Unfortunately I don’t have a grill at the moment so I cooked these on the George Foreman. I don’t think they suffered at all. I still got a nice crisp outer shell and a moist inside. They held together perfectly! The only thing I may do differently next time is add a bit of garlic. Other then that my first stab is a keeper for me!

As for husband and child.. they stuck with regular old boring burgers. Which is totally fine by me. I now have 6 frozen patties to pull out for a quick meal!

• 1 lb lean ground turkey (at least 90%)
• 1 cup (80g) Old Fashioned Oats
• 2 large egg whites
• 10 oz frozen chopped spinach
• 1/2 cup (68g) ATHENOS crumbles feta (I used Black Peppercorn)

The first thing you need to do is prep the spinach. If you don’t have a 10oz package defrosted simply put it in a strainer and run it under water. It will defrost in no time.

Once it’s defrosted, squeeze as much liquid as you can out and add it and the rest of the ingredients to a bowl.

Combine using your hands. Don’t overwork, just mix it until all the ingredients merge.

Form into 8 patties each about 100g each.

Grill until cooked through! They took about 9 minutes on my goerge foreman. Be sure to spray with some non-stick cooking spray to avoid sticking.

Here’s a closeup of the burger.

I served mine on a whole wheat bun with a sweet roasted pepper on top and a side of grilled zucchini and corn on the cob. Here’s the nutritional information for just the pattys. Serve it any way you like!

Spinach/Feta not yor thing? Check out my other Turkey Burger Ideas… Southwestern Turkey Burgers and Grilled Honey Mustard Turkey Oat Burgers!

FULL DISCLOSURE: I have partnered with ATHENOS Feta to serve as one of ATHENOS Change for the Feta Bloggers. I am compensated for my time commitment to the program, which includes blogging about my cooking experiences with ATHENOS Feta. I have also been compensated for the food purchased for my Change for the Feta creations. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments. Click here to see all my Feta Ideas!!

To my surprise… it was a complete hit! Everyone like it and I got tons of compliments. I guess people could have just been being polite but I think these pictures say it all…

Before party…

After Party…

They devoured it!

I love when this happens. It makes me feel good to feed good healthy food to people. Sure I could have bought fatty ground beef and simply mixed it according to the manwich package but that’s no fun. ;) Why not veg it out? It stretches the meat, adds vitamins and volume while making it lighter and more flavorful. It’s a win-win in my book!

• About 1.25 lbs (20oz) lean ground beef (at least 90%)
• About 1.25 lbs (20oz) lean ground turkey (at least 90%)
• 1 large Vidalia Onion diced
• 3 stalks of celery diced
• 1 medium zucchini diced
• 2 green peppers diced
• 1/2 bag baby spinach chopped
• 1 15.5 can Manwich
• 1 15oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 6oz can tomato paste

Brown the meats with the onion and all the veggies. I started with the meats and onion in a large stock pot and then cut the veggies in order adding them and stirring them in the pot.

Transfer the browned meat and veggies to my slow cooker, add the manwich, tomatoes, and paste. Cook on High for at least an hour and then lower to low for the party.

You could add the manwich, tomatoes and paste directly in the stock pot and heat through. Then just keep it on simmer until ready to serve.

I served with a variety of rolls. Some people were even eating it straight up!

I’m not going to do Nutritional Info because honestly I have no idea how many servings it is. I fed about 13 people but everyone took varying amounts. For my fellow Weight Watcher friends I’d count a half of cup as 2 points but that’s just based on "Roni Math" it’s not scientific at all.

I used a can of "healthy request" cream of mushroom soup to save some time and dressed it up with some fresh mushroom and worcestershire sauce. I love that combo. It makes a great gravy like base that goes wonderfully over noodles. Even the husband thinks so and let me tell you, he’s a gravy over noodles kind of guy. The toddler also liked tonight’s dinner even though he gave me all his mushrooms. :)

This kind of meal always reminds me that if I keep a few key ingredients on hand I can make a home cooked meal rather quicly. Would I rather not use the can of soup? sure but in a pinch it’s a lifesaver after a long day of work.

