Mini Turkey Pot Pies

My husband is addicted to these.  I had left over "pie filling" and had to make more crust tonight to make the rest of these.  I quote, "I could eat these every day.  When are you making them again.  Can I have these for lunch tomorrow?"  I told him, the boys may want some...he looked at me with a blank stare.  I guess he will be coming home for lunch tomorrow to have them.  :)

This all started when I saw a food network program use leftover turkey and green bean casserole, stuff them into puff pastry in a muffin pan and bake them.  I thought, I don't have the green beans but could easily find a recipe for a filling.  I came across Simple Comfort Food and found my filling recipe.

You will not believe how easy the filling is to make!

I used my Martha Stewart Home Baking Handbook to get my recipe for the pie crust.  It is super easy and only has 4 ingredients:  flour, salt, butter and water.

I used biscuit cutters to cut the "bottom crust" (4 inch circle cutter) and "top crust" (2 inch circle cutter). 

The Simple Comfort Food website uses ramekins for the pot pies, which I do have, but the muffin pan seemed so much easier.  You just line the muffin pan with the larger circles, making sure they reach to the top.

Fill each pie crust with the prepared filling.  I made the filling first because it allows it to set to cool a bit which made it easier to handle.  I used a large scoop to get an even amount into each cup.  Add the small circle cut outs to the top of each pie and make sure they seal to the bottom dough so the filling doesn't ooze out while baking.  

Brush each mini pie with egg wash and cut two slits in the top to let the steam escape while it is baking in the oven.  Bake 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.  

Can you say yum?  You will LOVE these!  You could really use chicken or turkey.  We just had a lot of leftover turkey.  Enjoy!  Let me know what you think.

Here are the ingredients for the filling:

• 4 cups of cooked turkey breast, cut into cubes
• 2 sheets of pie crust (I used Martha's recipe from The Homebaking Handbook)
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2 celery stalks, cleaned, and thinly diced (I skipped the celery)
• 2 carrots, cleaned, skinned, and thinly diced
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• 1 tsp of dried thyme (I used fresh)
• 1/4 cup dry sherry (I used extra chicken stock)
• 1/2 cup frozen green peas
• 1 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 egg, beaten, for brushing on top of the pie crust
• Ramekins (I used a 12 cup muffin pan)

Directions:
 
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large pot slowly melt the butter. Next, add in your onions, celery, and carrot and cook for about 10 minutes, stir occasionally. Add the flour, and stir, cooking for another couple of minutes. Whisk in the milk and continue to whisk until smooth. Stir in the chicken stock, and sherry (if using, or extra stock). Bring the heat to low, and cook for another 10 minutes. The sauce will thicken. Stir in the thyme, parsley, peas, turkey, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Spray the muffin tin with Pam.  Line each muffin cup with the larger dough cut out.  I actually rolled them out a little larger to make sure they reached the top of the sides of the cups all around.  Fill each cup with a large scoop of the filling.  Top each pie with the small cut out and crimp them together.  It is fine to have the cup "overfilled" a bit.  Brush with egg wash and cut a couple of slits in the dough for steam.

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 25-30 minutes, or until they are a nice golden brown.  Allow to cool on a cooking rack for 10 minutes before removing.  Use a butter knife to cut around the edges to get them out.

Turkey and Artichoke Stuffed Shells in Arrabbiata Sauce

I was going through my giant binder of recipes that I have either torn out of magazines or printed out when I saw it on the food network, when I came across this one.  I haven't made it in ages and it is even more amazing since it makes two batches!  We had one for dinner and I froze the other for a lazy night.  That makes me smile...I love a lazy night of no cooking.  I will just turn the oven on and put them in!

The batch you make right away only takes 20 minutes in the oven, so by the time you clean up your mess, set the table and put the second batch in the freezer, it is ready!

Start by boiling a large pot of water to partially cook your shells (they will cook the rest of the way in the oven).

Next, saute onions and garlic in olive oil.  

Then add the ground turkey, salt and pepper.  Once that is cooed through, add the artichoke hearts and stir.

Allow to cool so you will be able to handle the meat to stuff into the shells.

Add ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, basil, parsley, and salt & pepper.

 

Mix all ingredients.

Add one cup of the Arrabbiata sauce to the bottom of a 9 x 13 by 2-inch baking dish.

Stuff shells with about 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture.  I used a medium scoop.

The easiest way to fill these is to put the shell in the palm of your hand and fill it with the scoop.  Then place each filled shell in the dish.

Add remaining sauce to the top and sprinkle with grated mozzarella cheese.  I use fresh.  It is easier to grate if you put it in the freezer for a bit before trying to grate it.  Soft cheeses are never easy to grate, but I think it tastes so much better.  I use a box grater for this.

Seal the other dish and put into the freezer.  To reheat later, preheat to 400 degrees and bake for 60 minutes.

Bake the dish you are going to eat for dinner at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Serve with your favorite veggies.

