Turkey Taco Bites

Turkey Taco Bites combine classic taco flavors with sliced turkey all rolled up into a bite sized morsel of deliciousness! It makes a tasty appetizer that is quick and easy too. If you have 5-10 minutes you can whip these up ahead of time and refrigerate until ready to enjoy! It doesn't get much better than that for quick and easy party food! Perfect for #TacoTuesday

Leftover Turkey Pot Pie Recipe

Leftover Turkey Pot Pie is a deliciously easy way to use up the very last of that beautiful Thanksgiving turkey you so carefully prepared with love.

How To Roast Turkey

How To Roast a Turkey and get melt-in-your-mouth results every time!

Are you the go-to person to roast the turkey this year on Thanksgiving? Do you know how to roast turkey? Are you nervous? I know I was the first year I shouldered this responsibility. The turkey is the star of the show, and I didn't want to be the one to ruin our Thanksgiving meal with a dry, tasteless bird!

No worries! I'll show you how to roast turkey to succulent deliciousness every time! This method of brining the turkey overnight in salt water and then roasting to the perfect temperature will deliver a beautifully moist and tender turkey that will live up to being the star of the Thanksgiving table every time!

Should you go fresh or frozen? I've done both. I was very disappointed in my so-called 'fresh' bird, so now I only buy frozen. Turkeys are immediately flash frozen, so in my strange little mind that makes them fresher than a 'fresh' turkey. This recipe can be used for fresh or frozen turkeys.

Check out my Small Thanksgiving Dinner Menu with Recipes and a Printable Grocery list. I show you step-by-step how to make Thanksgiving dinner.

Homemade Turkey Gravy Recipe

Homemade Turkey Gravy brings your entire Thanksgiving dinner together. It is like icing on the cake! A very important component of the dinner, so you want it to be fantastic, right?

Right! That's why we skip the jars and powder mixes and make up this simple gravy while the turkey is resting. It's easy to do, as low in fat as you want it to be, and tastes AHHH-mazing!

The flavor and color of your gravy will differ depending on what you use in your pan while cooking your turkey. I use white wine in my pan with a mix of carrots, celery, onion, thyme and always slather the turkey with butter. All of these flavors come together to make a rich, flavorful gravy you can't get from a jar or mix.

On Friday, November 14th, I'll be sharing my recipe 'How to Roast Turkey' for a beautifully moist and tender turkey that will be the star of your Thanksgiving dinner! Plus, they'll be a great giveaway, so stay tuned!!

Hawaiian Turkey Sliders

Hawaiian Turkey Sliders with a honey ginger glaze and pineapple salsa on a Kings Hawaiian Original Sweet Roll! Now that's a turkey burger y'all!

Turkey Noodle Soup

posted by Marion@Life Tastes Good on 2013-09-23

When I was younger and a busy, busy mom I used to toss the turkey bones! Now that I'm older and wiser I always use the turkey bones to make this hearty Turkey Noodle Soup. It is so easy and a delicious way to make the most of that turkey dinner! Be sure to hold onto your turkeys this Thanksgiving!! You won't be disappointed! This soup is very versatile too, so you can use up just about any vege you have on hand!

It's not exactly the traditional turkey eating time of year, but this month I was chosen to participate in Butterball's Turketarian Movement as part of the allrecipes.com Allstar Program. One of the recipes I made was the Maple Basted Roast Turkey with Cranberry Gravy. Doesn't that sound delish?!! It was lip-smacking good, and the leftover turkey was absolutely wonderful on the Cranberry Thanksgiving Turkey Sandwich and in my favorite turkey noodle soup too!

Ingredients

• 2 quarts water
• 2 tablespoons vegetable base
• 1 turkey carcass
• 1 carrot, peeled and sliced
• 1/4 lb green beans, trimmed
• 1 onion sliced
• 1 cup egg noodles, uncooked
• 2 cups leftover turkey
• 1 teaspoon creole seasoning
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Mix 2 quarts water with 2 tablespoons vegetable base (you can use 2 quarts vegetable stock in place of the water and vege base) and pour into an 8 quart stock pot. 
2. Add turkey carcass and bring to a simmer. Cover and reduce heat as necessary to maintain simmer. Simmer for 1-2 hours. 
3. Remove the turkey bones. Strain if necessary to get all the bones. Add the veges, noodles, turkey meat, and seasoning. 
4. Cover and simmer for an additional 30 minutes to an hour. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Turkey and Zucchini Enchiladas with Verde Sauce

Healthy, Spicy and delicious!

This is easy to make and good for you too! Making these enchiladas with ground turkey and zucchini make these lower in fat and calories than your typical enchiladas.  You don't sacrifice flavor, either!

The sauce has a bit of a bite to it, but I love it! The new Herdez Mexican Cooking Sauces make dinner easy and they are really delicious!