Here’s what I did…

• 12oz bag of whole wheat noodles
• 20oz package of ground lean turkey
• 10oz package of baby bella mushrooms
• 10oz can of "healthy" cream of mushroom soup
• 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce

Cook the noodles according to the package.

While the noodles are cooking brown the turkey in a large skillet over medium high heat.

Clean and slice the mushrooms. Add them to the browning turkey. Stir in, cover and lower to medium. Cook for about 5 minutes. The mushrooms will cook and shrink a bit.

Uncover, add the soup, plus 1/2 can of water and the worcestershire sauce. Stir and and cook until just boiling.

Serve the turkey and mushrooms over the noodles and pair with a side of veggies.

This makes 6 servings I packed my extra 3 for lunches. :)

So I decided to use my unsuspecting extended family over Easter weekend as guinea pigs and I whipped up an idea I had for a few weeks. Thankfully Mom was here to make some suggestions. The result was a hit and I’ll be eating the leftovers for lunch over the next few days. :)

There is one teeny tiny problem and you may have guessed it if you’ve been reading my blog for some time. Whenever I tack on the word "Idea" to a title that means I didn’t really measure anything. I tried. I really did but making this for the very first time I just had to go with it.

I still like to share these "Ideas" and I hope they give you some of your own. I will be making this again soon and I’ll be jotting down a few notes to give you more specifics. In the mean time all you experimenters out there have fun. :)

This is what I did with as much details as I can provide…

• 1 20oz package of lean ground turkey
• 1 cup Old Fashion Oats
• 1 egg
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 inch of fresh ginger root (preferably frozen so you can grate)
• 1 8oz can of crushed pineapple
• 1 15oz can of chicken broth
• About 5 dried apricots
• Honey (I used about 1 tbsp but went by taste)
• Molasses (I used about 1 tbsp but went by taste)
• 1 sweet bell pepper chopped (I used a mix of red and orange)
• 1 red onion chopped

Preheat the broiler.

Add the turkey, oatmeal, and egg in a large bowl. Grate in 1 clove of the garlic and 1/2 of the ginger. Combine together with your hands and form the meatballs. Try to keep them on the small side.

Brown the meatballs on a cookie sheet under the broiler.

While the meatballs are in the oven, add the remaining clove of garlic and ginger root, the pineapple, chicken broth, honey and molasses to the blender. Blend on high until smooth.

By this time the meatballs should be brown. Add them to the crockpot, along with the onion, peppers and pineapple mixture. I cooked on high for about 4 hours and then lowered low until we were ready to eat, about 2 more hours. I think they were down after 3. At least that’s when I tried them. :)

I served this over rice for a dinner but we’ll be eating them straight up for the shower.

What I’ll do different next time…

• Measure, of course! That way I can do nutritional info
• Add more garlic. I’m thinking at least 2 cloves in the meatballs and 2 in the "gravy".

Any other ideas? Anyone make anything similar?

Now let me warn you. Normally I write up and post a recipe immediately after I make it but this one has been sitting in the old noggin for a few days. I whipped it up on Friday after coming home form work early due to the SNOW! Sorry, to keep mentioning it but it’s totally crazy. We are in the middle of our second record breaking snow fall this week! But I digress. :)

So I whipped this up after work and to my surprise BOTH the child AND the husband ate it without complaints. No bargaining had to happen. No whining. No faces or dirty looks. Nothing!

Not only that but the husband actually said they "were good" unsolicited! This is a HUGE win considering the major ingredients were kale, mushrooms and bulgur. They didn’t even question the "green stuff"!

• 1/4 cup dry bulgur (I wanted to use 1/2 cup but this was all I had)
• 1/2 of a sweet onion diced
• 3 cloves of garlic minced
• 8oz package of baby bella mushrooms chopped up small or diced
• 12oz lean ground turkey
• About 2 cups Kale chopped (~130g)
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 5-6 medium sized bell peppers
• 1 cup tomato sauce (canned, jarred or homemade will work)
• Kosher Salt and Pepper

Prepare the bulgur according to the package. The formula is twice as much liquid as bulgur. Bring both to a boil and then cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes until the liquid is absorbed. So I used 1/4 cup of bulgur and 1/2 cup water.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Cup the tops of the peppers off. You can blanch but I don’t. We like ours to stay crunchy. :) I also dice up any good pepper parts of the tops and use it in the filling. You know, the stuff around the stem.

