Tuscan Fusilli With Ground Turkey Lentils And Kale Recipes

EASY TUSCAN KALE

Steps:

• Wash and dry the kale leaves, then destem and roughly chop the kale.
• Smash and peel the garlic cloves.
• Add the olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Add the smashed garlic and kale and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently until wilted and bright green.
• Remove from the heat and add the kosher salt and several grinds of fresh ground pepper. Discard the garlic cloves and serve immediately. (If desired, you can add lemon juice or Parmesan: but neither are necessary with the sweet flavor of Tuscan kale! You may want to consider them if using curly kale.)

LENTIL SOUP WITH TOMATO AND TUSCAN KALE

Steps:

• For the lentils: Remove the outer layers from the head of garlic and cut off about 1/4 inch of the stem end to expose the cloves. Add the lentils to a large pot and cover them by 2 inches with water. Add the onion, carrots, celery, bay leaf, the head of garlic and a couple of pinches of salt. Bring the lentils to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the lentils are creamy and tender, about 40 minutes.
• Remove and discard the onion, carrots, celery, bay leaf and garlic. Using an immersion blender, puree about one-third of the lentils and return them to the pot. (Or scoop one-third of the lentils into a standard blender and puree, then add back to the pot.)
• For the soffrito: In a food processor, combine the red onion, carrots, celery, rosemary and thyme and pulse until the vegetables are minced. Add the mixture to a separate large soup pot along with the olive oil. Turn the heat to high and fry the vegetables, stirring occasionally, until they soften and color slightly, 10 to 12 minutes. Add the tomato paste, canned tomatoes with their juice, and a couple pinches of salt to the soffrito and stir. Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook for 10 minutes. Add the kale and another pinch of salt, stirring to coat the leaves. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 10 minutes, until the kale is soft.
• Add the lentils into the pot of vegetables and stir. Add about 2 cups water, a little at a time, to thin the soup (it can be more or less water, depending on the level of thickness you prefer). Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes to allow the flavors to come together. Taste and add salt, if needed. Serve with black pepper, Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil.

GAIL'S TURKEY LENTIL STEW

Steps:

• Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add turkey, onion, and red bell pepper. Saute until pepper is soft and turkey is no long pink, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Combine water, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, lentils, carrots, barley, bouillon, salt, Italian seasoning, black pepper, and cayenne pepper in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the sauteed turkey mixture. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until lentils are tender and flavors are blended, about 1 hour.

ALMOST TUSCAN SAUSAGE AND KALE SOUP

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium heat until the oil shimmers; cook and stir onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, and black pepper until onion is translucent, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Mix sausage, basil, and paprika together in a bowl.
• Stir sausage mixture into onion mixture; cook and stir until sausage is browned and fully cooked, 5 to 10 minutes. Add chicken broth, kale, cannellini beans, and potatoes to sausage-onion mixture; lower heat to medium low. Cover stockpot and simmer until potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

TUSCAN FUSILLI WITH GROUND TURKEY, LENTILS AND KALE

Steps:

• 1. Combine lentils and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 20-25 mintes or until tender, but not mushy. Remove from heat, season with 1/2 tsp salt and set aside. 2. Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large heavy skillet or saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook stirring occasionally, for 15 or 20 minutes, or until onions are soft and moist. Uncover and increase heat to medium. Stir in remaining salt, garlic and rosemary. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 - 7 minutes or until golden brown. 3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add kale and bring back to a boil. Boil gently for 5 minutes or until tender, but not soft and mushy. Using a slotted spoon or tongs, remove kale to a collander. Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking and drain well. Cover the pot of water to keep it boiling. 4. Add pasta to water and boil, stirring once, for about 7 minutes. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water and then drain the pasta. Rinse pasta with cool water and drain well. 5. While pasta is cooking, heat remaining olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground turkey and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring constantly and breaking up any clumps, for 5-8 minutes or until meat is browned with no pink inside. Stir in nutmeg and set aside. 6. Add lentils and their cooking liquid to the onions in the skillet. Using kitchen scissors, cut boiled kale into smaller pieces as you add it to the skillet. Add cooked pasta and enough reserved cooking water to keep pasta and vegetables moist. Increase heat to high. Cook, stirring constantly, until pasta is mixed in and heated through. 7. Using a slotted spoon to allow meat to drain, transfer the meat to pasta and vegetables.

TURKEY SAUSAGE AND LENTIL SOUP

Steps:

• In a 6-qt. stockpot, cook and crumble sausage over medium-high heat until no longer pink, 5-7 minutes; remove with a slotted spoon., In same pot, saute onion, celery and carrot until tender, 4-6 minutes. Add garlic and seasonings; cook and stir 1 minute. Stir in sausage, lentils, tomatoes and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, until lentils are tender, 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaf., Transfer 5 cups soup to a blender; cool slightly. Cover; process until smooth. Return to pot; heat through. If desired, top servings with yogurt and parsley. Freeze option: Freeze cooled soup in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally; add a little broth or water if necessary.

GROUND TURKEY AND VEGETABLE SOUP

Steps:

• In a large heavy bottomed pot heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot add in the ground turkey, onion, salt and pepper. Crumble and cook the turkey until it's nearly cooked through.
• Add in the garlic, tomato paste, Italian seasoning and smoked paprika. Stir until combined. Add in the carrots, green beans, potatoes, diced tomatoes, cannellini beans, bay leaf, Parmesan cheese rind, and chicken broth. Stir everything together and bring the soup to a boil.
• Once boiling, lower the heat to medium-low and cover with a lid. Let it simmer for about 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Remove the bay leaf and Parmesan cheese rind. Add in the peas and spinach. Cook until the spinach is wilted, about 2-3 minutes. Taste the soup for seasoning and add additional salt and pepper as needed. Serve topped with shredded Parmesan cheese if desired.

GROUND TURKEY PASTA BAKE (HEALTHY CASSEROLE)

Steps:

• Cook pasta al dente as per package instructions, undercooking by 4 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water, and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and spray 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray.
• In the meanwhile, preheat large skillet on medium heat and add olive oil. Add onion and garlic, sauté for 2 - 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add oregano, rosemary, basil, pinch of red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring a few times. Add ground turkey and cook for another 5-7 minutes, breaking meat into pieces and stirring occasionally.
• Add tomato sauce, honey, balsamic vinegar and pasta water. Stir, bring to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Add kale and stir to combine.
• Now add cooked pasta and stir to combine more.
• Transfer half of the mixture in previously prepared baking dish and sprinkle with 1 cup cheese. Add remaining pasta meat mixture and sprinkle with remaining 1 cup cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
• Remove from the oven, let stand for 10 minutes, garnish with parsley and serve hot. With a glass of red wine. OMG, so good!