Turkey Burgers

This is a quick and easy favorite when I'm on a healthy eating kick.

Turkey Burgers

1 pound ground turkey
1 egg white
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp poultry seasoning
2 tsp Dijon mustard

Form into patties and fry.

Ground Turkey Soup

Ground Turkey Soup

2 1/2 (32 oz each) containers of ckn broth
Red potatoes -chunked
Baby Carrots ...
Sliced Onions
Celery chunks
1 can drained green beans
1 pkg white chicken chili seasoning
2 sprigs of rosemary

Put in large pot and bring to boil. Meanwhile in a skillet:
1-2 tbsp olive oil
Diced onion
Diced red pepper
Sliced mushrooms
Cook till soft. Season with salt and pepper.
Add 1 lb ground turkey and brown
Then dump that in the soup pot. Simmer till taters are done.

 

Slap Ya Mama Turkey Sausage & Rice

My niece Charly gave me the idea for this recipe, she makes it and told me about it.  We loved it - but one word of advice - be very careful with the Slap Ya Mama seasoning.  A little goes a long ways! I used too much and my lips were numb.

Slap Ya Mama Turkey Sausage with Rice--each serving about 450 cal.

2 bell peppers, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
Coconut oil (or you could use olive oil)
4 Johnsonville smoked turkey sausage links, sliced
Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning
Minute White or Jasmine Rice bowls

Sauté pepper and onion slices in coconut oil until tender.  Add in sliced turkey sausages and heat over med-high heat.

Microwave the rice bowls (each bowl is 1 serving)  Fluff rice and place on  your plate -  I sprinkled some soy sauce over the rice but that's optional.  Then put the turkey mixture over rice and sprinkle on a SMALL amount of Slap Ya Mama seasoning.  Enjoy.

Mexican Stuffed Peppers

This recipe is one I created and I've made it weekly since we started eating better. It's so good and warms up nicely the next day for leftovers.  Or you can cut the recipe down and just make what you need for one meal.

Mexican Stuffed Peppers

6 bell peppers - I usually buy a variety of colors, but we  prefer red.
Olive oil
1 package ground turkey (our  store has19 oz packages)
1 onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
salt, pepper
Minute Brown and Wild Rice Bowl
1 can Ro*Tel -I use mild
1 can (15oz) tomato sauce
chopped fresh cilantro
mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350*  Clean the peppers and cut in half.  (we make open face peppers).  Rub with a small amount of olive oil on each pepper, place in baking dish and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Brown turkey with onion, garlic, salt and pepper.  Microwave the rice bowl.  Add it to the turkey.  Add Ro*Tel and tomato sauce.  Heat and mix well.
Scoop turkey mixture into each pepper.  Top with chopped cilantro and 1/3 cup mozzarella cheese.  Bake for about 30 minutes.

Each full pepper has about 300-350 calories.

Turkey Bowls

I've struggled with my weight since I've been about 10 years old.  It seemed like Mom and I were continually on one diet or another.  In 2005 I had gastric bypass surgery (and had a lot of surgical complications but that's another story) and I lost about 170 pounds.  Then I got pregnant and gained 40 pounds.  And now 7 years has gone by and I've gained more. 

Friday, I purchased a FitBit Charge at Target. The goal is to wear this for a few days to see what my normal activity level is.  The FitBit will track the steps you take, miles you walk, the stairs you climb, etc.  I'm going to focus on steps.  Once I see my average then each day I want to increase it by 100, then 100 again the next day, and so on.

I read on a blog about the 90/10 food rule.  It makes sense so I want to incorporate this into my lifestyle.  It's quite simple, 90% of the time try to eat the best that you can and 10% of the time (which I will save for the weekend),  eat whatever you feel like eating. 

I went shopping and today I did some food prep for my lunches next week.  I've made these turkey bowls in the past when I've tried to lose weight. A package of ground turkey -- will make 4-5 lunches depending on how you divide out your portions.  This week I made 2 turkey bowls for lunches and I reserved the rest to make stuffed peppers for supper later this week.  Here's my recipe, it's simple, can be adapted easily, and is good.  It's about 400 calories, it varies a little based on the type of cheese, type of veggies, etc.

Turkey Bowls --400 calories

1 onion, minced
1 bell pepper, minced
salt, pepper, and other seasonings (to taste, I mix these up but Mrs. Dash Onion & Herb is one of my favorites)
1 package of ground turkey
1-2 packages of veggies (I prefer Birdseye Steamfresh Mixed Veggies)
1 serving shredded cheese (I use whatever I have on hand, usually the Mexican/Fiesta Blend)
4 Tbsp. Chunky Salsa

In a large skillet, brown the ground turkey with onion, green pepper, salt, pepper, and seasoning of your choice.

When it's done, I measure it  into 4 oz servings, and place in microwaveable bowls with lids.  Then I cook my veggies in the microwave and I put about 1/2 bag in each turkey bowl.  Then I add 1/3 cup cheese, and 4 tbsp. of salsa.   Stir to mix. 

