An excellent way to use up leftover turkey, this Creamy Boursin Pasta recipe is quick and delicious. With a few added ingredients you’ve got yourself an easy one pan dinner.
Honestly, you could cook some pasta, toss in a package of Boursin cheese, add a little cooking water and you’d have a pretty tasty pasta dish. And if you’re short on time or not really into adding some extra ingredients, go right ahead! I mean, the cheese is already seasoned with garlic and herbs. This version, however, uses leftover turkey and a few complimentary additions that make it a complete meal.
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Now, I love leftover turkey dinner but that means reheating multiple dishes, bowls and containers. Or piling everything cold on a plate and microwaving until some parts are overheated and others aren’t hot at all. So repurposing that turkey is perfect. And, as a bonus, picking the cooked meat off the bones is great practice for making soup. If you’ve never made homemade soup using a turkey carcass, check out Turkey Noodle Soup. You won’t believe how much meat you can find on a cooked turkey.
You can vary the amount of turkey in this recipe based on how much you have left. Of course you can use chicken instead. And feel free to add extra mushrooms and herbs. But don’t be tempted to cook more than the recommended amount of pasta. You might think it’s not enough and trust me, I’ve made the mistake so many times it’s embarrassing. But extra pasta will soak up too much sauce. If it’s not creamy you’ll be disappointed.
Does it really matter what shape of pasta you choose? Not really. A little tip though, larger sized pasta shapes have more air space when measured so if you were using, say, big rigatoni, you’d end up with about 12 pieces of pasta in your dish. So stick to something smallish in the “short pasta” department. Fusilli is just perfect for Creamy Boursin Pasta with Turkey. And pay attention to the cooking instructions on the package. Smaller pasta can easily be over cooked.
You might be wondering why this recipe doesn’t just use 2 packages of Boursin for the sauce. Well, 2 reasons. First, the cheese is a little pricy. But that little package is packed with flavour. And milk and chicken broth not only add extra needed liquid, they also, when thickened with a little flour, create the perfect creamy sauce without adding too much fat. And the starchiness of pasta cooking water always helps thicken a sauce. You need a little fat to coat the flour so you don’t get a lumpy sauce. But that’s a science lesson for another day.
When I say this recipe makes 4 servings, this means Canada Food Guide recommended amounts of meat and pasta. But what I really mean is 2 adult dinners with some leftovers. Or a family of 4 where 2 are children who don’t eat as much. Shame on us all for eating more than we should but I say, bla bla bla. But all kidding aside, this Creamy Boursin Pasta with Turkey does contain some nutritional value. And you could add even more. Some frozen or leftover peas added at the end would be spectacular. Don’t like mushrooms? Leave them out. Wrong time of year for fresh herbs? Add some chopped spinach. The possibilities are endless.
Let me know how you customized your version in the comments below! Here’s the recipe:
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp butter
- ½ medium onion, diced
- 2 cups sliced mushrooms
- 1 Tbsp flour
- 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup chicken broth lower sodium recommended
- 1 cup milk
- 2 cups chopped cooked turkey
- 1 pkg Garlic and Fine Herb Boursin Cheese 150 g or 5.2 oz
- 1 ½ cups dry fusilli pasta
- ½ cup ladle pasta cooking water
- 1 tsp salt adjust according to sodium in broth
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 Tbsp fresh minced chives plus extra for garnish
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley plus extra for garnish
Instructions
- Sauté onion and mushrooms in butter on medium heat until softening and golden.
- Add garlic and cook for one minute. Sprinkle flour over top and cook, stirring for one more minute.
- Increase heat to medium high and add milk and broth. Cook until liquid is bubbling and thickened, stirring well. Reduce heat to medium low and add chopped turkey. Stir in Boursin cheese until melted. Allow to simmer gently while cooking pasta, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain, reserving about ½ cup of cooking water. Add pasta to turkey mixture and stir to combine.
- Stir in fresh herbs and add about ¼ cup of pasta water. Taste and adjust seasoning if required. Add remaining pasta water and serve immediately.
- Garnish with extra fresh herbs if desired and fresh cracked black pepper.