Turkey and Apple Burgers | Low-Fat Turkey Burgers | Reflux Recipes

Posted on by gloriouslygoodfood

Low-Fat Turkey and Apple Burgers

Reflux-friendly* burgers with a nod to the Middle East

Turkey and Apple Burgers | Reflux-friendly Burgers | Low-Fat Burgers
Turkey and Apple (Reflux-friendly) Burger, served with Yoghurt and Cucumber dressing and a fennel side salad

I have listed this recipe in the ‘Induction Reflux Diet’ category, but if you are following the two-week ‘Induction Reflux Diet’, please do not include the yoghurt dressing. 

For the Burgers (makes 8 generously sized burgers): 

  • 800 g turkey mince (to stick rigidly to the ‘Induction Reflux Diet’, use turkey breast mince, otherwise you can also use lean turkey leg mince)
  • 20g porridge oats
  • 2 slices wholemeal bread
  • 1 sweet red apple (e.g. pink lady), finely grated
  • 2tsp ground mixed spice (an off-the-shelf spice mix containing cinnamon, coriander seed, dill, ginger, cloves and nutmeg)
  • 1tsp fine sea salt (I salt my food very generously and of course realise that there are potential issues with a high salt intake, so adjust as necessary to suit your taste or health requirements)
  • To serve: Wholemeal flatbread or burger buns

For the cucumber sauce: 

  • 1 small pot (150g) 0% fat plain yoghurt
  • 100g cucumber, finely diced
  • 1/4 tsp fine sea solt
  • 2tbsp firm Silken Tofu, previously blitzed to a creamy consistency in a food processor – I do this in my Nutribullet (this ingredient is optional but makes the sauce a bit thicker/creamier)

For the Fennel Salad:

  • 1 head of fennel per person, trimmed and thinly sliced horizontally
  • 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil per person
  • sea salt (fine or flakes) to taste

Method: 

Pre-heat oven to 200°C (fan) – adjust temperature settings according to your type of oven.

Toast the two slices of wholemeal bread, then blitz them in a food processor with the porridge oats so you obtain a reasonably fine breadcrumb mix.

In a large bowl, combine the turkey mince, breadcrumbs, spice mix, grated apple and salt and mix well by hand, to ensure the seasoning is well distributed amongst the meat.

Separate the meat mixture into 8 equal portions and flatten these into burger shapes and place them onto a non-stick oven tray (I love using my Pampered Chef rectangle stone and, having now realised that Pampered Chef have discontinued their UK operations, hope nothing happens to it as it is my most used kitchen accessory!).

Place into pre-heated oven and cook for 20 minutes.

While the burgers are cooking, prepare your sauce and fennel salad: 

For the sauce, finely dice the cucumber, mix with the yoghurt and Tofu and season with salt.

For the fennel salad, simply trim and thinly slice (horizontally) the fennel, add oil and salt – if you do this early on in the cooking of the burgers and leave it to stand, the fennel will release some of its juices and make for a moister salad, requiring less oil.

Once the burgers are ready, serve them in your choice of wholemeal bread/bread buns/flatbread and enjoy!

Gloriously Simple, Gloriously Good!

*Please note I am not a doctor, speech therapist or in any way medically qualified.  The recipes are a combination of my interpretation of the rules outlined in the ‘Dropping Acid – The Reflux Diet’ book and ingredients that work for my reflux.  If you believe you suffer from reflux, please seek advice from a medical professional to confirm your diagnosis and work out the best course of treatment/management for you.  I hope that my recipes can help you as part of this management.  The recipes are, by their nature, very low in fat, so are also suitable for anyone wishing to follow a low-fat diet. 