Put in the fridge - then just microwave it for your lunches.

Thanksgiving Turkey

Here's my recipe and secret to an always juicy turkey.

Thanksgiving Turkey
14 pound turkey
2 sticks of butter - melted
Kosher salt
Sage
Bicentennial Rub (from www.penzeys.com)
2 quartered onions
6 stalks of celery
1 large Turkey size oven bag
2 tbsp. flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Wash turkey and pat dry. 

Put 2 tbsp. flour in the oven bag and shake well to coat the inside. 

Rub the melted butter over the entire turkey and inside the turkey (make sure you removed the neck and giblets!)  Season the outside and inside of the turkey with kosher salt, sage, and bicentennial rub.  Place 1 onion and 4 stalks of celery in the bottom of the oven bag.  Place 1 onion and 2 stalks of celery in the cavity of the turkey.  Place the turkey in the bag -- BREAST SIDE DOWN! (this is the secret to juicy turkey).  Tie the bag.  Cut 6 vent holes in the bag and transport the turkey to a roasting pan.  Bake at 350* for 2 1/2 -3 hours (checking periodically toward the end of the baking time to see if the turkey is at the correct temperature.  Make sure you take the temperature in the breast and thigh and it needs to be 165*)

Turkey Salad Sandwich

Turkey Salad Sandwich

 

1 large can turkey breast, chopped

2-3 boiled eggs

Mayo

Salt & Pepper

Celery Seed – Not very much, I just sprinkled a very small amount in

Slivered Toasted Almonds

Dried Cherries

Mix the above in a bowl.  Serve on bread with Swiss cheese.  I had some “everything French bread” from the deli…I put some Swiss cheese on it and put in the oven for a few minutes until the bread started to taste and the cheese melted.  Then top with the turkey mixture and enjoy. 

Angel’s Version of Lasagna Cupcakes

Last night I tried one of the recipes from my new 300 under 300 cookbook, the Lasagna Cupcakes.  First let me say that this recipe was a little more time consuming that what I normally make during the week so I suggest that you make it on the weekend or sometime when you are not pressed for time.  Of course, if you don’t have a 4 year old helping you this might not take as long and be fine for a weeknight meal.

They were good but they could be better. I found the lean ground turkey a little bland and the fat free ricotta cheese even more bland.  So I’m going to re-vamp the recipe to inject more flavors but hopefully not add too many more calories. I am going to add more spices, garlic, some roasted red peppers, and exchange the fat free ricotta for the low fat cottage cheese.  (If you like the fat free ricotta, feel free to use it but I didn’t care for the taste/texture of the fat free version.)  I also added just a little parmesan cheese and some panko crumbs to add some flavor to the cheese mixture.  And I thought a whole package of spinach was overwhelming; I will make it with less next time. Below is the recipe, after I’ve done some tweaking.

The original recipe said that each cupcake had 165 calories; I’m not sure how many calories my recipe contains.  I’m sure it’s more than this but not drastically more.

Angel’s Version of Lasagna Cupcakes

Olive Oil

Worcestershire Sauce
2 cloves garlic-diced
1 onion, diced
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
12 oz lean ground turkey
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
14.5 oz can crushed tomatoes
¼- ½ package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (the amount of spinach depends on how much you like spinach)
1 ½ cups low fat cottage cheese or the fat free ricotta cheese
1-2 tbsp of panko bread crumbs, Italian Style
1 -2 tbsp Grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup egg beaters
2-3 pieces of jarred roasted red pepper (packed in water), diced
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
Salt, pepper, garlic powder
24 small square wonton wrappers
1 ½ cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

·         In a large skillet, put 1 tbsp. olive oil and bring to med-hi heat.  Add onions, garlic, and mushrooms.  Sprinkle with some salt and pepper and add a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce. And sauté for 4-5 minutes until they begin to get tender.  Transfer to a bowl and set aside. 

·         Add the ground turkey to the skillet and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and Italian seasoning.   Cook and crumble until no longer pink

·         Reduce heat to low & add crushed tomatoes and the onion/mushroom mixture.  Simmer for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally.  Taste and season as needed.

·         While that is simmering, in a  large bowl combine the spinach, cottage cheese, 1/8 tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp. pepper, ½ tsp. garlic powder, 1/8 tsp. nutmeg, egg beaters, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and roasted red peppers. Stir to mix well.

·         Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with non-stick spray and press a wonton wrapper into each cup.  Put a blob of the spinach mixture in each cup.  Then a blob of the turkey mixture on top of that.  Smoothing the surfaces with the back of a spoon.   Top each turkey mixture with a tbsp. of mozzarella cheese.  Place another wonton wrapper into each cup, lightly pressing it down on the cheese layers and along the sides of the cup.  Repeat the layers and top with 1 tbsp. mozzarella cheese.

·         Bake in the oven until cheese has melted and edges are browned.  About 10 minutes

·         Allow to cool just a bit, and then transfer to a plate and serve.