Ground Turkey Boats

So, the recipe below is what I consider the "grown up" version of THIS recipe (mushroom mozzarella bruschetta). I used to make the bruschetta all the time when I was a recent (poor) college graduate because it is very cheap to make and it serves you for a couple of meals, especially if you pair it with a half can of soup. (While I provided the link, see below for the recipe I used during my poor recent college graduate days!)

I actually had forgotten about my staple meal ever since I moved from the DC metro area in 2006. But the other week my husband and I had acquired a loaf of whole wheat Italian bread from the "day old" bakery section of the grocery store for a very low price. I was thinking and thinking about what to do with it, and when I typed "Italian bread" into the ingredients list of Allrecipes.com, my old standby came up.

Bingo!! A light went on in my head. I wanted to do something similar, but with a little more substance. Slowly, an idea formed in my head. I also had an unopened container of Philly's brand new product, their cooking creme, in my refrigerator. I got it for 50 cents because there was a $1.50 coupon in the Sunday newspaper one week and the grocery store had it on sale for $2.00. So I figured I would try it out. We bought the savory garlic flavor. I also had some ground turkey. I knew exactly what I was going to do now.

So, here is my recipe:

1/2 pound ground turkey
1/2 loaf Italian bread, sliced again in half lengthwise
1/4 - 1/2 container Philly's Cooking Creme, Savory Garlic (amount depends on how much you want to use)
Chopped frozen spinach, thawed and drained
Chopped onion
Chopped bell pepper (any color desired)
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a skillet, saute ground turkey with some salt and pepper until no longer pink. Set aside for a few minutes to cool.

Combine spinach, chopped onions and bell pepper in a bowl. Once manageable, add turkey and combine well.


Spread the cooking cream on the halves of bread. Top with turkey/vegetable mixture.

Sprinkle some mozzarella cheese on top.

Place on baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes until thoroughly heated and cheese is melted on top.


Serve hot and enjoy!

This is such an easy and quick idea to make, especially on a rushed week night. You can always play with the portions to make them smaller. We ate some large pieces because we didn't have a side with them, and they definitely were tasty and filling. It's also a relatively inexpensive meal and easy to interchange ingredients such as ground chicken or beef for the turkey.

Since Philly makes 4 different flavors of their cooking creme right now, you can also play with flavors and ingredients to make your own! I could see using their Santa Fe flavor as a base for a Mexican boat.

The possibilities are endless!


Recipe for Mushroom Mozzarella Bruschetta, my staple as a poor college graduate. This fed me for a few days, especially when paired with soup! Courtesy of Campbell's Kitchen.

Ingredients

* 1 (16 ounce) loaf Italian bread, cut in half lengthwise
* 1 (10.75 ounce) can Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup
* 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning, crushed
* 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
* 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
* 1 small red pepper, chopped
* 2 green onions, chopped

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Place the bread on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes or until it's lightly toasted.

3. Stir the soup, garlic powder and Italian seasoning in a medium bowl. Stir in the mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, pepper and onions.

4. Spread the soup mixture over the bread to within 1/4-inch of the edges. Bake for 5 minutes or until it's hot and bubbling. Cut each half into 12 slices.