Italian Turkey Burgers

I was feeling adventurous last night and decided to make up a recipe for our turkey burgers. I didn't want something same old, same old blah blah so I winged it. We were definitely rewarded! I personally would slightly reduce the Italian seasoning and add more mozzarella (I love me some cheese), but hubby thought that they were perfect!

Italian Turkey Burgers

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb lean ground turkey 

1 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup finely shredded mozzarella cheese

2 TBS grated parmesan

1/2 tsp Kosher salt

Olive oil for sauteing 

Directions

Heat olive oil in a skillet or grill pan over medium heat. 

Combine all ingredients (except oil) in a bowl. Form patties. Cook for about 5-7 minutes on each side. I cooked mine on each side for about 5 minutes and then put them in the oven at 350 for 10 minutes. They were perfectly cooked!

Enjoy!

Open-Faced Cheddar Burgers

The original recipe was recently in February 2011 issue of Rachael Ray's magazine. It's kind of a cross between Welsh rarebit and a burger. Now, the original called for ground sirloin, but you know I love my ground turkey. It also called for 2 lbs of said sirloin. Um yeah that makes a 1/2 lb burger per serving. Don't you think that is a little excessive? I cut it down to 1/4 lb portions and they were perfect. Also while it called for a stout beer (she recommends Guinness), I used Foster's Premium Ale since it was the darkest thing I could find in a single serving-type portion. We aren't big drinkers here, much less would we be consuming 5 additional bottles of Guinness anytime soon. Yuck! I would definitely be interested in trying it with ground sirloin and stout next time!

Photo from Rachael Ray Magazine 

Open-Faced Cheddar Burgers

adapted from Rachael Ray Magazine

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey

1 1/2 TBS worcestershire 

1/2 TBS dried parsley

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 tsp Kosher salt

2 TBS butter, plus some softened

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 clove garlic, minced

4 slices 1" thick white bread (French or Italian would work well)

1 TBS flour

1/2 cup dark ale (I used Foster's)

2-3 dashes Tabasco

1 tsp ground mustard

1 cup grated extra sharp cheddar cheese (yellow, not white)

2 eggs, beaten

Directions

Heat a cast-iron, heavy skillet or grill pan over medium-high heat. In a bowl, combine the turkey, worcestershire, salt, pepper and parsley. Form 4 patties, thinner at the center for even cooking. Spray or rub with olive oil and place in the pan. Cook for about 10-12 minutes, flipping once.

Preheat the broiler. Put the bread slices on a baking sheet. Toast the bread on each side until lightly golden. Spread the softened butter on each side once you remove it from the oven.  Leave them on the baking sheet.

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 TBS butter. Add the onion and garlic. Cook until translucent and soft, about 10-12 minutes. Sprinkle flour in the pan and cook for a minute. Lower the heat to medium-low, stir in the beer, Tabasco and ground mustard. Stir in the cheese until melted. Add the eggs and stir constantly until the sauce thickens. 

Place each burger on top of a slice of toast and pour some sauce over it. Place under the broiler until the sauce browns. 

Enjoy!

 

Stovetop Lasagna

Hubby and my niece chowed down on this. My niece was almost finished with her plate before we made it to the table. Hubby didn't know there were veggies in it until my niece mentioned something about "salad" being in it. She had helped me make the puree and saw the spinach. We kept trying to shush her, but it eventually came out. Of course, weird faces were made after that and it tasted "different". This was all from hubby, not my 4 year old niece. Rule of thumb for the future - make the puree ahead of time and don't let hubby know! I also apologize for the picture - we started serving before I took a pic so it looks like a hot mess.

Stovetop Lasagna

adapted from The Sneaky Chef

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 50 minutes

Servings: 6-8

Ingredients

1 TBS extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup chopped onion (1/2 of a medium onion)

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb ground turkey

3/4 cup Green Puree (<---Click the link for the recipe)

6 oz can tomato paste

1/4 cup oat bran 

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp basil

9 oz box of lasagna noodles, broken 

24 oz jar of pasta sauce (I like Prego traditional)

1-1 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese 

Directions

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, deep skillet that had a lid. Saute the onions until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic in the last few minutes of cooking. Add the turkey and cook until no longer pink.

