Holiday bills rolling in? ....or, What to do with $1.59 ground turkey!

MONEY is flying outta' our house faster than you can say 'paper or plastic'!

December, as always, was a pricey month in our household (and I'm sure at your house too). On top of the very merry holiday spending spree, our furnace went out, our water heater crashed, and the water softener went on the blink.......ka-ching, ka-ching, ka-ching.....and now it's time to pay the piper.

How happy was I to find that GROUND TURKEY is on sale this week to the tune of $1.59 a pound!? Just so happens, one of our family's favorite meals is ASIAN TURKEY LETTUCE WRAPS, made with the super cheap, yet very tasty, ground turkey.

Which to you want first: the good news, or the not so good news? Let's get the not so good news over with first: none of the other ingredients for this dish are on sale this week. But, on the bright side (and I'm a bright side kinda shopper) if you can make a really fun and delicious dinner outta $3.25 worth of ground turkey, you can use the money you saved to pay full price for the rest of the ingredients. It won't be expensive. I promise!

I love to serve these wraps with a side of steamed jasmine or basmati rice. Don't be intimidated by the seemingly long list of ingredients, and feel free to leave out anything you don't care for, you really can't mess this up -- it's not rocket surgery! HA!

ASIAN TURKEY LETTUCE WRAPS

Adapted from Epicurious.com

Serves: 6

1 T. vegetable oil

1 large onion, diced

1 large carrot, grated

1 very big handful fresh bean sprouts

2 lbs. ground turkey

3/4 c. (or more to taste) Asian peanut sauce

1 T. hoisin sauce

1 T. soy

fresh mint, minced

fresh cilantro, minced

FOR SERVING:

1 English cucumber, seeded and diced

18 large butter lettuce leaves

OPTIONAL:

Chopped peanuts and canned crunchy rice noodles

Sriracha HOT Chili Sauce if you like a little extra kick

Heat oil in a very large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and carrot and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add in the ground turkey and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until fully cooked. Drain off any grease that has accumulated in the pan.

Add in the bean sprouts, all of your sauces, and the fresh herbs; stir to combine well. Taste turkey mixture and correct seasonings if necessary.

Line edges of a large serving platter with the lettuce leaves. Mound turkey mixture in the center of the platter. Have diners assemble their own wraps, and top with the diced cucumber and the optional garnishes.