Bacon and Sweet Potato Turkey Burger (Paleo)

Bacon. Sweet Potato. Burger. How could you go wrong? I followed the Foodie and the Family recipe exactly.

Bacon and Sweet Potato Turkey Burger
From The Foodie and The Family

2 pounds ground turkey
1/2 pound bacon
1 cup shredded sweet potato
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

In a large frying pan, cook bacon until almost crisp. Remove bacon and chop into pieces (when cooled).

In a large bowl, combine bacon with turkey, sweet potato, onion, egg, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Form into 8 patties.

Cook in bacon fat (or coconut oil) for 7 minutes per side; or until cooked through. Serve on a bed of lettuce.

Turkey Stuffing Turkey Meatloaf

Turkey Stuffing Turkey Meatloaf
20 ounces ground turkey
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
3 stalks of celery, finely chopped
3 carrots, finely chopped
1/2 cup oat flour (rolled oats ground in a food processor)
1/4 cup egg white or 1 whole egg
1 Tbsp olive oil
poultry seasoning
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Heat the oil and add the chopped veggies, cook until tender. Season with salt, pepper and a generous amount of poultry seasoning. Turn off the heat. In a large bowl add the ground turkey and season with salt, pepper, and a little poultry seasoning. Add the seasoned veggies, oat flour, and egg and mix until combined but don’t overwork the meat.

Cover a baking rack with foil and spray with nonstick spray. Add the meat and shape into a loaf. Bake for 30 minutes, or until cooked through.

Thanksgiving Turkey Rosemary Seasoning

Rosemary Seasoning for Turkey

3/4 c. olive oil
3 Tbs. minced garlic
2 Tbs. chopped, fresh rosemary
1 Tbs. chopped, fresh basil
1 Tbs. Italian seasoning
1 tsp ground pepper
salt to taste

Combine all ingredients and set aside. Wash turkey, inside and out, pat dry. Remove any large fat deposits. Loosen skin from the breast. Spread generous amount of rosemary mixture under skin all over the turkey by sticking your hand all the way under but don’t break or tear the skin.

Roast turkey in a 325 degree preheated oven according to the chart below from Butterball.com:

Net Weight (lb.)	Unstuffed (hrs.)	Stuffed (hrs.)
4½ to 7	2 to 2½	2¼ to 2¾
7 to 9	2½ to 3	2¾ to 3½
9 to 18	3 to 3½	3¾ to 4½
18 to 22	3½ to 4	4½ to 5
22 to 24	4 to 4½	5 to 5½
24 to 30	4½ to 5	5½ to 6¼

Check for doneness 30 minutes before turkey is expected to be done. Turkey is fully cooked when the thigh’s internal temperature is 180 degrees. The thickest part of the breast should read 170 degrees and the center of the stuffing should be 165 degrees.

When done, let the turkey stand for 15 to 20 minutes before carving.

Turkey Florentine Meatballs

Supah Meatballs!

I normally steer clear of processed foods like breadcrumbs. Most often I will replace them with ground oats and seasoning and you can do that too. I just decided that for this week I was ok with a half cup spread across 8 servings. YMMV. If you want, grind some oats and mix with basil, parsley, salt, pepper, garlic powder and maybe some red pepper flake.

Ground turkey breast can be really dry and, although I eat it all the time, I wouldn’t normally serve it to guests. If I were having company for dinner I would opt for a 93% lean turkey. In this recipe, however, the ricotta (go for the fat free and save the calories, you won’t taste the difference!) and the spinach do an amazing job of keeping the meatballs moist and tender (also, be sure not to overcook! It’s turkey, of course, so you can’t have a pink center but remove from the oven as soon as they’re cooked through.)

I would confidently serve these to guests. If you make these please leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Turkey Florentine Meatballs

20 oz 99% lean ground turkey breast
1 cup fat free Ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
10 oz frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry of liquid
salt, pepper, red pepper flake to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix all ingredients, form into 16 meatballs and place on a cookie sheet that’s been covered in foil and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 18 minutes or until cooked through.

Makes 8 servings, each:

149 calories
3 g fat
8.8 g carb
22 g protein

Turkey Pumpkin Chili

This came out really, really good. You don’t really taste the pumpkin all that much but there’s a hint of it there. Use this as a base to create your own, according to what you like: I eyeballed the spices, so season to your own taste. I used crushed tomatoes and left the consistency pretty thick but you could use diced tomatoes and add water or broth if it’s still too thick for you. Use whatever color peppers you like, add beans or brown rice for some complex carb. However you like it, this is a delicious, hearty, warm chili.

Turkey Pumpkin Chili

1 diced onion
1 orange bell pepper, diced
1 clove minced garlic
1 1/3 lb ground turkey
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
2 Tbs chili powder
1 T cumin
1 tsp cinnamon
salt, pepper, red pepper flake to taste

Saute the onion, bell pepper, and garlic until tender. Stir in the turkey, and cook until brown. Mix in tomatoes, pumpkin and spices. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes.

Makes 5 good size servings, each:
208 calories
1.9 g fat
25 g carb
7 g fiber
27.5 g protein

Thanksgiving Recipes

Unfortunately I won’t be participating in any Thanksgiving festivities this year, but for those of you who won’t be curled up at home alone with your dog, a blanket and chinese take out and crying until you have dehydrated yourself into a migraine, here are some lighter versions of Thanksgiving classics.