In a bowl, combine the puree and tomato paste. It will turn an unappetizing brown color, but don't be alarmed! Add it to the skillet and mix. 

Stir in the oat bran, basil and oregano. Top the mixture with the lasagna noodles. Pour tomato sauce over the noodles. Add 2 1/2 cups of water to the pan and stir into the sauce.

Bring it to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. 

Top with cheese and cover for about 3-5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. 

Enjoy!

Taco Soup

Holy cow this was delish! This is definitely a keeper. And the bonus? It's so easy! Now, personally I didn't think it was necessarily a "taco" soup - maybe more like southwest soup? Next time, we are going to try swapping out the pintos for black beans and maybe adding some cooked rice at the end. I topped mine off with Mexican cheese and a dollop of sour cream. You can also use Fritos or tortilla chips.

Taco Soup 

adapted from Food Network

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 1 hour

Servings: 6-8

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey (or beef)

1/2 cup diced onions

1/2 of a 15.5 oz can pinto beans

15.5 oz can pink or light red kidney beans

1/2 of a 14.25 oz can of whole kernel corn

14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes with jalapenos

Can of Rotel Mild

4.5 oz can of diced green chiles

1 package low-sodium taco seasoning

1 package dry ranch salad dressing mix

Directions

Cook the ground turkey and onions together until the onions are translucent. Drain off any grease or fat. Without draining any of the cans, add the remaining ingredients. Simmer on low heat for one hour.

Enjoy!

Chili Mac

I probably should have checked the weather before making this. Today it was 80 degrees! At the end of October! Too hot for me at this time of year. Regardless, this dish was yummy and would be perfect on a cool fall night. I like to top mine with a little shredded sharp cheddar!

Chili Mac

adapted from multiple recipes

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4-6

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup uncooked elbow macaroni

1 1/2 TBS chili powder

1 1/4 tsp cumin

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp Kosher salt

14.5 oz can of petite diced tomatoes, undrained

15 oz can of kidney beans, undrained

8 oz can of tomato sauce

1/2 of a 6 oz can of tomato paste

Directions

In a separate saucepan, boil the macaroni until almost done, about 7-8 minutes.

Cook turkey over medium-high heat and drain. Add back to pan. Put in garlic, chili powder, onion powder and cumin. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add in the remaining ingredients except the macaroni. Simmer for 10 minutes.

Toss in the macaroni and simmer for another 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Spaghetti &Turkey Meatballs

Y'all know I love my turkey! We just don't eat a lot of red meat here and I am often switching out turkey meat instead. So here is my take on meatballs...

Spaghetti & Turkey Meatballs

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey

1 egg

1/2 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1 lb spaghetti noodles

1 jar spaghetti sauce

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350.

Put the turkey, egg, breadcrumbs and cheese in a medium size bowl. Push your sleeves up and start working this together with your fingers. Once everything is well mixed, form the mixture into golf ball sized meatballs. Place them on a baking sheet and put in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

While the meatballs are cooking, put on a pot of water and boil your noodles according to the package. 

**A little trick for making the spaghetti sauce taste homemade is to put a little olive oil in it while it is warming on the stove. I prefer Prego, but you can use what your family loves best.

Enjoy!

Turkey Noodle Bake

Okay this was good, but it could definitely be great. Next time I will omit the green peppers because we did not like them in this at all. I added them (they were in the original) because I thought it might be too bland. It was a last minute decision and I should have stuck with my gut which told me to omit them. I also doubled the original recipe so that we could have leftovers. I do need to tinker with it as it has potential, but was a little runny and could be slightly creamier. 