Spray a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic with a little salt and pepper. Add the mushrooms and cook until they reduce a bit. The liquid will come out of them. Add the turkey and brown, breaking it up as it cooks.

Once the turkey is all brown (gray) add the chopped up kale, cooked bulgur, and oregano. I also added the diced peppers I got from the tops. Continue cooking for a few minutes until the kale wilts and all the flavors merge.

Fill the peppers with the stuffing. I only had 5 peppers that I could have overstuffed but I added a red pepper and stuffed them modestly. The red one was huge so you should have more then enough for 6 average sized green peppers.

Top each pepper with some tomato sauce and sprinkle with some dried herbs. Bake for about 20 minutes until the peppers just start to scorch on the ends but still hold a crunch.

Here’s an inside shot…

And my boys EATING them. :)

Two peppers make a good serving but I’ll do nutritional info per pepper in case you want to serve with something else. Plus it’s easier to double the nutritional info then half it. At least it my brain. :)

I’m going to write up how I made them this evening but I may change a few things next time. Not quite sure what yet, this is one of those ‘wing it, use what you got on hand’ type of meal ideas. :)

• 1 large head of cabbage
• 2 cups of cooked brown rice (I just used one of these
• 1 lb (16oz) extra lean ground turkey, raw
• 6 cloves of garlic minced
• 1/2 of a large sweet onion diced
• 1 small zucchini diced
• 1-2 cups baby spinach chopped
• 2 stalks of celery diced
• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp dried parsley separated
• 2 tsp dried basil separated
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 can of condensed tomato soup
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• Kosher Salt & Pepper

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut the core out of the cabbage and cook for 5 minutes. This will help loosen the leaves. After 5 minutes run under cold water.

Combine the brown rice, ground turkey, garlic, onion, zucchini, spinach, celery, 1 tbsp parsley and 1 tsp basil until well mixed.

Carefully separate a leaf from the cabbage head.

Place about 1/2 cup of the turkey/rice mixture in the middle.

Fold the sides in like a burrito.

Roll.

Place in a deep baking dish.

Repeat until you run our of filling or cabbage leaves. You should get about 12. I actually ran out of leaves and used the rest of the filling in a pepper I had in the fridge. :)

Once the baking dish is filled with "piggies" mix the tomato soup, diced tomatoes, and the rest of the dried spices with a bit of water to thin it. Pour over the piggies, cover and bake for an hour in a preheated 350 degree oven. You may want to baste now and then to help keep everything moist.

Serve with the tomato soup mixture drizzled on top and sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper.

Here’s the approximate nutritional info for how I made them above.

The idea was to make a light meal. What I call a summer "steak" using fresh veggies and extra lean ground turkey. I had some Swiss Chard from a recent farmers market trip but you can easily swap it for some fresh spinach. This was my first bunch of chard and I’m liking it. It’s a hardy green that has a BUNCH of health benefits. I’m just happy I got my family to eat it as I know they would never go for it straight up.

It was a success! well… sort of. The toddler declared he didn’t like "the chicken" but he ate it without much argument. The husband also ate it without any complaints. I’m not sure it was what he expected when he asked for a meat and potato meal but it passed. :)

The Garden Turkey Steaks.

• 1 small zucchini diced small
• 40g of swiss chard (it was about large 3 leaves) chopped small
• 1/2 of a small onion diced
• 1 glove garlic diced
• 1 egg
• 12 oz extra lean ground turkey
• 1/2 cup (40g) old fashioned oatmeal
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried cilantro
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• Kosher Salt and pepper

The Gravy

• about 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1 tbsp whole wheat flour +
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp dried cilantro
• 1/4 tsp thyme

Hand mix all the Turkey Steak Ingredients together and form 4 large patties. You could make 6 smaller ones but I didn’t have the pan space.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Once the pan is hot add the patties and cook 4-5 minutes a side until brown.

