Ground Turkey Rolled Pizza

I have to admit that I’m a food show junkie. I watch every food show from Food Network to Rachael Ray. I love to learn new recipes and techniques. I got this idea from watching a Rachael Ray episode. I love her show! She made a turkey rolled meatloaf, but I’m in the mood for pizza – so I changed filling. This just shows that recipes are nothing more than suggestions. You can change the ingredients to whatever you feel like making (and whatever you already have it in the pantry). This also shows that recipes can be altered to be less calories and less fat. It’s as simple as getting smart ingredients (like low fat or low sodium). And let me just put this out there – I need pizza and I need it now!

Pizza roll

• 1 pound ground turkey
• ½ cup breadcrumbs
• ½ cup egg substitute (or 1 egg, or 2 egg whites)
• ½ cup fat free half-n-half (or milk)
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated nutmeg (or dried)
• Pinch of salt and pepper

Pizza Sauce & cheese

• 1 can low sodium tomato sauce
• 1 can tomato paste
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 1/3 fresh herbs, like parsley, oregano, thyme, sage (or you can use dried Italian herbs)
• Pinch of salt and pepper
• 1 cup shredded (or finely chopped) low fat mozzarella cheese

Pizza “toppings”. All are optional and you can add your own

• ½ can finely chopped black olives
• Handful turkey pepperoni
• 1 chopped onion
• 1 chopped bell pepper
• A few slices of fat free lunchmeat ham – cut into small squares

You’ll need

• 2 Baking sheets
• Plastic wrap
• Mixing bowl
• Foil and cooking spray, or silicone baking mat

Serves 4, Prep Time 15, Cook Time 1 hours and 15 minutes, Rest Time 10 Minutes (Total Time 1 hour 40 minutes)

1. Pre-heat oven to 375
2. Mix the ground turkey, breadcrumbs, egg(s), half-n-half, nutmeg, salt and pepper
3. Line 1 baking sheet with plastic wrap. Make sure the plastic goes over the edges – you can use 2 sheets of plastic overlapped
4. Spread the ground turkey over the plastic wrap from end to end, and press down for an even layer.
5. Mix the tomato sauce, paste, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper, in a bowl
6. Spoon ½ of the sauce onto the ground turkey (reserve the other ½ for dipping)
7. Spread the cheese and your choice of pizza toppings over the sauce
8. Using the plastic wrap, tightly roll the turkey
9. Pinch the sides of the rolled turkey to keep the cheese in place
10. Keeping the rolled turkey on the plastic wrap, transfer it to a second baking sheet lined with a silicone mat
11. Cook for 1 hour
12. Then spoon on more sauce on top of the turkey and cook for another 10-15 minutes
13. Remove the turkey pizza from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes
14. Slice turkey

For plating, I took some of the sauce and spread it on the dish in a circular motion (like you do on a round pizza), then cut the rolled turkey pizza into 2 inch slices and placed 2 slices per plate and top with fresh parsley. I paired this with a simple salad and homemade salad dressing. Delish! Did I mention I love pizza?