Santa Fe Turkey Rotini

Last month was a good stock-up month for pasta and canned tomatoes. I will be sharing several recipes this month to help you use these items from your pantry. It is a recipe that we made several times last year that my whole family enjoys.

Santa Fe Turkey Rotini

1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 package lean ground turkey
1 medium red bell pepper
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 diced and seeded tomato
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 can Hunt's Fire Roasted diced tomatoes,
puree in blender or food processor
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon sugar
8 ounces uncooked rotini pasta
1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 package (10 oz.) frozen corn, thawed and drained
1 can (4 oz.) chopped green chilies, drained
1/3 cup low fat sour cream
Fresh cilantro, chopped


1) Heat oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Put ground turkey in pot and cook until no longer pink. Next, add onion and red bell pepper to the pot, cook for 3 minutes. Stir in tomato, garlic, chili powder, crushed red pepper and black pepper. Cook until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in pureed tomatoes, water and sugar. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

2)Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside. Stir beans, corn and chilies into ground turkey and vegetable mixture. Cook until heated through, about 8 minutes. Add the pasta to the pot. Serve in bowls with a dollop of sour cream and fresh cilantro.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family does.

Do you have any favorite recipes using these pantry staples? Please feel free to share in the comment section below.

I have about 30 cans of tomatoes and 20 boxes of pasta just waiting for a little inspiration.

This post has been linked to:

Tempt My Tummy Tuesday

Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap

Menu Planning Monday

Spring has sprung and I am ready for a fresh start. I haven't been menu planning and it has made things truly hectic. I am talking a trip to the store everyday around 3 o'clock(when I pick up my daughter from school). I have not been the least bit motivated to consider what we were having for dinner. Well, I'm truly exhausted from my lack of planning and looking forward to knowing what's for dinner each night this coming week.

We did have one week that was somewhat successful because of a program that I saw on Food Network. I like Robin Miller and her prep ahead for the week strategies. She prepared a menu using a porkloin roast. These 3 recipes, which I made using a 4.5 lb roast, were all a hit with my family. I know that a lot of you probably have several porkloins in your freezers. They were on sale at Safeway/Randalls last week for $.99 a pound. This Pork Out menu will take care of 3 nights for your family if you want to use up a porkloin this week. The lettuce wraps were a huge hit with everyone. Here are the links:

Pork Roast with Cumin-Spiked Mixed Berry Sauce and Roasted Parsnips (this recipe is equally delicious using carrots instead of parsnips which are sometimes pricey)

Radicchio Cups with Pork and Seasoned Rice (we used butter lettuce instead of radicchio to make the wraps)

Chili-Seared Pork with Pineapple Salsa

Here is the link for the prep ahead Game Plan.

Now for a look at some of the recipes we will be making this week:

Monday - Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas (from The $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook) with a side of spanish rice and sliced pears (the link recipe uses flour tortillas and the cookbook recipe uses corn tortillas)

Tuesday - Teriyaki Sloppy Joes (from Everyday Rachael Ray magazine) asian coleslaw and fruit

Wednesday - Creamy Shrimp and Poblanos and salad

Thursday - Oriental Chicken Kabobs over rice with grilled pineapple

Friday - Santa Fe Turkey Rotini and salad

Saturday - Dinner Out after Church

Sunday - Roasted Chicken, mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables

I tried to include a little variety in this weeks menu. While I was searching through my cookbooks, I kept selecting mexican inspired recipes. A lot of those recipes will appear over the next couple of weeks. A whole week of mexican food would probably get me kicked out of the kitchen, therefore I mixed up this weeks menu to keep everyone happy.

For more menu ideas, go to Menu Plan Monday.

I will post some of the recipes from this weeks menu tomorrow and later this week.

What are you craving this week?

Please leave a comment, I love hearing from everyone.

BOGO Free Coupon for Lindsey Olives Re-closeables

I just received an email from Lindsey Olives and there is a bogo free coupon for their Re-closeables olives. Hurry and print yours...these usually go pretty fast. Click here to go to the spot to print your very own.