Turkey Pasta Supreme

September 2021. Fall in Memphis, and I am 62, walking the neighborhood in my light jacket, watching the leaves turn on the oaks and maples that line Deadrick Avenue. The smoker is happy in fall — the cooler air holds the smoke lower, keeps it closer to the meat, and the results are always a shade better in October than in July, as if the season itself is a seasoning.

Mama in Whitehaven, navigating her days between clarity and fog, still sharp enough to critique my cooking and still loving enough to eat it anyway.

Smoked turkey wings this week — big, meaty, brined and rubbed and smoked at 275 for three hours until the skin crackled and the meat pulled clean. Turkey wings are the working class of BBQ: cheap, underrated, and transformed by smoke into something extraordinary. Uncle Clyde served them on Fridays at his stand, and I serve them on Saturdays in my backyard, and the tradition bridges the gap between then and now.

Sunday at Mt. Zion, the choir sang and I sat in my pew and let the music hold me. The bass notes I used to add are quieter now — my voice is aging, the way everything ages — but the listening is its own participation, and the church holds me the way the church has held this community for a hundred years: faithfully, unconditionally, with room for everyone who shows up. I show up. That is enough.

After those Saturday wings come off the smoker and Sunday church lets the week settle into something softer, I find myself wanting a weeknight meal that carries the same spirit — humble ingredients, real flavor, the kind of dish that fills the kitchen with a smell that makes whoever walks in feel like they’re already home. Turkey Pasta Supreme does exactly that. It takes the working-class dignity of turkey — the same bird Uncle Clyde knew how to honor and I’ve been honoring ever since — and stretches it into something that feeds a table, warms a house, and asks nothing more of you than showing up to cook it.

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 40 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey
12 oz penne or rotini pasta
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (10.75 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup sour cream
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided

Instructions

Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and set aside, reserving 1/4 cup pasta water.
Sauté the vegetables. Heat olive oil in a large deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper and cook 4–5 minutes until softened. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more, stirring frequently.
Brown the turkey. Add ground turkey to the skillet, breaking it up with a spoon. Season with Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Cook 6–8 minutes until no pink remains.
Build the sauce. Stir in the diced tomatoes, condensed cream of mushroom soup, and chicken broth. Mix well to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat and cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens slightly.
Finish with cream. Remove skillet from heat and stir in sour cream until fully incorporated. If the sauce is too thick, stir in reserved pasta water a tablespoon at a time.
Combine. Add the drained pasta to the skillet and toss to coat everything evenly in the sauce. Stir in 1/2 cup of the shredded cheddar.
Serve. Ladle into bowls or onto plates and top with remaining cheddar. Serve immediately while hot.

Nutrition (per serving)

Turkey Pasta Supreme — Smoked Wings, Sunday Pews, and the Feast That Follows