Spiralized Turnip and Potato Au Gratin Casserole with Turkey
Spiralized Turnip and Potato Au Gratin Casserole with Turkey
More Gratin recipes you might enjoy are Spiralized Winter Veggie Gratin, Brussels Sprouts Gratin and Butternut Squash Gratin.
This recipe’s inspiration came from the classic French dish, Potatoes Au Gratin. Usually it involves layering thinly sliced potatoes (cut with a mandolin) with lots of heavy cream and grated cheese.
Not only is this dish a fraction of the calories of a classic gratin, it’s also so quick and easy to make thanks to my favorite cooking gadget, my spiralizer (a kitchen must!). I found a monster carrot at the farmer’s market. It’s the perfect size for spiralizing since vegetables need to be at least 2 inches in diameter. If you can’t find a fat carrot you can buy a bag of shredded carrots to use here instead.
Not all spiralizers are created equal. The hand held ones work great for zucchini. But, when spiralizing tougher vegetables, investing in a decent spiralizer is worth the extra price because it’s effortless. I own two and both are great, the Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer, and the Inspiralizer. Inspiralizer is the better of the two (pictured here) because the suction to the counter is outstanding and all the blades are attached, so it’s more compact and easier to clean up.
More Casserole Recipes you might enjoy:
- Tex Mex Breakfast Casserole
- Chicken and Broccoli Veggie Tot Casserole
- Stuffed Cabbage Casserole
- Zucchini Rollatini
- Portobello Shepherd’s Pie
Spiralized Turnip and Potato Au Gratin Casserole with Turkey
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup half & half cream
- 1/2 cup skim milk
- 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt, divided
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 2 teaspoons butter
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 1/4 lb 93% lean ground turkey
- 4 garlic cloves, diced
- 1 pound 2 turnips, peeled
- 3 oz carrots, 1/2 of large
- 1 8 oz medium potato, peeled
- 3 oz gruyere cheese, shredded
- 1/4 cup scallions, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 14-inch oval casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Spiralize the carrot, turnips and potato with the thickest noodle setting of your spiralizer, cutting the spirals into 8-inch lengths.
- In a small pan bring the half and half, milk, ½ tsp salt, thyme and rosemary to a simmer over medium-low heat for 5 minutes, set aside.
- In a large nonstick pan, melt the butter and saute the chopped onion and garlic in butter for 5 minutes, add 3/4 tsp salt and pepper.
- Add the ground turkey and cook on medium-high heat until browned, approximately 10 minutes.
- Remove thyme and rosemary leaves from milk and pour milk mixture onto turkey, simmer 3 minutes.
- In a large working bowl combine the spitalized turnips, potatoes and carrots along with meat and the milk mixture, combine well.
- Pour into a casserole dish, top with scallions, and gruyere cheese.
- Cover with foil and bake 1 hour, uncover and broil on low for 5 minutes, or until golden on top.
Nutrition
Really liked this and will try variations next time. Ate some and froze the rest. Here are the modifications I made.
**used half gouda and half smoked gouda since I didn’t have gruyere on hand.
**Mixed some cheese into the veggie/turkey mix
**used oatmilk for my husband’s benefit but would try with dairy next time
**used home-dried herbs and left them in the milk since they were already dehydrated and crumbled.
I made this as a side dish without the turkey and it was delicious. My husband and I both loved it and will definitely make again.
Can I use leftover cooked turkey instead of ground? It looks like a great use for Thanksgiving leftovers.
Sure, why not!
I made this last night. It was good, but I felt like it was missing something. If I make it again, I think would use a little chicken stock and replace the gruyere with dollops of goat cheese. 🙂
I dont like the point plus plan.I like the old plan more. can I use your recipes by point or calories
I love this recipe. My husband doesn’t like spiralized vegetables so I use my food processor’s electric dicer attachment and dice them (at 91 it is easier for him to chew). I couldn’t find the recommended cheese so I use sharp cheddar. Use one pound of turkey because it comes that way in our far West Texas grocery store. Have enough for two or three meals for us. Freezes well, too. Thank you for this super recipe.
You’re welcome! 🙂
It is a favorite. I made it again as a side dish without the meat and it was wonderful. Used Silk unsweetened Cashew milk and laughing cow wedges-just a couple and it has plenty of flavor and was great. I put calorie count in Fittness Pal for a no meat version and with ingredients used and amounts this time. Only 85 calorie per serving of 6.
Good day,
I made this with rutabaga , red potato and grass fed beefExcellent!!!
Great!
How do you think this would turn out without the turkey? Do you think it would be dry? Trying to make it vegetarian.
I am absolutely in love with your recipes and this one was wonderful. Made it tonight for my husband and I and he loved it too! Only change I made was that I added leek (with the onion, I had several from my CSA that I needed to use).
So happy to hear that!
I was a little bit afraid that this would be bland, but it actually had quite a bit of flavor (hurrah for Gruyere!). I did add a pinch of cayenne to the turkey while I was browning it, and that amped things up nicely. It works well to do a half recipe in a smaller 1 1/2 quart oval cooking bowl. I bumped up the veggies a bit too, to add bulk without fat or protein. My husband liked it a lot, so there you go!
Wonderful! The thyme also adds great flavor.
I was wondering if you could freeze this ahead as well
Can you freeze the cooked version? Looks Delicious!
I think this would freeze great
Wondered the same thing myself. I have already made this and it was fantastic and so easy to prepare, But would like to make it in advance as well. I was thinking a couple of hours in advance of cooking
Can this be prepared in advance and cooked another night?
My guess is sure!
Hi Gina! I really want to get a veggie spiralizer! Do you suggest any brands? Thanks! Love all your recipes! 🙂
This is a quote from her post:
"I own two [spiralizers] and both are great, the Paderno Spiral Vegetable Slicer, and the Inspiralizer. Inspiralizer is the better of the two (pictured here) because the suction to the counter is outstanding and all the blades are attached, so it's more compact and easier to clean up."
Just got oxo one it’s amazing. It has a suction too
It's in the oven now! Can't wait to taste it! Smells great!
Wow, looks really tasty. I can't help my mouth watering.
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Made this yesterday and we all loved it! my 1 year old went crazy for it! Thanks Gina!
Looks delicious,and thanks for your recipes
It's in the oven now! I substituted sweet potatoes for regular potatoes. And, added 2 links of sweet apple chicken sausage. It looked so good going into the oven!
I don't like turnip – could I just use potato and carrot perhaps? I get my Paderno Spiralizer in 2 days and can't wait to try it!!
Do you know how many points it would be if the turkey were removed to make it a vegetarian dish?
My husband won't eat carrots, do you think I could substitute a sweet potato for the carrot?
Just tell him its sweep potato
Swiss
I love gruyere but find it hard to find at the grocers. Do you have an idea for substitution?
any nice melting cheese would work
jarlsberg, swiss, comte, beaufort
Trader Joe’s has a combo of Swiss and Gruyere shredded. It is great for this but adds a nice zest to homemade mac and cheese too!
I love that this casserole is made with spiralized veggies – so cool! 😀
🙂
That looks so so good ! I am being a pain but wonder if we could replace the half-and-half by a vegetal option by chance ?
I am sure they sell dairy free creamers out there!
I am dairy-free and made this last night with cashew milk (plus a little cornstarch), olive oil butter, and lactose free cheese. It came fantastic! Thanks for another great recipe!