Substitute Ground Turkey and Nobody Will Be the Wiser

I wouldn't say I'm a health nut by any stretch of the imagination, but I do try to be mindful of what my family eats. My husband has high cholesterol and I am on the never ending quest to drop some weight, so I make healthy meals as often as I can. Sure, I love some of the "bad" things (like my downfall is a cheeseburger and french fries) but I've learned healthy alternatives to these favorites.

Seeing as I love a lot of recipes that have ground beef in them, I have developed my own take on them using ground turkey or ground chicken. In most cases, they taste the same but save you a whole lot of fat and cholesterol. So why not?! It took some getting used to for my husband, as did low fat cheese. My whole thought is that if we can still enjoy some of our favorites but with a healthier twist then we're not losing out on anything.

I often will sautee ground turkey or chicken with a touch of olive oil. I let the flavor of the olive oil really get in there and then add a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and whatever appropriate spices depending on the dish. We love having a mexican fiesta night at our house, so when I'm making tacos or burritos I will sautee the ground turkey and add in some chili powder and cumin at the end for flavor. When you put the ground turkey in a tortilla with low fat cheese and sour cream, you can't taste the difference. We have then saved ourselves some serious calories and fat--and nobody is the wiser!

I also use the ground turkey in spaghetti sauce. I am Italian so I tend to make my own sauce, but if I'm making a meat sauce then I will sautee the ground turkey and add a bit of oregano and basil at the end. This gives it the Italian taste and then when it simmers into the tomato sauce, it all blends together. Perfect when put on top of your favorite pasta, and it packs a healthy powerful protein punch!

Ground chicken works well too, I use it to spice up soups a bit. It gives that bit of protein in a chicken soup, or makes a heartier soup with an unexpected healthy twist. Though you may have to get used to cooking with these other meats, they are equally as delicious and can really turn your dishes healthy for the whole family.