Back to healthy eating here in my house. We've had enough of over-indulgence. Time to get back on the horse and moving forward. You see a lot of these slider type of sandwiches about. They are very popular with families and for footie games. I thought I would try to create a somewhat healthier version by using ground turkey, and by jove I think I cracked it!
I used ground turkey instead of beef. Turkey is a super food and filled with nutrition and is very lean. Especially if you use ground turkey breast meat, which I did.
I added some color and crunch by using plenty of chopped peppers . . . red, green and yellow and some sweetness from chopped onion and a bit of tomato passata . . .
I make my own fajita seasoning, so there are no preservatives there. You can certainly adjust the amount used to your own tastes. The amount I have used here is plenty for us.
I also used half fat cheese and mayonnaise, instead of the full fat versions and melted low fat butter spread for the topping instead of full fat, but by all means if you are not worried about your fat intake or your calories, go for the full fat varieties!
These turned out really, really delicious. I didn't miss any of the fat from using full fat ingredients. Todd ate two. One filled me up just nicely. Enjoy! (I only cooked enough for us to eat and froze the remainder of the filling for another time.)
*Turkey Fajita Sliders*Makes 12Printable Recipe
This recipe is easily doubled. These are fabulous. Absolutely flippin' delicious!
1 pound lean ground turkeylow fat cooking spray1 small onion, peeled and minced1/2 each red, green and yellow bell peppers, trimmed and finely chopped1 1/2 tsp fajita seasoning mix (see below for my recipe)120ml of tomato passata (1/2 cup tomato sauce)1/2 cup mayonnaise (I use low fat)120g grated strong cheddar cheese (1 cup) (I used low fat)60g grated gruyere cheese (1/2 cup)12 medium sized dinner rolls
For the sauce:120g butter melted (1/2 cup) (I used low fat butter spread)1/2 TBS worcestershire sauce1/2 tsp fajita seasoning mix (see below)
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a baking dish large enough to hold the buns. Place the bun bottoms into the dish. They should fit snugly.
Heat a large skillet. Spray with the cooking spray. Add the turkey, onion and peppers. Cook, scrambling and stirring over medium heat until the turkey is cooked through. Add the fajita seasoning mix and tomato passata, and cook a few minutes longer. Stir in the mayonnaise and cheese. Divide this mixture evenly amongst the bun bottoms. Top with the tops of the buns. Combine the melted butter, worcestershire sauce and fajita seasoning mix. Pour evenly over top of the buns. Cover tightly with foil. Bake in the heated oven for about 20 minutes or until well heated through and the cheese is thoroughly melted. Serve immediately.
For the fajita seasoning mix:25g of ground cumin (1/4 cup)25g of fine sea salt (1/4 cup)1 TBS garlic granules1 TBS onion granules2 TBS finely ground black pepper2 TBS smoked paprika
Mix all together and keep in an airtight container in a dark place. Makes a scant cup.
Nutritional values using low fat ingredients:Calories per slider: 488fat: 14.3gcarbs: 64.3gfibre: 1.1gsugar: 2.7gprotein: 26.2g
Bon Appetit!