Turkey Noodle Bake

adapted from Taste of Home

Ingredients

4 cups uncooked egg noodles (I used wide)

1 lb ground turkey

1/4 cup diced onions

2 TBS chopped green pepper

15 oz can tomato sauce

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp Kosher salt

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 cup 4% small curd cottage cheese

4 oz cream cheese, softened

2 TBS sour cream

grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. 

Cook the noodles according to the package directions.

In a large skillet, cook onion until it is slightly translucent and add the turkey and green peppers. Cook until the turkey is no longer pink. Stir in the garlic powder, salt and black pepper. Add the tomato sauce and sugar. Cook on medium-low heat for a few more minutes.

In a small bowl, combine the cottage cheese, cream cheese and sour cream. Add this into the turkey mixture and remove skillet from heat. Add in drained noodles. Mix together.

Put noodle mixture in a 9x13 pan, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and cover with foil. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Enjoy!

Cheesy BBQ Sloppy Joes

These were very yummy and easy! It's a great twist on traditional sloppy joes. We used a Sweet Baby Ray's Honey Barbecue sauce and it had a sweeter taste to it. I think that KC Masterpiece would be great for a more barbecuey (is that a word?) flavor. Obviously you could use any barbecue sauce. This received a thumbs-up from a 3 year old all the way up to my hubby so it's perfect for families.

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Photo credit to Southern Living

Cheesy BBQ Sloppy Joes

adapted from Southern Living

Ingredients 

1 1/2 lbs ground turkey

14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes, undrained

3/4 cup ketchup

1/2 cup bottled barbecue sauce

1 TBS Worcestershire sauce

11.25 oz package frozen garlic Texas toast

shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Directions

Brown turkey in a large skillet over medium-high heat until cooked. Stir in tomatoes, next 3 ingredients. Cook 10 minutes.

While the sloppy joe mixture is cooking, make the Texas toast according to package directions.

Top toast with sloppy joe mixture and sprinkle with cheese (or in my case generously coat!).

Enjoy!

Swedish Meatballs

So I tried to do this in the slow cooker, but it did not want to cooperate. The meatballs got too brown and I ended up adding the soups and cream half way through. If I had actually left the house that day I probably would have come home to little brown golf balls in my slow cooker! Another option would be when you prep the night before to just brown the meatballs a little and then put the soups in with it the next morning. Dairy products don't tend to do well long term in the slow cooker so it might be better to add an additional soup to make sure the meatballs are completely covered. Beyond all of this these were so yummy! Perfect fall or winter meal.

Swedish Meatballs

adapted from Allrecipes

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey

3/4 cup plain bread crumbs

2 TBS cream

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 tsp dried parsley

1 can of cream of chicken soup

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup of cream

1/2 cup of fat-free half-and-half

8oz container of low-fat sour cream

2 cloves of garlic, minced

Directions

In a medium bowl, combine the bread crumbs with 2 TBS of cream and stir, allowing the crumbs to absorb the cream. Add the turkey, onion powder, egg, salt, pepper and parsley. Mix well and form into golf ball sized meatballs. 

In a skillet over medium heat, brown the meatballs slightly. Transfer the meatballs to the slow cooker. Add the cans of soup and garlic. Put on low for 8 hours.

30 minutes before you are ready to eat add the cream, half-and-half and sour cream to the slow cooker. 

Serve over egg noodles.

Enjoy!

Taco Casserole

This is slightly reminiscent of Mexican Lasagna, but with a twist. For more of a taco taste and less Mexican, try cutting back (or out) the cumin. We both really enjoyed this and I will be making it again! Very easy to put together at the end of a long day.

Taco Casserole

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey

1 package of taco seasoning

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

8 oz can tomato sauce

10 oz can mild Rotel

10 oz can mild enchiladas sauce

Package of par-boiled rice (like Uncle Ben's) or 2 cups cooked rice

6-8 small corn tortillas

Mexican cheese blend

Directions

Preheat oven to 375.

In a small skillet, heat the enchiladas sauce over medium-low heat.