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Turkey Meatballs in Tomato Sauce | Low-Cal Meatballs | Low-Fat Meatballs

Posted on by gloriouslygoodfood

Turkey meatballs in tomato sauce

A delicious low-fat / low-cal alternative to traditional meatballs in tomato sauce

Whilst I am a bit of a geek when it comes to preserving Italian traditional recipes and I have always considered meatballs in tomato sauce (as a sauce for pasta) to be a very American interpretation of Italian food, I do occasionally enjoy these little morsels (I just don’t pretend they’re Italian…a bit like when I eat pizza in the UK…but that’s for another blog post!).

Turkey is a fantastic ingredient when you want low-fat/low-cal alternatives to other meat in recipes.  It does require hefty seasoning as it’s not as strong-tasting as other meats, though, so do bear that in mind when you cook with turkey.

As I’m currently following the 5:2 Diet (2 non-consecutive very low-cal / “fasting” days per week and 5 ‘normal eating’ days per week), I’m always looking for different things to eat on the 2 low-cal days and these meatballs are a lovely dish to have.  For those in our house that aren’t on a diet, I serve them with pasta, while I just have them on their own with plenty of the tomato sauce, in a bowl.

Turkey Meatballs in Tomato Sauce | Spaghetti with Meatballs
Turkey Meatballs in Tomato Sauce, served with Spaghetti
Preparation Time: 20 mins
Cooking Time: 1 hr
Serves: 4
Approx. calories per serving: 320

Ingredients – for the tomato sauce

  • 1 onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 2 stalks celery

    Turkey meatballs simmering in tomato sauce
    Turkey meatballs simmering in tomato sauce
  • 2 carrots
  • a few sprays of 1 Cal cooking spray oil (olive oil)
  • 2 cans/cartons of chopped tomatoes (ca. 400g each)
  • sea salt (to taste)
  • Optional: a few ground dried chilli flakes

Ingredients – for the meatballs

  • 500g minced turkey leg meat
  • 1 onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • sea salt (to taste)
  • Optional: a few ground dried chilli flakes

Method

Wash and trim the celery, scrape and trim the carrots, peel 1 onion and 2 cloves of garlic

Place celery, carrots and onion (chopped into chunks) and garlic into an electric chopper/blender or chop them very finely by hand

Spray a few sprays of the 1 Cal cooking oil spray into a non-stick sauté pan (it’s important to use a pan deep enough for the sauce but wide enough to accommodate the meatballs later), turn the heat on high and as soon as the pan is hot, add the chopped celery, carrots, onion and garlic

Dry-fry on a high heat for a few minutes, stirring regularly to avoid burning, then turn the heat down and simmer for approx. 5 mins

While this is happening, turn your attention to the meatballs: Peel the remaining onion and garlic cloves and chop very finely (ideally in a blender/electric chopper)

Place in a bowl and add the minced turkey leg meat (if you are mincing/grinding the meat yourself, grind the onion and garlic with it)

If you want to add some chilli flakes, add them at this stage

Add some salt, to taste

Turkey Meatballs in Tomato Sauce | Spaghetti with MeatballsMix (and squish!) well with your hands, ensuring all ingredients are amalgamated and the meat is almost like a paste.  I like to use vinyl gloves for this process so my hands don’t get caked in meat…it’s more hygienic, too!

Roll small individual meatballs (you should get approx. 36 meatballs) and keep them to one side

Pour the chopped tomatoes into the pan with the celery, carrots, onion and garlic (use a little bit of water to ‘wash out’ any tomato clinging to the sides of the carton/tin)

Season with salt (and if desired, chilli flakes) to taste

Turn up the heat, bring to the boil, then reduce back down to a simmer

Carefully place the meatballs on top of the simmering tomato sauce, leaving a small gap between each of them so they don’t stick to each other.  Do NOT stir at this point or they’ll fall apart!

Place a lid over the sauté pan and leave them.

After about 10 minutes, check on your meatballs, they should look cooked on the outside, having changed colour and retained their shape.  At this point, stir very, very gently and carefully, just enough to coax the meatballs further into the tomato sauce, place the lid back over the pan and leave.

