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Slice of Pie Cookbooks & Entertaining |
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Ground Turkey Recipes
About
once a year I get health conscious and decide that I should replace part of the ground beef in our diet with ground turkey.
Don’t ask me why, and don’t ask me how two people who love traditional roasted or fried turkey can also
be two people who don’t particularly care for ground turkey! We are that, however, and I usually
have to recite a little “better for you” lecture to my husband, when I prepare it.
There is a second reason to consider
using more ground turkey and that is the fact that it is half the price of ground beef. It is important
to note that ground turkey is similar to zucchini squash in that both products will acquire the flavor of whatever you mix
with it. Did you know that about zucchini? That’s probably a topic for another
column, but you can make a zucchini pie taste just like apple pie, if you use the same sugar and spices!
Now, I’m not suggesting that you make a ground turkey faux apple pie, but if you want a wonderful Asian sweet
and sour appetizer meatball, ground turkey will assume that flavor better than ground beef! If what you
like about your standard meatloaf recipe is the onion-mushroom-brown gravy flavor, ground turkey is actually more absorbent
of the flavor than ground beef! Ground turkey is very lean, so if you are grilling burgers, you’ll
find that basting them with your favorite sauce a few times during cooking will make them juicier and even more flavorful.
We’ve all been battling these economic woes for so long a period of time, I think that grocery prices could
drop to an all-time low and we’d still be looking for bargains and ways to save money. It is kind
of entrenched into the way we shop and we probably won’t turn back, now!
Add ground turkey to your shopping list. You can buy it freshly ground, but it also comes in convenient
little frozen logs that you can pop right into the freezer. Handle frozen ground turkey with all the care
that you use in handling a whole frozen turkey. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and never let it
sit at room temperature. Ingredients: 8 ounce package of wide egg noodles, cooked 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1 pound ground turkey 1 Tablespoon dried minced onion 1 Tablespoon powdered paprika 1 cube of chicken bouillon, softened in a ½ cup of hot water In
a little canola oil, brown the ground turkey in a heavy skillet. When the turkey is done, add the
soup, minced onion, paprika and ½ cup hot water with the bouillon. Simmer until everything is bubbling
and serve over the egg noodles. You might like to serve this over rice.
Ingredients: 2 pounds ground turkey 1 onion, chopped 2 cloves of garlic, crushed 1 Tablespoon dried oregano ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or less) 1 Tablespoon ground cumin ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper 2 4-ounce cans crushed
chili peppers 6
cups chicken stock 3
15-ounce cans cannellini beans Tortilla chips and shredded Jack cheese In
a heavy soup pot, brown the ground turkey and onion for ten minutes. Add the garlic and all the spices
and cook for a couple of minutes until the aroma releases from the spices! You’ll know when it’s
time! Add all the other ingredients and simmer 30 minutes longer. Serve with a
topping of tortilla chips and shredded Jack cheese.
Ingredients: 1 pound ground turkey 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce 1 cup sour cream 1 8-ounce block of cream cheese 12-ounce package egg noodles, cooked 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese In a heavy skillet, brown the ground turkey in a little canola oil for ten minutes. Remove from
the stove and stir in the tomato sauce. With a mixer or in a food processor, whip
together the cream cheese and sour cream. In a 3-quart casserole, layer the noodles, the turkey/tomato
sauce, the sour cream mixture and then the cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.
The cheese should be melted and the casserole should bubble in the center. Serve this with
a green salad on the side and hot crusty bread!
Ingredients: 2 pounds ground turkey 1 cup ground buttery crackers ¼ of a medium onion,
ground 1 cup
of milk 2 eggs,
slightly whisked ½
teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning ¼ teaspoon ground pepper ½ pound cheddar cheese cut in half-inch cubes In a food processor, grind
the buttery crackers and the onion together. In a large bowl, mix the cracker/onion mixture with the turkey,
eggs and seasoning. Add the milk a little at a time, because ground turkey may contain a little water and
you may not need the whole cup of milk. When everything is combined, gently fold in the cheese cubes.
Place in a well greased loaf pan or casserole dish and bake at 400 degrees for approximately 1 hour. The
internal temperature should reach 180 degrees. This turkey meatloaf is really moist and doesn’t
need a sauce or gravy. Save the sauce for a nice vegetable or potato casserole and serve that on
the side with a salad! Note that it is important to use cubes of cheese. Shredded
cheese will not have the same impact or flavor.
Ingredients: 2 pounds ground turkey 1 medium sweet onion, chopped 1 green pepper, chopped 1 16-ounce
can chili beans in sauce 1 16-ounce can fire roasted stewed tomatoes 1 small can tomato paste 1 Tablespoons Chipotle chili powder ½ teaspoon garlic powder ½ teaspoon cumin ½ teaspoon Old Bay
Seasoning ½
teaspoon ground black pepper ½ teaspoon salt 1 bottle of beer or 1 ½ cups water In a heavy soup pot, sauté the turkey,
onion and green pepper in a little canola oil. When the onion and the pepper are soft, add all the dry
spices and stir the ingredients a couple of minutes until you can really smell the spices. Then add
all the other ingredients, stir well and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot and simmer the chili for 30 minutes
longer. You might like additional Chipotle powder or you might like to add a small can of chopped
green chili peppers. You’ll never know you are eating ground turkey! |
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