Herb-Roasted Turkey Breast

12 thyme sprigs
1 rosemary sprig
1 sage sprig
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (12-pound) fresh or frozen turkey breast, thawed
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 lemons, each cut in half
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350°.
Remove leaves from thyme sprigs to measure 2 tablespoons chopped; reserve stems. Remove leaves from rosemary sprig to measure 2 tablespoons chopped; reserve stem. Remove the leaves from sage sprig to measure 2 tablespoons chopped; reserve stem. Combine the chopped thyme, chopped rosemary, chopped sage, garlic, shallots, and pepper in a small bowl.
Rinse turkey with cold water, and pat dry. Trim excess fat. Starting at neck cavity, loosen skin from breast by inserting fingers, gently pushing between skin and meat. Rub herb mixture under loosened skin and sprinkle in body cavity. Drizzle lemon juice over skin. Place reserved stems and lemon halves in body cavity. Lift wing tips up and over back; tuck under turkey.
Place turkey on a rack set in a shallow roasting pan. Bake according to times on package. (Cover turkey loosely with foil if it gets too brown.) Remove turkey from oven. Cover loosely with foil; let stand 10 minutes before carving. Discard skin.

Bread Stuffing

1 loaf bread, cut into 1-inch cubes and slightly stale
3 tablespoons I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1 (10 1/2-ounce) can low-salt chicken broth
Cooking spray

Place bread cubes in a layer on cookie sheet. Bake at 350° for 12 minutes or until toasted; place in a bowl. Melt ICBINB in a saucepan over medium heat. Add celery and onion; saute 10 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in water, salt, poultry seasoning and broth. Add bread cubes, tossing to coat; spoon into a 2-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Cover and bake at 375° for 30 minutes.

Makes 10 servings (serving size: 1/2 cup)

162 Calories
3g Fat
5g protein
27g carbs

Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Pecan Butter

2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound)
3 tablespoons 1% low-fat milk
2 tablespoons brown sugar, divided
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 tablespoon chopped pecans, toasted
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pierce potatoes with a fork; arrange on paper towels in microwave oven. Microwave potatoes at HIGH for 10 minutes, rearranging the potatoes after 5 minutes. Wrap potatoes in a towel; let stand for 5 minutes. Scoop out pulp; discard skins. Combine pulp, milk, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, and salt in a medium bowl; mash.
Combine 1 tablespoon brown sugar, softened butter, pecans, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Top each serving with pecan mixture.

Yield: 2 servings (serving size: 3/4 cup potatoes and 1 tablespoon pecan mixture)

CALORIES 299
FAT 9g
PROTEIN 3.9g
FIBER 5.4g
CARBOHYDRATE 52g
(Cooking Light, APRIL 2001)

Mashed Potatoes with Roasted Garlic and Rosemary

2 whole garlic heads
2 pounds cubed peeled Yukon gold potato
1 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons plain fat-free yogurt
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350°.
Remove white papery skin from garlic heads (do not peel or separate the cloves). Wrap each head separately in foil. Bake at 350° for 1 hour; cool 10 minutes. Separate cloves; squeeze to extract garlic pulp. Discard skins.
Place potato and onion in a saucepan; cover with water, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until potato is tender. Drain in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Combine garlic, potato mixture, 1/4 cup cooking liquid, and remaining ingredients; mash with a potato masher.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1/2 cup)

CALORIES 93
FAT 0.2g
PROTEIN 2.8g
FIBER 2.1g
CARBOHYDRATE 21g
(Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 2000)

Amy’s Ground Turkey Cacciatore

Cacciatore is traditionally made with chicken, but I like using the ground turkey breast just as a personal preference. Some cacciatore recipes will have mushrooms in them, or carrots and many don’t include olives. I use peppers, onions and olives because that’s how my mom made it growing up – in fact, this tastes very much like my mom’s chicken cacciatore even though it’s “Amy food” friendly 🙂

I usually eat this over rice. Macros below don’t include rice.

Amy’s Ground Turkey Cacciatore

3 lbs 99% lean ground turkey breast
2 bags frozen pepper and onion mix (the brand I use is red, green, yellow bell peppers and onions – you could use fresh if you want)
2 -28 oz cans of crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup large green olives, chopped
garlic powder
parsley
salt
pepper
1 packet splenda

*note: Auntie just told me that my Nana’s secret ingredient in cacciatore is red wine vinegar. A couple splashes. I wouldn’t doubt Nana.

Spray a large pot liberally with cooking spray. Saute the frozen (or fresh) peppers and onions. Stir them around and let them saute long enough to cook off any water and allow them to start to carmelize. Add ground turkey, stir to break up. Cook until turkey is almost completely cooked. Add the two cans of crushed tomatoes, olives, 1 packet of splenda. Stir. Add salt, pepper, parsley, garlic powder to taste. Stir. Let it come to a boil, then cover and let simmer for a a few hours.

Makes 12 servings. Each serving:

176 calories
2 g fat
17 g carb
3.5 g fiber
26 g protein