You can repeat the very gentle stirring process 1-2 times during the rest of the cooking time, but don’t over-stir as the meatballs run the risk of falling apart otherwise.

Cook for about an hour on a low heat with the lid on, removing the lid for the last 5-10 minutes if you wish to thicken the sauce.

Serve with pasta, or crusty bread, or rice…or if, like me, you’re on a low-cal / low-fat day, eat on their own!

Deliciously simple, deliciously good, deliciously low-cal!

Turkey Leek Parcels | Turkey Recipes | Low-cal Recipes

Posted on by gloriouslygoodfood
Gloriously Good Turkey Leek Parcels

Preparation Time: 1 hr
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Makes: 14 parcels
Approx. Calories per parcel: 120

In my on-going quest for low-calorie food that keeps the tastebuds happy, I’ve come up with another turkey recipe tonight.  Hubby & kids loved it, so I wanted to share it!  It is a little bit time-consuming and fiddly, but well worth the effort.

Ingredients

  • 6 leeks
  • 2 carrots
  • 2 celery sticks
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 8 fine-milled oatcakes (I like to use Nairns Fine-Milled Oatcakes, but that is personal choice, of course)
  • 1 large free-range egg
  • 500g turkey mince
  • 600ml tomato passata
  • 2tbsp olive oil
  • salt to taste

Method

  1. Top & tail the leeks, discard the top layer, then slice carefully along the length, following the natural v-shaped opening in the first visible layer, making sure you only slice about 1/3rd into the depth of the leek; this will allow you to peel off a few layers of leek and retain them as long ‘sheets’ to use for rolling the parcels. Ensure you wash the layers, removing any previously trapped soil. 
  2.  Retain all the big ‘sheets’ you can (3-4 layers of each leek, depending on size) and some of the softer inner layers
  3. Take those parts that are too thin or too coarse to use for wrapping and chop them very finely
  4. Top & tail the celery sticks, wash them and chop them very finely
  5. Scrape or peel the carrots, wash them, top & tail them, then chop them very finely
  6. Place the oatcakes in a plastic food storage bag, close the bag, then smash them into powder, using a rolling pin (or alternatively place them in a food blender/chopper to achieve the same result)
  7. Finely chop the garlic

  • Add half the chopped leeks and half the chopped garlic to the turkey mince
  • Add the crushed oatcakes, carrots, celery & egg
  • Season generously with salt
  • Combine well, using your hands
  • Take one large strip of leek and lay one of the smaller, softer ones across it, then place a handful of the turkey mince mix onto it

  •  Fold in the softer strip of leek to cover the turkey mix

  • Roll into a parcel, using the larger strip

  • Using either thick sewing thread (if you do, double it over first so you have more thickness) or cooking string, tie up the parcel at both ends
  • Repeat until you have wrapped & tied all 14 parcels. 
  • TIP: If you are left with any spare turkey mix, you can cook this in the same sauce as the parcels; it makes delicious meatballs!

  • Place 2 skillets (make sure you use ones that have a lid) onto your hob
  • Place 1tbsp of olive oil in each skillet
  • Add half of the remaining chopped garlic & chopped leeks into each skillet
  • Soften on a low heat for a couple of minutes
  • Add half the tomato passata to each skillet, add a sprinkling of salt, then simmer for approx. 5 mins
  • Carefully place 7 parcels in each skillet and cover with a lid
  • TIP: It may look like there’s not enough sauce, but the parcels shouldn’t drown in the sauce and should only be partially submerged.  The cooking process will happen partially as a poaching process and partially by steaming
  • Leave to simmer, ensuring the sauce is bubbling, for 10 minutes
  • Very carefully turn each parcel so that the side that was at the bottom is now facing the top, replace the lid onto the skillet and cook for a further 10 minutes. 
  • Serve immediately!  Delicious with mashed potatoes. 

    • Gloriously Good!
     
     For more recipes, tips & general foodie stuff, go to www.gloriouslygoodfood.com