Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Cheddar & Swiss Infused Turkey Burger

I love eating a cheeseburger fresh off the grill in the Summertime, but I always feel so guilty and gross after eating a regular beef burger, no matter how good they taste. Being health conscious and all, I definitely limit the intake of delicious fatty foods like cheeseburgers... However, substituting recipes with white meat like turkey or chicken is healthier, leaner, and (almost) as tasty as red meat. So, I bought ground turkey with the intention of making a "healthy version" of something and decided to go with burgers. I saw beautiful white mushroom caps while I was browsing and thought they would be a perfect topping. As far as cheese selection, I picked my two top burger cheese choices and combined them, but you can use any type you prefer. Finally, the grocery store sold out of whole wheat hamburger buns (ugh!) so I ended up using brioche buns instead...yummy yummy!! I accompanied the burgers with baked waffle fries and a green salad. Oh, and since wine doesn't really go with this, try some Leffe Blonde ;)



Ingredients: Makes 2 Large, 3 Medium Burgers
  • 1 lb Ground White Turkey Meat
  • Wisconsin Cheddar, cubed into small pieces
  • Swiss Cheese, cubed into small pieces
  • Butter/Buttery Spread
  • Salt
  • Cracked Black Pepper
  • Hamburger Seasoning (optional)
  • Brioche Hamburger Buns (or go healthier and get whole wheat!)
  • Topping: 3 White mushroom caps, sliced - 1 diced garlic clove - olive oil
Directions:
The Meat: In a medium/large mixing bowl, combine the meat with some cracked pepper, salt, and if you have it, hamburger seasoning. Mix well so that seasoning is evenly dispersed.
Evenly split the meat into double the amount of parts as burgers you are making and form into patties - i.e. I was making 3 burgers, so I made 6 patties. We double so we can infuse the cheese and sandwich them together!  Put a few cubes of each kind of cheese on 3 of the patties.

Take the other half and form your complete patty, making sure that the cheese doesn't escape from the sides.
On your grill (or skillet if you don't have one), line with some buttery spread to give extra flavor and prevent burgers from sticking. Once grill is very hot, cook the burgers for ~5 minutes on each side... until turkey meat is fully cooked through. You may see some cheese oozing out, and it may even form a delicious crust on the sides!


The Toppings: Saute mushrooms in garlic and olive oil until they soften. Add on top of burger and serve. If you want more cheese on top of your burger, add the mushrooms and then a layer of cheese on top of burger and let melt on grill before serving. Serve burgers on your buns with ketchup and mustard (a must combo for me!).



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