While the patties are cooking whisk together the gravy ingredients. Remove the patties from the pan and deglaze with the gravy mixture. Bring to a boil. If it’s not thick enough whisk in a bit more flour. Lower to a simmer and add back the patties. Cook for an additional 10 minutes flipping once to coat the ’steaks’.

I served with my mashed potatoes and a side of broccoli. Leftovers are packed for lunch tomorrow! :)

I made them just for myself with some leftover ground turkey meat I had after making Grilled Honey Mustard Turkey Oat Burgers this weekend. You can of course double or triple the recipe for more servings. You know I’m all about the ‘idea’, so take it and run with your favorite taco toppings. I’m thinking pinto beans or even using my Spicy Black Beans and Zucchini instead of the turkey next time.

Here’s what I did tonight…

• 6 oz lean ground turkey raw (around 4 oz cooked)
• about 1 tsp of my taco seasoning
• 4 large inner leaves of romaine lettuce
• 4-5 strips of green bell pepper chopped
• 1/4 of a tomato chopped
• 1 oz Fancy Mexican shredded cheese
• about 2 tbsp salsa

Brown the turkey with the seasoning until gray. While "browning" clean the leaves and chop the veggies.

Evenly distribute the cooked turkey to the leaves, top with diced peppers, tomatoes, cheese and salsa.

Wrap and eat! All the flavor of tacos with a fresh twist!

I made another batch yesterday, this time using more meat and making more then one portion. I cooked the whole batch on the grill and froze the leftovers for my lunches like I do with the Southwestern Turkey Burgers.

The husband and the toddler both refused to even try a bite. Again.. cool with me! I want the lunches! :)

• 12oz lean ground turkey
• 1 egg white
• 1 cup (80g) old Fashioned Oats
• 3 tbsp (63g) honey
• 3 tbsp country style mustard (the kind with the whole seeds)
• 2 tbsp worcestershire sauce

Combine all ingredients and form into 5 patties about 4 ounces each. The mixture will be moist.

Cook on a preheated grill on medium-high for about 5 minutes a side. Serve on your fav whole wheat bun with all the fixin’s. :) I used a sandwich thin, baby spinach, tomatoes, ketchup, black pepper and sweet pickles.

Here’s the recipe!

• 1/2 sweet onion
• 2-3 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 lbs lean ground turkey (8oz)
• 1 bell pepper chopped
• 1 small-medium zucchini chopped
• kosher salt and pepper
• 1 8oz can tomato sauce
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1 package of Whole Wheat Pizza dough
• 4 oz fancy shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Brown with ground turkey with the onion and garlic. Add the chopped pepper and zucchini. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes while you prepare to work with the dough.

Sprinkle you counter or cutting board with a bit of whole wheat flour. Separate the dough into 4 equal parts.

Add the tomato sauce, basil and oregano to the skillet. Stir and lower heat to medium-low. Let it simmer while you prepare the dough again.

Roll out the dough into rectangles. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Lay one of the rectangles on the cookie sheet. Scoop about 2 ladlefuls of the turkey mixture in the middle. Top with 1 oz of cheese and fold over to create a long skinny stromboli. Place a few slits on the top.

Note: They will be hard to move so making them on the sheet with be a big help.

Once you make all four. Place in the oven for 15 minutes. Once finished let sit for 5 minutes before cutting.

EAT! :)

As for the family, they LOVED IT and so did I! The toddler was completely interested in the entire process. Here he is stealing piece of zucchini from the cutting board. Look at that expression, I love it!

When we sat down to eat he was at first, a little intimidated by the pie piece but once I showed him how to eat he went to the town. Even the husband had nothing but good things to say. I was shocked! Although he thinks it would be better with my sauce. Ok, how can I argue with that? :)

My strategy was simple… reduce, replace and add some veggies. It’s what I always do!

• 12 oz whole wheat rigatoni
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 8 oz extra lean ground turkey
• 1 medium onion diced
• 3 gloves garlic minced
• 1 medium zucchini diced
• Kosher Salt & Pepper
• 1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 tsp dried basil (or more to taste)
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 4 oz fancy shredded part skim mozzarella cheese
• dried parsley

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the pasta until just done. Shave off 1-2 minutes from the time given on the box. I cooked mine for 10.

