Summer anymore, and yet, it isn’t Autumn just yet. But with the purple primrose, bluebells, and thistle growing wild along the highway, stonefruit in the full throws of its season, and the indecisive thermometer doing its own thing, September carries its own lovely label when it comes to food!

This meal carries it’s own uniqueness in that it uses turkey cutlets as the protein. The caramelized plums & purple onion take your palate to a different level, and serving it with roasted beets with crushed pistachios and warm citrus vinaigrette, as well as rosemary barely-smashed potatoes makes this meal one of the best September could offer! And just to add some more seasonal color, the potatoes were the baby potatoes with gold, purple, and red skins. BEAUTIFUL!

So go ahead and grow those bangs out…as long as you do it in September!

PLUMERIA

4 turkey cutlets (see notes)

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

sea salt, to taste

pepper, to taste

avocado oil (or some other high-heat oil)

4 plums, pitted and sliced

2 large purple onion, sliced

1/2 tsp clove

1 tsp brown sugar

1 cup broth of your choice

Set your oven to high broil. Place your cutlets together in a bowl and pour the evoo over them. Sea salt and pepper to taste and toss, coating each cutlet evenly. Place on a sheet pan and shape into a circle (see notes). Place under the broiler for five minutes, until lightly browned on top. Turn off the oven, allowing the cutlets to stay in there to rest as the oven cools down. Heat a heavy pan (I use my cast iron skillet!) on high heat until it is lightly smoking. Sprinkle enough avocado oil to cover about half the bottom of the pan, and lower your heat to medium. Carefully pour your onion into the pan, stir to cover with the oil, and let sit untouched for about two minutes. Sprinkle them with sea salt and pepper, and add your plums. Stir slightly so as to mix together and let cook for another two minutes. Sprinkle with the clove and brown sugar, stir and pour a slight bit of broth into the mix, then stir again. Allow to cook together until the broth is absorbed, continuing this process until all the broth has been used and the onion and plum have become a beautiful purple color, and has thickened, about ten-to-twelve minutes. Remove your cutlets from the oven and serve with a heaping helping of the plum-and-onion mixture on top.

NOTES: If you can't find turkey cutlets in your local grocery store, you can use turkey tenderloin or even chicken. If using the turkey cutlets, know that they come in a very weird shape, so pulling the two ends together on the sheet pan to form it into a circle will make them cook into that shape! They look very whimsical this way, especially once the vibrant mixture is on top! Perfect for Date Night at home, too!