I have been having a deep love affair with vegetables lately which is pretty strange considering I was mentally preparing myself for being the typical pregnant lady and downing cupcakes by the dozen. I do my best to squeeze veggies in my smoothies, cooking them down and adding them to my enchiladas, and earlier this week I made an awesome Shepherd’s Pie. Instead of using sweet potatoes or regular potatoes as the topping, I steamed cauliflower and butternut squash together and made a puree. This is a super simple recipe you’ll want to add to your weekly dinner rotation. We’re jazzing up lean ground turkey and packing enough vegetables to keep the turkey moist and adding tons of flavor.

Here are the ingredients you’ll need for your healthy ground turkey recipe:

1 lb lean ground turkey
1 cup frozen peas
3/4 cup low sodium broth of your choice
2/3 cup chopped carrots
1/3 cup chopped white onion
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp flour (I used Garbanzo flour but any flour will do)
2 tsp fresh chopped Rosemary
salt and pepper to taste

TOPPING
1 small head of cauliflower
1 cup frozen & chopped butternut squash
1-2 tablespoons butter
splash of milk

PREPARATION:
1) Start by separating the cauliflower from the head and steaming the florets stove top or in the microwave until fork tender. Add in the frozen butternut squash for the last 5-8 minutes or cook as directed on package instructions. Place the cauliflower & butternut squash in a food processor along with a tablespoon of butter and a splash of milk and process until a puree is formed. Add salt and pepper to taste and set aside.

2) Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add carrots and onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.

3) Add turkey and cook, breaking up meat with a spoon, until browned, about 6 minutes.

4) Stir in flour and cook 3 more minutes. Stir in peas and rosemary.

5) Season with salt and pepper. Pour in chicken broth and stir. Bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with more salt and pepper as desired.

6) Transfer to an 8X8 baking dish and spread cauliflower/butternut squash puree across the top of the turkey mixture. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Coach Kozak loved this dish so much, he ate the entire dish in one night! After I had my portion of course. He even said he’d like to see me make this dish once a week because it was so flavorful and light.

This is an awesomely easy, low carb, and high fiber dinner that’s great any day of the week!

Nutrition Facts
6 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 203
Total Fat 7.8 g
Saturated Fat 1.8 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.2 g
Total Carbohydrate 15 g
Dietary Fiber 5 g
Sugars 3 g
Protein 20 g

The post Turkey Shepherds Pie – Healthy Ground Turkey Recipe appeared first on HASfit - Free Full Length Workout Videos and Fitness Programs.

Who does not love Lasagna?? I for one love it and have really fond memories of my mom making it as a little girl. The noodles, the cheese, the BEEF! Now let’s be real with one another, we all normally have more than one slice and load up on the cheese so we generally don’t think of lasagna as being healthy. This recipe I have for you is lightened up, packed with protein, and even has veggies in it! This is perfect after a busy day because from start to finish it is only 30 minutes to prepare.

We’ll be using ground lean turkey breast to bring down some of the fat and calories as well as adding in some super nutritious kale and squash. Who doesn’t love the opportunity to sneak in some greens? I even made this for my visiting nephews once and they gobbled it up. Best part is, no need to get the oven involved as this is a one skillet meal except for the fact that you’ll just need to boil the lasagna noodles in a separate pot. Ok, so technically it’s 2 but who cares, it’s fantastically delicious.

Here is what you’ll need for your protein packed turkey lasagna (choose organic when possible):

1 lb lean ground turkey
7 lasagna noodles (about 1/2 a box)
1 jar of low sodium pasta sauce
1 cup chopped kale
1/3 cup small chopped zucchini
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup finely shredded Italian cheese blend
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried parsley
pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)

Preparation: Start by boiling your lasagna noodles according to package instructions. To prevent over cooking, reduce cooking time by about 2 minutes. These are the noodles I used….

While the noodles are cooking, heat a skillet over medium heat and add oil to coat the bottom of the pan, I always use coconut oil but any healthful oil will work. Add the turkey to the hot skillet and cook until browned. Once the turkey is browned, add in the basil, parsley, red pepper flakes and combine.

To the seasoned and browned turkey, add the entire jar of pasta sauce to the skillet. Add a bit of water if the turkey and sauce is thick just to thin it out a little bit.

Allow the sauce and turkey to simmer for about 2 minutes on a medium/low heat and add in the chopped kale and zucchini. Continue simmering for an additional 5 minutes to allow the kale and zucchini to soften.

After the veggies have softened and the kale has wilted, add in the cottage cheese and grated Parmesan cheese and mix in completely to the turkey. While that simmers away, drain your cooked noodles and chop each lasagna piece into 1/4’s like so….

Once cut into pieces, add the noodles to the top of the turkey sauce…

Last step before you’re done, fold in the noodles gently to the turkey sauce and top with finely shredded Italian blend cheese or any cheese of your choice.

Next, serve it up and devour! I paired our skillet lasagna with a fresh cucumber and tomato salad with balsamic vinegar and a bit of olive oil but a great big green salad works just as well. You can never consume too many veggies. 🙂

I totally love this recipe because it comes in at less than 400 calories per serving and each of those servings boasts 27 grams of lean muscle building protein. It’s even better the next day so pack it up for lunch. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as the Kozaks do.

Nutrition Facts
6 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 329
Total Fat 7g
Saturated Fat 2.4 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.2 g
Total Carbohydrate 39g
Dietary Fiber 3g
Sugars 7g
Protein 27g

The post Skillet Turkey Lasagna – Quick and Healthy Dinner Recipe appeared first on HASfit - Free Full Length Workout Videos and Fitness Programs.

