"Upgrade It!" with Turkey Blogger Contest

Italian Herb Red Wine Ground Beef Potato Shepherd Pie, "Upgraded" into an Italian Herb Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Shepherd Pie

Some info about the contest from MealUpgrade.com:

The Challenge 

Take a favorite family recipe and change the protein to a turkey product in one of three categories: breakfast, lunch or dinner. Then, think of other ways you can reduce the fat and calories in the meal, such as altering side dishes and changing the condiments. Each “upgrade” will add points to your score.

Once you have “upgraded” a favorite meal, submit the original recipe and your “upgraded” version and tell us why you chose these “upgrades.” Recipes will be judged by a select panel of culinary experts and chefs with points awarded according to the number of “upgrades” evident in the recipe. 

Judging

Three finalists will be chosen by our panel of culinary experts and chefs and their blogs and recipes will be featured here on the Meal Upgrade website!

What is a Meal “Upgrade”?

A meal “upgrade” is a new concept for promoting small changes to family meals that improve the nutritional content. Simply put, a meal “upgrade” is a change in a food and/or ingredient used in preparing a meal that decreases the overall fat and calories consumed. “Upgrading” a meal usually starts by changing the type of meat or poultry and can include making changes to the side dishes and even the condiments.

Original Favorite Family Recipe:

Topping

Water, for boiling

5 potatoes, peeled and cubed

3 T. unsalted butter

¼ c. cream cheese, softened

1 egg

½ t. salt

¼ t. cracked pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 scallions, sliced

¼ c. Italian parsley, minced

Filling

1 T. olive oil

2 lb. ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

2 large carrots, peeled and diced

2 celery stalks, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 T. fresh thyme, minced

1 T. fresh oregano, minced

1 c. frozen peas, thawed

Salt and pepper, to taste

Sauce

¼ c. unsalted butter

2 T. flour

1/3 c. red wine

1 2/3 c. chicken broth

2 c. mozzarella, shredded

1 c. parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add potatoes. Cook until tender about 20 minutes. Drain, transfer to a mixing bowl and add butter, cream cheese, egg, salt, pepper and garlic. Using a hand held mixer blend until smooth. Fold in scallions and parsley and set aside.

In the meantime for the filling heat oil over medium in a large skillet and add ground beef. Cook until browned stirring often about 5 to 7 minutes. Drain and set aside.

To same pan add onion and cook until light yellow about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in carrots and celery and continue to cook another 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, thyme, oregano, peas, salt and pepper and cook a minute more. Reduce heat to low and let simmer.

For sauce melt butter in a small sauce pan and whisk in flour to prevent lumps from forming. Let simmer for a few minutes for flour to cook. Slowly whisk in red wine again to prevent lumps from forming along with broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer a few minutes until slightly thickened.

Pour sauce into beef mixture and stir to combine. Transfer to a 9 x 13 baking dish, then evenly spread mashed potatoes over the top and sprinkle with both cheeses.

Bake about 1 hour until golden and bubbly. Broil the last few minutes of cooking for cheese to brown more if desired. Let cool about 5 to 10 minutes for sauce to set before serving.

Nutrition Facts

8 Servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 815.3

Total Fat 60.5 g

Saturated Fat 26.6 g

Polyunsaturated Fat 3.0 g

Monounsaturated Fat 25.8 g

Cholesterol 189.9 mg

Sodium 1,219.2 mg

Potassium 955.7 mg

Total Carbohydrate 29.5 g

Dietary Fiber 4.6 g

Sugars 2.5 g

Protein 38.2 g

Vitamin A 69.6 %

Vitamin B-12 73.1 %

Vitamin B-6 36.0 %

Vitamin C 31.0 %

Vitamin D 1.3 %

Vitamin E 8.9 %

Calcium 40.5 %

Copper 17.7 %

Folate 14.8 %

Iron 23.6 %

Magnesium 17.3 %

Manganese 26.2 %

Niacin 44.1 %

Pantothenic Acid 12.5 %

Phosphorus 50.8 %

Riboflavin 28.5 %

Selenium 39.7 %

Thiamin 17.3 %

Zinc 44.2 %

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

"Upgraded" Favorite Family Recipe:

Topping

Water, for boiling

5 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 scallions, sliced

¼ c. Italian parsley, minced

Salt and pepper, to taste

Filling

1 T. olive oil

2 lb. ground turkey

1 medium onion, chopped

2 large carrots, peeled and diced

2 celery stalks, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 T. fresh thyme, minced

1 T. fresh oregano, minced

1 c. frozen peas, thawed

Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add sweet potatoes. Cook until tender about 20 minutes. Drain, transfer to a mixing bowl and add using a hand held mixer blend until smooth. Fold in scallions, parsley, salt and pepper to taste and set aside.

In the meantime for the filling heat oil over medium in a large skillet and add turkey. Cook until browned stirring often about 5 to 7 minutes. Drain and set aside.

To same pan add onion and cook until light yellow about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in carrots and celery and continue to cook another 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, thyme, oregano, peas, salt and pepper to taste and cook a minute more.

In a large bowl combine browned ground turkey and vegetables, mix well, transfer to a 9 x 13 baking dish then evenly spread mashed sweet potatoes over the top.

Bake about 30 minutes until heated through and bubbly. Let cool about 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Facts

8 Servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 295.9

Total Fat 10.2 g

Saturated Fat 2.8 g

Polyunsaturated Fat 0.4 g

Monounsaturated Fat 1.3 g

Cholesterol 80.0 mg

Sodium 159.1 mg

Potassium 347.2 mg

Total Carbohydrate 27.1 g

Dietary Fiber 4.7 g

Sugars 2.0 g

Protein 25.1 g

Vitamin A 382.7 %

Vitamin B-12 0.0 %

Vitamin B-6 15.9 %

Vitamin C 49.6 %

Vitamin D 0.0 %

Vitamin E 3.3 %

Calcium 5.6 %

Copper 10.0 %

Folate 9.5 %

Iron 18.2 %

Magnesium 5.6 %

Manganese 24.2 %

Niacin 6.0 %

Pantothenic Acid 6.1 %

Phosphorus 5.8 %

Riboflavin 9.9 %

Selenium 1.9 %

Thiamin 8.9 %

Zinc 3.7 %

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

The "upgrades" I made to this favorite family recipe was of course using ground turkey instead of ground beef. For the topping I used sweet potatoes in place of the regular potatoes and also omitted the butter, cream cheese, egg, salt and pepper. For the filling I used the same ingredients although went without the sauce all together as well as left off the cheeses on top to decrease both the calories and fat content.

To vote for this recipe please visit MealUpgrade.com!