While preparing the pasta you’ll be making the sauce. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the turkey with the olive oil, onion and garlic. Add the zucchini and sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper.

By this time your pasta should be ready. Drain, rinse with cold water and put back in the pot. Add 1/4 cup of the crushed tomatoes and stir to coat the pasta. Set aside.

Add the remaining crushed tomatoes to the skillet. Stir and add the tsp of basil. It should boil fairly quickly. Lower to a simmer.

Returning to the pasta, add the 1/2 of Parmesan cheese and stir to coat.

Spray a 9-inch springform pan with non-stick cooking spray. Begin to place the pasta upright in the pan. It will be a little touch and go for a bit but you’ll get the hang of it. I started with the perimeter and worked my way to the center. It took me about 10 minutes. Don’t worry some will be taller and shorter. Some will even have a bend. It will all work out once you are finished.

Top the pasta with the meat sauce. Now, I do NOT have patience to make sure there is meat and sauce in every tube. I just banged the pan a few time allowing things to setting and then added some more sauce until all but about a cup or so was on left in the skillet.

Bake in the preheated 400 degree oven for 15 minutes. Remove and top with the mozzarella. Sprinkle a bit of parsley on top. Return to the oven for 10 more minutes.

Remove and let sit for at least 5 minutes. Run a butter knife around the edge. Release the spring form and viola!

Add a splash of water to the remaining sauce in the skillet to serve on the side in case anyone wants a little extra.

Now, for the nutritional information. I reduced the amount of pasta, cheese and meat from the original recipe, yet used the same size pan. Using the ingredients originally posted on Noble Pig and using the same number or portions for each recipe (6), I reduced everything but fiber, that I increased. :) Here is a little side by side from Nutrition Data. Remember these are just estimates.

As for the corn muffin topping I used the Golden Corn VitaMix Corn muffin mix from Vitalicious. They send me products from time to time to try and review. This is one of my favorite VitaTops and the mix is just as good. I guess you can call this my "semi-homemade" idea. Of course you can make your own topping or use a different mix but the nutritional information may be different. Note: Vitalicious is a sponsor of my weight loss blog, Roni’s Weigh. If you want to try their products be sure to use RonisWeigh in the promo code field for 10% your order.

• 1 medium sweet onion chopped
• 8 oz lean ground turkey raw (99% lean the best)
• 1 jalapeno pepper diced small
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp dried cilantro
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 large green pepper chopped
• 1 large red pepper chopped
• 1 medium sized zucchini chopped
• 1 can (15oz) diced tomatoes undrained
• 1 small can (6oz) tomato paste
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 egg whites
• 5 oz of water
• 1/2 package Golden Muffin VitaTop mix (185g of the mix)

Heat a medium-large pot over medium-high heat and spray with a bit of non-stick cooking spray. Add the onion with a bit of salt and pepper and cook until just turning transparent. Add the ground turkey and break apart while browning. Stir in the chili powder, cilantro, cumin and garlic powders. Lower the heat to medium.

While the turkey is cooking chop your veggies and add them to the pan as you finish. Once all the veggies are mixed in add the can of diced tomatoes, tomato paste and cocoa powder. Continue stirring to incorporate all the ingredients. It will be thick and may take a few minutes.

Once everything is well combined lower the heat to medium low and continue to cook uncovered for about 20 minutes.

While the chili is cooking prepare the mix. In a large bowl whisk the egg whites and water until just frothy. Weigh out half of the corn muffin mix (185g) and add it to the egg white mixture. Stir until just combined.

Pour the chili into a casserole dish, around 9×7 inches. Spread it evenly to fill the dish. Now plop the corn muffin batter on top of the chili spreading it like you would ice a cake. You should have just enough to cover the chili. Sprinkle with a bit of chili powder.

Now you can bake immediately but I actually made it ahead and baked about 2 hours later in a preheated 400 degree. Bake until the corn muffin mix is golden brown and firm to the touch, about 30 minutes.

Remove it from the oven and let it cool for 5-10 minutes before cutting.

As for the nutritional information, I’m shocked! I had to double check it as the servings are a nice size but the calories are pretty low. If anyone wants to double check the numbers I’d appreciate, I’m a bit skeptical but excited! lol