Back in my home kitchen after being away for 10 days is such a great feeling. Don’t get me wrong I enjoy having someone else cook for me but after awhile, I just rather do it myself since I know what goes into my food. I’m a HUGE burger fan! You can almost always throw anything in between two buns and rest assured I’m drawn like a moth to flame. Now, the last few times I’ve noticed that when consuming red meat, my energy is ZAPPED and I could use a long nap. Because of this I’ve almost completely cut it out of my diet aside from the occasional treat burger. On my grocery haul I picked up a pound of lean ground turkey a knew I had Ezekiel sprouted grain hamburger buns in the freezer.

The boiler setting on your oven, do you ever wonder what it does? Think of it as an upside down grill. You’re exposing your food directly to very high heat, which works great for quick-cooking thin cuts of meat and some kinds of vegetables. Most broilers are located at the top of your oven and require that you move the oven rack about 4-6 inches from the broiler. There are also usually only 2 settings, High and Low. This method cooks quick and your food can be done cooking within 5-10 minutes so it’s important not to turn your back for too long.

Now for your easy broiled turkey burgers, here’s what you’ll need:

1lb lean ground turkey
1/4 cup chopped onions
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
1/4 tsp of both salt and pepper

Preparation: Allow your broiler time to heat and set on high. Mean while, in a bowl combine your turkey and all of the ingredients listed.

Mix until all of the ingredients are well combined and allow to sit for 10 minutes giving the flavors a chance to marry together. Once that’s done, form 4 medium sized patties and place them in a shallow baking dish lined with foil.

Place the dish in the oven and cook on one side for 5-7 minutes. Remove, flip, and continue cooking for an additional 5-7 minutes or until clear juices run when the burgers are poked with a fork.

For the buns, I switched my broiler to the LOW heat setting and placed a bit of pepper jack cheese on one side of the bun. Broil for approximately 1 minute or just until cheese is melted. WATCH OUT because the buns can easily burn if not monitored!

Now, ketchup on a burger is sacrilegious in my book unless you add Sriracha. So I mixed equal parts organic ketchup and Sriracha and placed it on the non cheese side of my bun. Top it off with some pickles, greens (mine where on the side) or whatever else may suite your tastes and go to town!

Nutrition Facts are for 1 burger to include bun only
1 Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 346
Total Fat 8.5 g
Saturated Fat 4 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Total Carbohydrate 35 g
Dietary Fiber 6 g
Sugars 0.5 g
Protein 35.2 g

The post Spicy Broiled Turkey Burgers – Easy Turkey Burger Recipe appeared first on HASfit - Free Full Length Workout Videos and Fitness Programs.

One of my favorite things is going out to a restaurant and seeing sliders on the menu. I think sliders are so delicious and I love the fact that they’re little mini burgers! It allows me to have a couple and stop without feeling the need to finish an entire 1/4 lb burger because let’s be real, I don’t waste food. 🙂 Not to mention, Coach Kozak usually devours whatever I don’t eat.

With normal burgers, when I have one, I never eat the top bun and the same goes for the sliders. So, what a great idea it is to actually be able to enjoy the sliders and eat both “buns”! May I present to you….Sweet Potato Sliders! You get the lean protein from the turkey and the slow burning complex carbohydrates from the sweet potatoes so you get long lasting energy without the crash!

Here’s what you’ll need for your healthy sliders:

1 lb lean ground turkey (I used 93% lean)
2 tbsp egg whites
1 tbsp tamari sauce
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste

For the “buns”
2 large sweet potatoes
1 large egg
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Preparation: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Peel your large sweet potato and slice into 1/2″ thick medallion slices.

Prepare your egg wash by whisking the large egg, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a bowl. Dredge your sweet potatoes through the egg wash and place on a baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper. If using foil, spray with a non-stick cooking spray.

Bake on one side for 15 minutes, flip the sweet potatoes and continue baking for an additional 15.

Meat Preparation: In a bowl, combine the turkey, egg white, tamari sauce and the spices in a bowl and mix until thoroughly combined.

Assemble a golf ball sized ball in your hands and flatten the turkey into a small patty. Place in a grill pan or skillet that’s been sprayed with a non-stick cooking spray and on a medium high heat, cook on either side for approximately 6-8 minutes or until cooked all the way through.

Just like a regular burger, go nuts with the toppings you’d like to add! I can never have enough spice so I made a spicy Sriracha ketchup using 2 tablespoons organic ketchup and 1 tablespoon Siracha sauce and added about 1/2 teaspoon to each slider.

I also dressed it with sliced red onion, baby spinach, and crumbled dairy free mozzarella cheese. With my 1lb of ground turkey, I was able to make 9 sliders but it really depends on the size you make them. Any sweet potato medallions you have left over make great fries. ENJOY!

Nutrition Facts for Turkey
9 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 75.9
Total Fat 3.6 g
Saturated Fat 1.1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.0 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.0 g
Cholesterol 35.6 mg
Sodium 158.0 mg
Potassium 14.8 mg
Total Carbohydrate 0.3 g
Dietary Fiber 0.0 g
Sugars 0.1 g
Protein 10.6 g

Nutrition Facts for Sweet Potato Buns
9 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 44.0
Total Fat 0.5 g
Saturated Fat 0.2 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.2 g
Cholesterol 20.7 mg
Sodium 22.3 mg
Potassium 29.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate 8.3 g
Dietary Fiber 1.3 g
Sugars 2.7 g
Protein 1.6 g

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