Quick and Healthy Turkey Bolognese

I always have to find a way to make ground turkey just taste good. I can’t stand how dry it is when made into turkey burger and usually flavorless. Turkey is a great alternative for lean protein but trying to find ways to make it taste good is tricky. My favorite way to enjoy ground turkey is cooked to be taco meat for Mexican night. That sounds good but I was really in the mood for a hearty tomato sauce. I remember last year I tried out Barefoot Contessa’s Weeknight Bolognese. I used grassfed beef and my own homemade sauce. This time around I wasn’t going to spend several hours in the kitchen making my sauce again (no time!) and I had this turkey that needed to be cooked up.

My favorite store bought sauce was in the pantry and then a light bulb clicked. I can make a bolognese sauce with ground turkey and my favorite sauce, it will be just as delicious and will be very quick to put together.

I didn’t use this sauce to top on pasta, instead I used it to top on sweet potatoes and roasted vegetables. It was a quick meal to take to work and kept me satisfied for hours. This recipe makes a lot and you can easily freeze it but that wasn’t the case for me.

Quick and Healthy Turkey Bolognese
By Fallon

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound organic ground turkey
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 1/4 cup red wine (make sure it is a wine you love to drink)
2 cups of your favorite red sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons coconut milk (cream or half and half works too)

Directions:
Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the turkey and cook, crumbling the turkey with a wooden spoon, for 5 to 7 minutes, and has started to brown. Stir in the garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes and cook for 1 more minute. Pour 1 cup of the wine into the skillet and stir to scrape up any browned bits.

Add the red sauce, tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste, stirring until combined. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

To finish the sauce, add the coconut milk and remaining wine to the sauce and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened. The sauce will be thick and hearty.

The reason why I used coconut milk is because when I use it for my iced coffees, it is super creamy and delicious. You really can’t taste the coconut and I wanted to see how it worked in the sauce. My mom who isn’t a coconut lover said she didn’t even detect any flavor of it after I told her I added coconut milk.

If you are a pasta fan this will be delicious with rigatoni pasta or if your trying to watch your carbs like me, sweet potatoes and vegetables are just as good!

Enjoy,
Fallon