Cook turkey until no longer pink. Add taco seasoning, cumin, garlic and onion powders. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add tomato sauce, Rotel and rice. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Spray an 8x8 casserole dish. Dip 3 tortillas, one by one, in the enchiladas sauce and place in the bottom of the casserole dish. I actually like to cut mine in half so that they don't overlap. Put about 1 1/2 cups of the meat mixture on the tortillas and top with 1/2 a cup of cheese. Repeat these steps again ending with the meat mixture and cheese. 

Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for about 5-10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Turkey Chili

I am embarrassed to actually be putting this on here. This is the sort of chili recipe where you are short for time, but need something delicious and easy. Who would have thought that a good chili recipe came from the back of a spice package? Um not me. My sister-in-law was the one that introduced me to this and I have to say it's quite good. Garnishes are a free-for-all, but I like to put Fritos on the bottom and top with chili, cheese (sharp cheddar, please!) and a little sour cream. Now, I put this in the crock pot the last time I made it and it was a little runnier then just sticking it on the stove so just an FYI.

Turkey Chili

adapted from McCormick's

Ingredients

2 lbs lean ground turkey
2 packages McCormick 30% Less Sodium Chili Seasoning Mix
2 - 8oz cans tomato sauce 

1 - 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 - 15oz cans kidney beans, undrained

Directions

Brown the turkey meat and drain off any fat. There shouldn't be much if you are using lean turkey meat. Dump in the remaining ingredients. Simmer for 30 minutes, uncovered.

Top with your favorite garnishes. See I told you it was easy! Now you have time to make the Sweet Cornbread that I like to serve with this.

Enjoy!

Hot Browns

So this is something that I remember having as a kid. I think my parents took us to have them in Kentucky, but I don't think it was at the Brown Hotel. Anywho, these are delicious, but not low-fat or heart-healthy. The recommended serving is for 2 pieces of toast, but it's so rich that you may only be able to eat one. The original also calls for tomato which I ditched because 1. I don't like cooked tomatoes unless they are chopped up and mixed in something and 2. No one else likes cooked tomatoes in my house. I also put the bacon under the Mornay sauce, but if you want it crispy just lay it over the top after broiling.

Here's a little history lesson on the Hot Brown from the Brown Hotel's site...

In the 1920's, The Brown Hotel drew over 1,200 guests each evening for its dinner dance. In the wee hours of the morning, the guests would grow tired of dancing and retire to the restaurant for a bite to eat. Diners were growing rapidly bored with the traditional ham and eggs, so Chef Fred Schmidt set out to create something new to tempt his guests' palates. His unique creation was an open-faced turkey sandwich with bacon and a delicate Mornay sauce. Exemplifying our unending dedication to serving our guests, The Hot Brown was born!

Hot Browns

adapted from multiple recipes

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup flour

3 cups milk (I used skim with good results)

1/2 Cup Pecorino Romano Cheese

1 egg, beaten (Optional - if you use a heavier milk or an extra TBS of cream you might not need this)

2 TBS heavy cream

1/4 tsp black pepper

3/4 - 1 lb oven roasted turkey breast (or leftover Thanksgiving turkey)

8 slices Texas toast, toasted

8 slices crispy bacon (Hate cooking bacon? Me too! Try this easy way from my friend Amber's blog)

Directions

Make sure that you have all of your ingredients for the sauce ready before you begin! Having to stop and measure might bring about unfavorable results (like lumpy sauce).

 

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour with a whisk and continue to cook and keep whisking until it begins to brown slightly. Gradually whisk in the milk so that no lumps form, then bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Mix in Romano cheese and then stir in the beaten egg to thicken. Do not allow the sauce to boil once the egg has been mixed in. Remove from the heat and stir in the cream. 

Preheat the oven's broiler. For each hot brown, place two slices of toast into the bottom of an individual sized casserole dish. Cover with a liberal amount of roasted turkey (and tomato slices should you want to include them). Spoon sauce over the top of each one and sprinkle with some of the remaining Romano cheese.

