Alfredo Turkey

One of the most popular Italian sauces for pasta, Alfredo sauce is also one of the simple gourmet recipe.  While classic Alfredo is made with fettuccini, this version is made with linguini pasta. It also combines broccoli and turkey to make a fuller and more complete meal that is delicious for lunch as well as for dinner. Basic Alfredo pasta consists of tossing the cooked pasta in Parmesan cheese and butter. The cheese melts in the process of heating it on low fire together with the cooked pasta, coating the pasta completely, producing a rich and luxurious dish.

The original recipe is credited to Italian restaurateur Alfredo Di Lelio, who the dish is also named after. It was first served at his restaurant in Rome also named Alfredo on the Via della Scrofa sometime in 1914. Throughout the years, pasta Alfredo has evolved into many versions and mixed with other ingredients like cream, broccoli, parsley, garlic, chicken, or shrimp, and sometimes all of the above are incorporated in one dish. In this low-fat version of Alfredo pasta, whole grain linguine is used for healthy recipes. Low fat-cream of mushroom soup is combined with skim milk, low fat grated Parmesan cheese, and olive oil to make the sauce. Skinless and boneless turkey breast together with fresh (or frozen) broccoli florets are added to give flavor, texture and color to the dish, and finally salt and pepper are used to season the dish. You can also garnish the dish with fresh parsley for a nice and refreshing contrast.

You can also use leftover turkey to make this recipe. This is a great idea for using up roast turkey leftover from Thanksgiving or the holidays. Shred the cooked turkey into strips or cut them into cubes and add them in the end just to heat them up a bit.

Ingredients

8 oz. pkg. whole grain linguine

1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli florets

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 lb. boneless, skinless turkey breast, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 can (10 3/4 oz.) low-fat cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup skim milk

1/2 cup low-fat grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp. coarse ground black pepper

1. Prepare linguine according to package directions in a large saucepan. Add broccoli to the water during the last 4 minutes of cooking time. Drain.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until browned, stirring often, 5-7 minutes.

3. Add soup, milk, cheese, pepper and linguine and broccoli to skillet. Cook, stirring often, until mixture is hot and bubbly, 3-5 minutes.