MarloElaine’s Turkey and Vegetable Cobbler Recipe

I enjoy watching Mark Bittman as The Minimalist on our TiVo’d New York Times recordings. Today I watched him make Chicken and Vegetable Cobbler. Normally when I watch Bittman’s programs, I become hungry, but not necessarily inspired to cook. Today was a rare occasion. I actually had all of the ingredients on hand! Well, close enough that I could make my variation of his dish anyways.

I had some ground turkey in the fridge that I was planning on cooking with chorizo to make taco meat, but that never materialized. I also had some baby carrots and celery that I intended for snacking, but that didn’t work out either. I had half a carton of white mushrooms left over from last weekend’s sausage, mushroom, and onion egg white omelette. What pushed me over the edge was the refrigerated biscuit dough that I purchased just this morning during a really good sale and with a coupon (double bonus!). So I set about preparing my version of Bittman’s Chicken Cobbler, which he compares to a Chicken Pot Pie without all the work.

I really like this recipe because it forms a nice, creamy sauce without the canned cream of mushroom soup. This dish can easily be modified to control salt, fat, or cholesterol content. It can also accommodate whatever vegetables or meats you have on hand. Since I have a picky eater, I sneak in pureed vegetables whenever I can, just in case my daughter insists on picking out all the visible vegetable chunks. I have made my own pureed vegetables in the past, but this time I simply used a container of Stage 2 Carrots baby food.

MarloElaine’s Turkey and Vegetable Cobbler

Ingredients:
2 T cooking oil (vegetable, canola, olive, etc.)
1 C chopped onions
6 cloves of garlic
12 ounces of ground turkey
3 small russet potatoes
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup mushrooms, quartered
1 small container of pureed vegetables (baby food) *optional
1 cup chicken stock (or 1 cup water and 2 cubes chicken bouillion)
2 T corn starch
salt, seasoned salt, and/or black pepper to taste
1 tube of refrigerated biscuit dough

Directions:
1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.
2. Add the onions and garlic and saute until translucent.
3. Add the ground turkey, breaking it up into small chunks.
4. Brown the turkey meat slightly, then add the potatoes and carrots.
5. Once the potatoes and carrots are soft and the turkey is thoroughly cooked, add the celery and mushrooms.
6. If using the pureed vegetables, add them now.
7. Add the chicken stock to the saucepan, reserving 2T of liquid.
8. In a small bowl, combine the corn starch and 2 T of the chicken stock or water. Mix to form a slurry.
9. Add the corn starch slurry to the meat and vegetables and bring the liquid to a boil.
10. Once the sauce begins to tighten up, season to taste.
11. Turn off the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.
12. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
13. Spoon the turkey and vegetable mixture into a baking dish. I used a 9″ x 13″ Pyrex glassware, but you could opt for a deeper one if you like a higher meat to biscuit ratio.
14. Spread the biscuits evenly over the top of the filling. Split the biscuits in half lengthwise if needed.

15. Place the pan in the center rack of the oven for 20 minutes, or until the biscuits are cooked through and the sauce is bubbling.
16. Remove from the oven and allow to cool a few minutes before serving.

My son Sammy really enjoyed my Turkey and Vegetable Cobbler. He is very aware of which foods are healthy and which are unhealthy. Sammy proclaimed that his favorite parts of the dish were the vegetables, then the turkey and the “cookie” or biscuit.

I’d love to hear your reviews of this recipe, including any variations you make to it. Please post your comments below.

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