When making Healthy Choices, one of the first things I add to our weekly dinner rotation is Jenny-O All Natural Turkey Tenderloins.  This versatile white meat is actually slightly lower in fat and calories than boneless skinless chicken breasts.  And their mild flavor lends itself to recipe creativity.  Like this flavor packed colorful Moroccan Stuffed Turkey Tenderloin.

While Winter Thyme brings Spice Exploration to the pages of Lemony Thyme, it also brings less than desirable lighting for food photography.  However, because I loved this dish so much I see nothing but beautiful flavor here.  The stuffing began with a base of cinnamon infused couscous.  To that I added sautéed onion and garlic that was seasoned with cumin and coriander.

Next came the aromatics: the nutty sweet flavors of dried pitted dates and shelled pistachios combined with the tart pop from fresh orange pieces and pomegranate seeds.  I also added about a 1/4 cup of fresh chopped cilantro leaves.  Flavor wow!!  I have actually pictured this Moroccan Stuffing to share as a separate recipe.  It’s amazing.

I’m a sucker for stuffing with anything.  It is after all one of my favorite food groups.  So I butterflied the tenderloins, pounded them to an even thickness (about 3/4-inch), then stuffed them with this glorious Moroccan influenced filling.

A little butcher’s twine helps keep everything in place.  I lightly browned the stuffed tenderloins in an oven-proof skillet, then basted them with a wonderful spiced honey glaze before transferring them to the oven to bake.  Pour yourself a glass of wine and set your timer for 30 minutes, give them another basting with the glaze, set your timer for 10 minutes and check for doneness.  Recommended temperature is 165 degrees.  We remove ours just before and let them rest for 10 minutes while coming up to temp.  Slice and serve.

We reheated one of the Moroccan Stuffed Turkey Tenderloins by wrapping it in foil and placing it in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes.  It was just as delicious as when we first served this dish.  Enjoy!

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Moroccan Stuffed Turkey Tenderloin

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

• 1 24- ounce pkg. Jennie-O All Natural Turkey Tenderloins pounded to 3/4-inch thickness.
• 1/2 cup couscous
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 Tbl. olive oil divided
• 1 onion fine diced
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1/2 tsp. coriander
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 6 dried pitted dates chopped
• 1/2 cup pistachios chopped
• 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
• 1/4 cup orange pieces chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

For the glaze…

• 1 Tbl. honey
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. cumin
• salt & pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Butterfly turkey tenderloins and pound to even thickness, about 3/4-inch. Reserve.
• Combine 3/4 cup water with 1 cinnamon stick in a small saucepan. Bring water to boil, stir in couscous and cover. Remove from heat and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Remove cinnamon stick, drizzle with 1 Tbl. olive oil and fluff with fork.
• Meanwhile, in an oven-proof skillet sauté onion in a tsp. of olive oil over medium heat until just tender; add in minced garlic, coriander and cumin; cook another minute.
• Add onion mixture along with dates, pistachios, pomegranate, orange pieces, and cilantro to couscous. Allow to cool slightly before stuffing tenderloins.
• Cut 3 pieces of 12-inch butcher’s twine for each tenderloin. Lay butterflied tenderloin on top of strings. Split couscous between each tenderloin. Tie snuggly with twine. Add remainder of olive oil to skillet and brown tenderloins on all sides.
• Combine glaze ingredients and baste browned tenderloins. Transfer tenderloins to oven and bake for 30 minutes. Baste again, then bake an additional 10 minutes or until done. 165 degrees is the recommended temperature. Rest 5 – 10 minutes before slicing.

The post Moroccan Stuffed Turkey Tenderloin appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

I instantly fell in love with this wonderful Benny Sauce marinade almost 15 years ago.  Paired with boneless turkey breasts, it has become a favorite of mine.  By the ingredients list you can see it’s full flavored and fabulous.  And when I tell you that each of these ingredients smiles at you, I mean it.  They wink and smile.

I marinated Jennie-O Turkey Tenderloins which tend to marinate more quickly than larger sized turkey breasts.  They are super juicy and perfect for grilling, although they bake well too.  The Benny Sauce marinade becomes a fabulous sauce.  Simply boil marinade after tenderloins have been removed and reserve to drizzle over sliced turkey.  All the wonderful dried herbs combined with the lemon and red wine vinegar bring such a lovely flavor.  While we adore this turkey hot off the grill, I must admit I’ve hidden the leftover sliced turkey….as to quietly enjoy it cold on a sandwich the next day.

Oh my.  I think you’ll really enjoy this one.

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Marinated Turkey Tenderloin {with Benny Sauce}

Course Entree

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 8 -10

Author Southern Living Magazine, November 1998

Ingredients

For marinade…

• ½ cup lemon juice
• ½ cup red wine vinegar
• ½ cup canola oil
• 2 large garlic cloves minced
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1 ½ tsp. ground marjoram
• 1 ½ tsp. dried thyme
• 1 ½ tsp. dried oregano
• 1 ½ tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. celery salt
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 2 tsp. pepper
• 4 tsp. soy sauce
• 4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/8 tsp. hot sauce

For turkey…

• 2 24- ounce pkgs. Jennie-O All Natural Turkey Tenderloins

Instructions

For marinade…

• In a small sauce pan, bring all marinade ingredients to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool thoroughly.
• Place turkey in a large shallow dish, pour marinade over turkey. Cover and chill 4-6 hours, turning occasionally.

For turkey…

• Preheat grill to medium high or oven to 325 degrees.
• Remove turkey from marinade, reserve marinade.
• If grilling, grill tenderloins for about 10 minutes per side, quarter turning after 5 minutes. Grill until instant read thermometer reads 165 degrees (or slightly less when resting). Remove to a plate and cover with foil. Allow to rest 10 minutes before slicing (turkey will continue cooking, about 5 additional degrees).
• If baking, place tenderloins on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Bake for 30 – 40 minutes or until meat thermometer registers 165 degrees. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
• Boil reserved marinade for 1 minute and serve with turkey.

Notes

This recipe requires 4-6 hours to marinate before cooking.

The post Marinated Turkey Tenderloin {with Benny Sauce} appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

When I first made Sage-Pecan Pesto Encrusted Turkey Tenderloin and posted a picture in my What’s for Dinner album, I got immediate requests for the recipe.  I love pesto.  It’s so versatile and easy going.  Never complains when you substitute sage for basil, pecans for pine nuts, aged cheddar for Parmesan.  And turkey tenderloin is the perfect delivery vehicle (pork tenderloin would be delish too). So good and so moist!

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Sage Pecan Pesto Encrusted Turkey Tenderloin

Course Entree

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme adapted from Food Network

Ingredients

For the pesto…

• 2 cups loosely packed fresh sage leaves
• 1/2 cup pecans
• 4 garlic cloves peeled
• 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan
• 1/3 cup olive oil plus extra if needed

For the turkey tenderloin…

• 1 1 1/2 lb. Jennie-O All Natural Turkey Breast Tenderloin

Instructions

For the pesto…

• Combine all ingredients except olive oil in a food processor or blender, rough chop.
• Then with processor running slowly drizzle in the olive oil until well blended.

For the turkey tenderloin…

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Season turkey tenderloin with salt & pepper.
• Coat the top of the tenderloin with pesto.
• Bake for about 30 minutes, until instant read meat thermometer indicates appropriate doneness.
• Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.

The post Sage-Pecan Pesto Encrusted Turkey Tenderloin appeared first on Lemony Thyme.