A Practical Guide To Healthy Living
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Category — Turkey

Fat-Loss Sausage

sausage patties

 

What? This sausage will help you lose fat? Well, that’s not entirely true, but eating plenty of lean protein and limiting your fat intake is one of the ways to lose fat . . . remember, healthy foods aren’t necessarily fat-loss foods. Not that you’d think sausage is a health food. You wouldn’t think that, right? But if you know me off-blog, you know I love sausage. Even from those vendors outside sporting events, or on the streets of NYC. Yup, I’d go there. Spicy, juicy, greasy . . . all the way up to homemade, couture sausage in little restaurants where everything is locally sourced. Yes, I’ve dined along the whole sausage spectrum and enjoyed every lip-smackin’ minute.

But right now I’m trying to keep my physical gains and take them further, and sausage is not on the list of foods that’ll get me there. Until now.

Enter this recipe. I’m amazed at how sausagey and delicious it is. You can dial the red pepper up or down, depending on your spice preferences. You can brown the turkey & spices for a sausage crumble (how amazing would this be with refried beans & cheese, rolled up in a tortilla??), make it into little breakfast-sausage-sized patties, form it into burger-sized disks (this is what I did), make it into meatballs. Whatever. It’s damn good and is sure to satisfy a hankering for sausage, without blowing your plan. Enjoy!

Fat-Loss Sausage
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • 1 lb. ground turkey breast
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 2 heaping t. ground sage
  • ¾ t. red pepper flakes (or to taste, this does give a kick)
  • ½ t. celery salt
  • ½ t. ground cumin
  • ½ t. Kosher salt
  • ½ t. freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Place all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix thoroughly. Form into patties, meatballs, etc. or place in a skillet and break it apart to brown. Cook until no longer pink.
Notes
If you want to make little breakfast patties to have on hand, you can form them, place them raw on a cookie sheet, and freeze. Then transfer the frozen patties to a plastic freezer bag – voila! Remove however many you need the night before and defrost in the fridge.

 

 

July 26, 2013   7 Comments

Lebanese Seven Spices Seasoning

indian spices

When you’re eating a lot of lean protein, keeping things interesting is a challenge. Since becoming the chicken breast whisperer, I’ve been on a quest to liven things up, without salt. Sometimes, it’s hard to stay inspired and interested. [Read more →]

March 22, 2013   2 Comments

Ground Turkey Breast, 3 Ways

IMG_3547

Whether you’re low-carbing, dieting, or just trying to incorporate more healthy, home-cooked food into your diet, ground turkey breast can be a super-versatile addition to your repertoire. It’s unglamorous and pretty tasteless on its own, but it’s a blank slate for lots of flavor options and a great way to get a lean protein hit. Here are three ways I’ve been enjoying it lately. [Read more →]

March 13, 2013   2 Comments

Inspired Turkey Burgers

I’m on a never-ending quest for good turkey burger recipes. There’s our “Favorite Turkey Burger” recipe that I love, but while I’ve tried things like mixing in a log of herbed goat cheese, or Mexican spices, I’m usually underwhelmed. Let’s face it. Turkey breast is very low in fat & high in protein, which is good from a dietary perspective . . . but it’s pretty flavorless. So you’ve really gotta do some work to zazzle it up. [Read more →]

April 23, 2012   6 Comments

Roasted Veg with Turkey Kielbasa & Mustard Sauce

autumn leaves

When I first saw this recipe, I didn’t believe the total time could be 30 minutes, and I was right – it’s more like 45 by the time you do a bit of chopping.  But once this hits the oven (after about 15 min. of prep), you’re pretty much free to do as you please.  And when it comes out, you’ve got a complete meal that just screams “fall!”

[Read more →]

February 23, 2011   2 Comments

Stovetop Braised Cabbage With Turkey Kielbasa

Cabbage is humble food, no? It stands in stark contrast to all the fancy, fussy food we just finished eating for the holidays.  It’s cheap, it’s filling, but it’s also remarkably healthy.  I had two giant heads in the fridge, courtesy of my Shared Harvest CSA share – one green, one purple. [Read more →]

January 12, 2011   2 Comments

Slow Cooker North African Meatballs

north african meatballs in crock pot

What? North African cuisine in the Crock-Pot? Yeah baby!  When I saw this recipe, I immediately tagged it and made a note: “MUST MAKE THIS RECIPE!”  [Read more →]

November 5, 2010   5 Comments

California Turkey Burgers and A Breakthrough

lilah chopping scallions

Ahhh, the weather was SO beautiful in Boston on Friday night.  Breezy, not too hot, low humidity – it screamed out for another dinner on the patio.  D. came home early and fired up the charcoal grill, and L. and I got to work in the kitchen. 

That’s where the breakthrough comes in.  Those of you who know me off-blog know that I’ve cooked with L. since she was 2.  It was mostly a labor of love for me – often frustrating, but I kept at it.  She loved “helping” me out in the kitchen, and I was hopeful that someday, it’d start to pay off and we could work together and enjoy each other’s company while cooking at the same time.  After years of waiting (my baby turns 7 in a week) I’m pleased to report that L’s turned a corner in the kitchen – she is now a bona fide sous chef.  Yes, that’s right; she’s now not only willing, but actually helpful in the kitchen! That’s her up there, chopping scallions. 

The other night she suggested we make fettuccine carbonara – and she actually separated eggs all by herself. 

Lilah separating eggs

I did other stuff while she prepped, stirred, measured and combined . . . amazing and fun for both of us.  And the results were delicious.

fettuccine carbonara

Anyway, back to the Friday night burgers.  These were a snap to throw together and very tasty, unlike some turkey burgers.  Fire up the grill or fry ‘em up in a pan – either way they’ll take you under 30 minutes.  Enjoy!

California Turkey Burgers (adapted from Fitness Magazine)

1/2 c. minced scallions
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 T. Non-fat Greek yogurt
4 t. Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 lbs. Ground turkey breast meat
1/4 c. Bread crumbs (preferably whole wheat)

 

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl.  Mix with hands, being careful not to overwork the mixture.  Shape into 6 patties and cook until cooked through the middle, about 5 min. each side.

Serve with:

4 oz. Bleu cheese, crumbled
6 Hamburger buns, split (they aren’t whole grain or even healthy, but I think Martin’s potato rolls are the best carby splurge ever)
2 Ripe tomatoes, sliced
1Ripe avocado, sliced
1/2 Medium red onion, thinly sliced

 

Serves 6.

August 23, 2010   4 Comments

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