Mexican Style Turkey Corn Chowder

How has the fall season been here for over two months and I have not shared even one chowder, soup or chili recipe? I have lost my mind.

Ah leftover turkey. My normal go-to for leftover turkey or chicken as of late has been the Creamy Chicken Casserole Bake I shared awhile back. I made two after Thanksgiving and we have just polished off the last of it, one for now and one frozen for later, I am recently all about frozen meals I make myself. I haven’t really been looking for a leftover turkey recipe because we so enjoy the above casserole but then I came across this. I intentionally bought a turkey breast just to make this chowder.

I just know that Baby Cakes is crazy about this one! He ate 3 bowls. Of course it helps that he works outside in the cold all day so a hot bowl of slightly spicy chowder warms him to the bone. I too am crazy over this chowder. It has incredible flavor and the creaminess; I could eat it every day that’s for sure.


Mexican Style Turkey Corn Chowder
recipe slightly adapted from recipegirl.com

1 Tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 cup chopped yellow onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups chicken or turkey stock or broth
1 can green chilies, drained
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cups shredded turkey
1 can corn, drained
3 teaspoons dried cilantro
1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese

In a large stockpot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add vegetables and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes. Stir in the chilies.

In a bowl, whisk together milk, heavy cream, flour, salt, chili powder, cilantro and cumin. Increase heat to high and whisk cream mixture into the soup. Stir until thick and bubbly, about five minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add turkey, corn, and cheese; stir until cheese is melted and soup is hot, 5 to 10 minutes.

Serve along with some crusty bread or croutons.


I really can’t stress enough how delicious this chowder is. It does have a tiny bit of heat but if I can handle it everyone can handle it, I just stir in a bit of sour cream and that cuts it down a tiny bit. It’s right up there with Clam Chowder (my favorite) and warms just as well as giant bowl of chili (Baby Cakes’ favorite). Make it, you won’t be sorry.

XOXO,

Turkey Day Meatloaf

This evening we are playing with our food.

I cannot take the entire credit for this recipe as I did adapt it from the original recipe found here. But, I can take credit for turning it into what it is on our plates. Yes burgers sound good but why not make it heartier and more like a substantial dinner (not to say that a burger can’t be substantial, no in fact I have had some substantial burgers in my lifetime) but I want sides. What can I say I am a side dish kind of girl. Honestly though, I didn’t want to fire up the grill as I haven’t gotten a gas one yet (hint, hint Baby Cakes) so I did some thinking and figured a meatloaf would solve quite a few problems.

This is my new favorite dish ever! Do I say that every time? I don’t care. This is really is my new favorite dish. It is super moist and flavorful. I need more adjectives.

So without further ado…


Turkey Day Meatloaf
adapted from Lauren's Kitchen

1 pound ground turkey
2 cups stove top stuffing mix, dry
1 egg, beaten
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
1 can turkey gravy, set aside

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Mix all of the ingredients together (except for the gravy) and form into a large loaf on a baking sheet or in a baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray.

Bake for 45-60 minutes, pausing at 30 minutes to top with a thin layer of gravy.

I highly recommend serving this with cranberry sauce.


Our entire meal consisted of the meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberry sauce and I served it with the leftover gravy warmed up. It was a lot like Thanksgiving dinner. All that was missing was the crazy loud conversations and the cheek pinching (Yeah, there’s no one in my family who does that; thankfully. Well not the cheeks on my face anyhow. That sounds oddly perverted but for the record my Mom and sisters and I aren’t shy about poking and pinching each other. I can’t make it sound any better, it is what it is. I am not ashamed). Well, how did we get from meatloaf to that conversation? Awkward. Now when you make this you’ll be thinking about what I just typed. Let’s start again shall we? It was a fabulous meal, the only thing missing were the rolls (okay, I am making it too easy here, but I’ll be good. I won’t touch that one).


Oh and for dessert Lemon Cream Bars, OMG! (Hence why I truly never have a meal without rolls, yeah I went there. I had to.)

I cannot not wait to make a sandwich with the leftovers tomorrow for lunch. Yum.