This recipe was created by one of the allrecipes.com Allstars and my good friend, Renee of Renee's Kitchen Adventures. Visit her blog to read about how she went about creating this tasty dish! Herdez and allrecipes.com liked this recipe so much, they published it as part of the Herdez Collection on allrecipes.com! How exciting is that??   Check out the Turkey and Zucchini Enchilada recipe on Renee's Kitchen Adventures. I made this recipe as stated on Renee's Kitchen Adventures, except I halved the recipe and after removing the foil I put it under the broiler just until slightly browned. I served this with sour cream, cilantro, and homemade guac!

Pan Seared Turkey Patties Smothered in Sauteed Mushrooms

Let me start with an apology. I am so sorry for the poor quality of these pictures! My photographer is back at college in GA, so I was left to go this alone...

and at night with no natural lighting.  Not a good combo!

Rest assured - these patties taste amazing....the pictures don't do them justice

Now that is out of the way, let's talk TURKEY! I like ground turkey as an alternative to ground beef. It has a nice mild flavor that pairs well with your favorite herbs, it is low-carb and leaner than ground round. Just be sure to purchase the ground turkey that includes the dark meat. If you purchase ground turkey breast you will be making a leaner choice, but you will end up with a dry tasteless turkey patty - blech! and you'll pay more for that too :o(

I like to pan sear ground meat patties to seal in the juices with the delicious crust that forms from the high heat. The key to pan searing is using a hot pan. First you'll want to heat the pan over mid-high heat and then spray with cooking spray or add butter, olive oil, or whatever kind of fat you are using.  Don't let the fat burn in the pan, add your patties right away and leave them alone! This is key - you have to let them sit in the pan to get that nice sear on them. If you move them too soon that yummy crust will be left in the pan, and that would be sad :o(  In most cases the food is ready to be flipped when it releases easily from the pan 

I could go on and on about how good these were, but you really have to try them for yourself! It was love at first bite for me! I was originally going to serve these with a cauliflower mash (recipe here) and freshly steamed green beans, but my local grocer was out of cauliflower! WHAT??  That was a first! So I grabbed a bag of salad (actually 2 because they were on a BOGO Free sale!), and the salad worked well with this for a deliciously easy low carb (and low cost) meal that I would eat again tonight if I could!

Ingredients

8oz container of sliced fresh mushrooms

2 tablespoons butter, divided

1 to 1.5 lbs ground turkey

1-2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

1-2 teaspoons freshly minced garlic

1/4-1/2 cup shredded or shaved Parmesan cheese

4 slices of your favorite cheese

Sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions

Place your ground turkey, fresh basil, and minced garlic in a large bowl and combine well.  Add salt and pepper. Mix in enough Parmesan cheese to bind it together nicely, and form into patties.  Adjust your seasonings according to the amount of turkey you have and to suit your tastes. For example: I used 1 1/4 lbs ground turkey with about 1.5 tablespoons of fresh basil, 1 teaspoon of garlic, 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 1/4 cup shaved Parmesan cheese (I do not recommend using the grated Parmesan that comes in the can - it will not produce the same results as shredded or shaved). I used american cheese slices because I like how creamy it is. This made 4 patties.

In a large skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat and add mushrooms. Saute until mushrooms start to release their juices (about 5 minutes) and then reduce heat to mid-low and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until soft and tasty. Salt to your liking, and remove from pan and keep warm.

Reheat the same skillet over mid-high heat. When good and hot (water droplet should sizzle on it), melt 1 tablespoon of butter. The butter will melt very quickly, so be sure you have your turkey patties ready to go in the pan. Add the turkey patties, cover and let cook for a good 5 minutes. It is important not to move them around! Just let them sit there so they get a nice sear. If they start to burn (you'll smell it), then your pan is too hot. Adjust the temp and flip to other side. Once they have a nice sear and release somewhat easily from the pan, flip them over. Be careful not to let them stick to the pan - the parmesan cheese might want to stick, so be sure to get under the patty when flipping. Cover and let cook for 3-5 minutes until juices run clear.

Top with cheese slices and cover to melt.

Transfer to a plate and smother with reserved mushrooms. Enjoy!

TIP:  If you are using stainless steel cookware you'll want to have some Bar Keepers Friend® on hand for cleaning up the skillet. Bar keeper's Friend works like a champ and is cheap too! A little goes a long way! You won't use this on non-stick cookware though.

I use stainless steel cookware with a magnetic base, because I have an induction cooktop. I used to have an anodized aluminum set that I absolutely loved, but because it wasn't magnetic I had to retire that set after 20 plus years of good use! Madison now has that set at college, and she loves it too!  After much research on stainless steel, I settled on the Emeril set made by All Clad. I've been using this for more than a year now and I am crazy about it! It still looks brand new, too, thanks to BarKeepers Friend! If you are in the market for a high quality, affordable set I suggest Emeril by All-Clad E914SC PRO-CLAD Tri-Ply Stainless Steel Cookware Set, 12-Piece, Silver