[1]My plans for Friday night’s dinner were to cook the 2 pounds of ground turkey in my fridge that had reached their use-by date. Beyond that? When I left work, I had few ideas. But once home, I quickly threw together a nice light dinner, with enough left over to freeze for two more meals.
We were pretty much out of fresh veggies, so I stopped at Thies Farm [2] on the way home. (It’s just south of Interstate 70 on Hanley Road, and it’s open until 6 p.m. on weekdays, making it an easy detour.) I grabbed what looked good — eggplant, zucchini, a big banana pepper and some corn. I also bought some tomatoes, but they needed another day or so to ripen completely.
At home, I put a pot of water up to boil for pasta while I chopped an onion and started sauteing it in a big nonstick skillet spritzed with olive oil. Within 20 minutes, dinner was done.
After dinner, I divided the leftover turkey mixture between two quart-size freezer bags. The leftover pasta went into another bag.
I’ll probably use at least one of the bags of the turkey mixture for soup. I’ll just add chicken broth, perhaps more tomatoes, and maybe some rice or cooked pasta. Just like Friday’s dinner, it will be a satisfying and healthful meal that’s also quick to prepare.
QUICK TURKEY-VEGGIE PASTA
Yield: 8 servings
1 pound pasta
Olive oil cooking spray
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 pound sliced mushrooms (see note)
1 large banana pepper, seeded and chopped
2 pounds ground turkey
1 large zucchini, halved lengthwise, then sliced 1/2-inch thick
2 (15-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
1 package seasoned tomato sauce (such as Trader Joe’s Italian tomato sauce starter; see note)
Dried or fresh oregano
Dried or fresh basil
Ground black pepper
1 ear corn, kernels removed, or 1/2 cup frozen corn
Salt
Bring a large pot of water to a bowl. Add pasta; cook until done. Drain.
Spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium-high heat. When hot, add onion; cook, stirring frequently, for 1 minute. Add mushrooms and banana pepper; cooking, stirring frequently, until vegetables just begin to brown. Add turkey, breaking it up with the spoon. Cook, stirring frequently, until turkey begins to brown. Stir in zucchini. Continue to cook and stir until turkey is cooked through.
Drain liquid from skillet. Add diced tomatoes and their juice, tomato sauce, and oregano, basil and black pepper to taste. Reduce heat and let simmer while pasta cooks.
Just before serving, stir in corn; heat through. Taste; if necessary, add salt and adjust other seasonings. Serve over hot pasta.
Notes: Once you open a box of sliced mushrooms, cover the leftover with plastic wrap and then pierce the wrap in a few places with a paring knife. If you cover the mushrooms tightly, they’ll get slimy.
Trader Joe’s Italian cooking sauce is made from tomatoes, olive oil, onion and garlic. You can substitute another can of diced tomatoes plus a clove of minced garlic.