XOXO,

Crock Pot Chicken

I have a feeling there will be many more crock pot recipes to come in the near future. My in-laws gave me a new crock pot for Christmas and I am overjoyed. My old one also given to me by my Mother-in-Law, only had one heat setting still working and that was the HIGH setting. Everything I made was overcooked only I had no idea. Not only that but this thing can turn off the cooking after the set amount time and kick on the warming setting so that even if I run late at work the food won’t be overcooked and it’ll still be warm. LOVE.

This recipe is a breeze to prep in the morning. There is nothing worse than trying to rush out of the door only to have to chop and precook something before it even goes into the slow cooker. This is as simple as tossing in the meat, opening some cans and turning that baby on. When it’s time to eat I just cooked some rice and a veggie.

I realized today, while typing this that I never added the sour cream that the original recipe calls for. Somehow I just forgot about it and honestly it didn't seem to matter because this is delicious. Wonderful. Amazing. I can’t wait to try it with the sour cream next time. Even Baby Cakes went crazy over this recipe. Yeah, it’s a keeper.


Crock Pot Chicken
accidently adapted from Jenny Mac's Lip Smack

1 lb. ground chicken or turkey
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can condensed cheddar cheese soup
2 cans sliced mushrooms, drain
salt and pepper
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tbs. dried chives

Sprinkle the uncooked ground meat with the seasonings and break up into the crock pot. Mix together the undiluted soups and mushrooms in a bowl and pour over meat.
Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Serve over rice or broad noodles.


This really is so very yummy. I plan on making it again and again and again only next time maybe I'll remember the sour cream because that would truly just kick it up to a whole other level of good.

Share this one, you won't be sorry.

XOXO,

Buffalo Turkey Dip

I have leftover turkey (who doesn't?). I don't feel like cooking dinner tonight. The only way I will even walk myself into the kitchen is if I hardly have to do a thing. (Although now that I'm in here I see that I still need to clean the dishes from last night. Ugh!) Enter Buffalo Turkey Dip.

Originally I made/make this recipe using canned chicken, (it's another one of those recipes that I've made a million times before becoming a blogger) but I have turkey on hand to use so turkey it is. If you like hot wings, which we do, then you will love this dip. It is simple to make and easy to serve plus its hearty enough to be an entire meal. Yum! Oh and to brag on it a bit more I actually took this dip to my first Thanksgiving with BCakes' family and it has been requested by his cousin every year since. I think it is one of those "the way to a man's heart" dishes.

Baby Cakes always gives this one "10.5 thumbs up" and last night was no exception. So if you’re looking to use up turkey and are kind of tired of sandwiches give this one a try.


Buffalo Turkey Dip
recipe from FranksRedHot.com

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup chunky blue cheese dressing
1/2 cup hot wing sauce
1 cup mozzarella cheese
2 cups diced turkey
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the first 5 ingredients together until combined well.

Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly and then top with remaining 1/4 cup of cheese and bake until melted.

Serve with crackers and celery.


I thought I would throw in a picture of what the dip looks like without cheese on top...

I really can't describe this dip well enough for you other than by saying it tastes like buffalo wings. Use a celery stalk to scoop some up and it really is uncanny. Enjoy, because I know that once you taste it it'll stay in your recipe files forever.

XOXO,

Garlic Parmesan Linguine

Coming up with a quick supper after work everyday is a hassle and I am always concocting new fast dishes. This one isn't the fastest on account of the pasta boiling, but really that doesn't take too long. Growing up my mom used to make this with white spaghetti noodles but hubby and I try to stay away from white flour so I used whole wheat linguine.

Please keep in mind this is not actually that healthy but everything in moderation right?

Garlic Parmesan Linguine

1 box whole wheat linguine, boiled to your prefrence
1/2 container grated parmesan cheese (good quality)
garlic powder (your taste, but absolutley have to use some)
2-4 tbs. parsley (either dry or fresh)
4-6 tbs. butter

Boil linguine to your taste prefrence, I personally like it al dente. Drain and put hot noodles back in pot or giant bowl. Add butter and toss until butter is melted, add parmesan cheese and toss to combine again, add garlic powder and parsley, toss to combine.

variation:

turkey breast, cubed
snow peas, steamed

My mom used to serve it with a seprate meat but I need quick so I added 1/2 leftover turkey breast, cubed and reheated in microwave, with 1 package steam fresh snow peas. Tossed to combine- viola!

Either way you make it, with extras or not it is wonderful. I recommend trying it at least once the original way.