 

Turkey and Artichoke Stuffed Shells with Arrabbiata Sauce

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

• 1 (12-ounce) box jumbo pasta shells (recommended: Barilla)
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus 1/2 teaspoon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1/4 teaspoon
• 1 (8 to 10-ounce) package frozen artichokes, thawed and coarsely chopped
• 1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 
• 5 cups Arrabbiata Sauce, recipe follows
• 1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella (about 5 ounces)

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boilover high heat. Add the pasta and partially cook until tender but still very firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain pasta. 

Meanwhile, in a large heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and the garlic and cook until the onions are soft and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the ground turkey, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is slightly golden and cooked through. Add the artichoke hearts and stir to combine. Remove from heat and let cool. 

In a large bowl combine the cooled turkey mixture with the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, basil, parsley, and the remaining salt and pepper. Stir to combine. 

To stuff the shells, cover the bottom of a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish with 1 cup of Arrabbiata sauce. Take a shell in the palm of your hand and stuff it with a large spoonful of turkey mixture, about 2 tablespoons. Place the stuffed shell in the baking dish. Continue filling the shells until the baking dish is full, about 24 shells. Drizzle the remaining Arrabbiata Sauce over the shells, top with the grated mozzarella. If freezing, cover tightly with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 1 day and up to 1 month.

To bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bake until the shells are warmed through and the cheese is beginning to brown, about 60 minutes (20 minutes if shells are unfrozen.)

Arrabbiata Sauce:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 ounces sliced panchetta, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
5 cups jarred or fresh marinara sauce

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until tender, about 1 minute. Add the marinara sauce and red pepper flakes and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and let cool until ready to use. 

Yield: approximately 6 cups

Green, White and Red Lasagna

Um, we ate this so fast, there was hardly a chance to take a picture.  It is so yummy.  I usually make my own polenta, but in this case I used the tube.  It is easier and less to clean up, but you could definitely substitute homemade.

This is for my friends who are fans of the deep covered baker.  :)  The recipe in full is at the end.
 

 

Mix the cooked turkey sausage, zucchini, bell pepper and one cup of the marinara.

Add italian cheese, and garlic to melted cream cheese.

Add a half cup chopped basil.

Slice polenta into rounds to use as layers in your lasagna.

Pour remaining sauce over bottom of the baker.  Arrange polenta rounds over sauce (do not overlap). Scoop one-third of the cream cheese mixture over polenta, spreading evenly. Top with one-third of the sausage mixture. Repeat layers two times. Microwave 15 minutes in your baker with lid on top.

Let set 10 minutes and dive in!

The Pampered Chef ® Green, White & Red Lasagna Recipe  1 1/4 lbs (625 g) bulk hot Italian turkey sausage or sausage links, casings removed   1 medium zucchini   1 medium red bell pepper   1 1/2 cups (375 mL) marinara sauce, divided   6 oz (175 g) cream cheese   1/2 cup (125 mL) loosely packed fresh basil leaves    2 cups (500 mL) shredded Italian cheese blend, divided   2 garlic cloves, pressed   1 1-lb (450-g) tube prepared polenta, room temperature  In Classic Batter Bowl, microwave sausage on HIGH 5–6 minutes or until no longer pink, breaking into crumbles halfway through using Mix ‘N Chop. Drain using small Colander and Bowl. Blot sausage well with paper towels; return to batter bowl. Meanwhile, coarsely chop zucchini with Food Chopper. Dice bell pepper using Santoku Knife. Add zucchini, bell pepper and 1 cup (250 mL) of the marinara sauce to sausage; mix well. In Small Batter Bowl, microwave cream cheese on HIGH 1–2 minutes or until soft. Coarsely chop basil. Add basil, 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) of the cheese blend and garlic pressed with Garlic Press to cream cheese; mix well. Slice polenta crosswise into four even pieces. Slice pieces with Egg Slicer Plus® to create rounds. Pour remaining sauce over bottom of Deep Covered Baker; arrange polenta rounds over sauce (do not overlap). Scoop one-third of the cream cheese mixture over polenta; spread evenly with Small Spreader. Top with one-third of the sausage mixture. Repeat layers two times. Microwave, covered, on HIGH 14–16 minutes or until center is hot. Carefully remove baker from microwave using Oven Mitts. Sprinkle with remaining cheese blend; cover and let stand 10 minutes. Yield: 8 servings Nutrients per serving: Calories 370, Total Fat 24 g, Saturated Fat 9 g, Cholesterol 85 mg, Carbohydrate 17 g, Protein 22 g, Sodium 1120 mg, Fiber 2 g Cook's Tip: To prepare in oven, preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Cook sausage in (12-in./30-cm) Skillet 4–5 minutes or until no longer pink, breaking into crumbles. Drain; blot excess moisture and place into Classic Batter Bowl. Proceed as directed through Step 3. Bake, covered, 40–45 minutes or until center is hot.