Place the dishes under the broiler and cook until the top is speckled brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from the broiler and arrange two slices of bacon in a cross shape on top of each sandwich. Serve immediately. 

Enjoy!

Best. Lasagna. Ever.

Wow. Seriously this was delicious. Definitely better than Stouffer's and it might have been marginally lower in fat. I'm just pretending it was since I used part-skim mozzarella and turkey. I definitely will make this again and possibly even use the sauce for regular pasta in the future. It got two thumbs up from my picky hubby so you know it must have been good. I know the ingredient list and directions seem overwhelming, but it was actually really easy. Enjoy!

Best. Lasagna. Ever.

adapted from AllRecipes

Ingredients

1 1/4 pound sweet Italian turkey sausage (Mine were in casings and I just removed the casing)

1 pound lean ground turkey

1/2 cup minced onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

2 - 6 oz cans tomato paste

2 - 8 oz cans tomato sauce

1/2 cup water

2 TBS white sugar

1 1/2 tsp dried basil leaves

1/2 tsp fennel seeds

1 tsp Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp Kosher salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

3 1/2 TBS dried parsley (or 4 TBS fresh chopped parsley)

12 lasagna noodles

16 oz ricotta cheese (the good stuff like Polly-O, Sierra or Sorrento)

1 egg

3/4 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced

Parmesan cheese (I didn't really measure this, just sprinkled it on)

Directions

In a Dutch oven, cook turkey sausage, ground turkey, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. You can do one of two things here - if you use the turkey there isn't much "juice" to drain off. I left mine in there for flavor. Now, if you use beef and sausage, you might want to drain off some of the "juice" so that you don't end up in an early grave from clogging your arteries. Just sayin.

Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, pepper, and 2 1/2 TBS parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. If you want to make this a day ahead and not be tied to the stove for 1 1/2 hours, you can follow the directions above (minus the simmering part) and then assemble the lasagna. Put it in the fridge overnight and put it on the counter to come to room temp about 1 hour before you put it in the oven.   

Put the lasagna noodles in hot tap water to soak for about 20-30 minutes. They will still be firm, but will cook up nicely in the oven without getting mushy. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, 1 TBS parsley, and 1/2 tsp Kosher salt. 

Preheat oven to 375. 

To assemble, spread 2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with half of the ricotta cheese mixture and sprinkle with Parmesan. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese. 

Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

Mexican Lasagna

This is a family favorite in our house and I make it monthly. It is so delicious and easy! I have made quite a few changes to the original to fit our preferences, since hubby doesn't eat vegetables. I also use ground turkey since I'm not a big red meat eater. It also cuts back the fat content - not that we are real concerned about that here in the South.

Mexican Lasagna
adapted from MyRecipes.com

Ingredients
1 pound lean ground turkey
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt-free chipotle seasoning blend (I use Mrs. Dash's)
1 (24-oz.) jar mild salsa
1 (15-oz.) can dark red kidney beans, drained
1 (10-oz.) can enchilada sauce
5-12 (6-inch) fajita-size flour tortillas
2 cups shredded Mexican four-cheese blend

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350.

Cook ground turkey over medium-high heat until it crumbles and is no longer pink. Toward the end of cooking the turkey add in the garlic, chili powder and Mrs. Dash's. Cook another 2-3 minutes.

Add in the salsa, kidney beans and enchilada sauce. Cook for 5-10 minutes or until heated through.

You can use an 8x8 or 9x13 depending on how much "filling" you want between the layers and/or how many you are feeding. I often squeeze all of this into an 8x8 to have less leftovers, but if you want to feed a crowd a 9x13 works too!

Grab your preferred pan and put about a cup of the turkey mixture on the bottom, add about 1/2 a cup of cheese and top with a layer of tortillas. I do not overlap mine and usually cut them in half to cover the cheese. Repeat this process 2-3 more times ending with cheese.

Cover the pan with foil and pop in the oven for 30 minutes. Uncover and cook 5 minutes more or until bubbly.