Pesto Turkey Burgers

A friend of mine, who happens to be an excellent cook, shared this recipe with me. In fact, she invited me over for lunch and made them for me! I've made this several times since then - it's one of my favorites. Not just because of the taste either - it's an incredibly fast and easy recipe. Andrew raves over these burgers which is saying a lot - honestly, I should change his middle name to "Picky".


Ingredients:

1 lb uncooked ground turkey
4 Tbsp basil pesto
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt

4 ciabatta rolls, or rustic Italian bread
4 slices cheese (mozzarella or provolone)
fresh basil leaves, arugula or spring garden mix (we usually use plain old lettuce)
tomato slices


Directions:

In a bowl, combine turkey, pesto, Parmesan cheese, garlic and salt. Using a fork, mix until ingredients are blended. Shape into 4 patties. Place patties on a grill and cook 10-13 minutes or until turkey is no longer pink, turning once halfway through grilling. If you like, you can place the cheese on top of the patty to melt.

If you like, you can brush the bread with olive oil and place on grill. We've noticed that ciabatta bread is actually a little tough to chew, so you might not want to toast it. Sometimes I skip past the whole Italian thing and just put the burgers on a kaiser roll. It's all personal preference of course.

Also, the recipe calls for 3 cloves of garlic. Holy cow, that's a lot of garlic for 1 lb of meat!  Well, in my opinion it's a lot of garlic - a little goes a long way for me.  Again, it's all personal preference - I only use 1 clove of garlic, but you may not want to change it at all.

This is a really fantastic meal - you're gonna love it!

Turkey Pasta Soup

This is something that we have fairly often. It’s a little spicy – once I substituted turkey sausage instead of ground turkey, and let me tell you – that was hot! I don’t recommend it! 

Here's one tip - I cook my pasta, but don't add it to the soup. When I dish it up, I put the amount of pasta I want in each bowl and then add the soup. That way I can refrigerate the leftovers without the pasta soaking up all of the broth.This makes quite a bit of soup, so sometimes we freeze the leftovers and then it's quick to heat up for another meal. I also like to sprinkle some shredded Parmesan on top just before serving.

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked small pasta shells
• 1 pound lean ground turkey
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cans (15 ounces each) white kidney or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) Italian stewed tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large stock pot, cook the turkey, onions and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the broth, beans, tomatoes and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Drain pasta and add to the soup. Cook 5 minutes longer or until heated through.

Yield: 10 servings