Turkey Burgers

It's burger and grill season, and I'm happy to share a new turkey burger recipe I read about over at Mom on a Mission.  We had these over the weekend, and they met the approval of the eaters around my table.  In fact, we liked them so well, I put together a batch for our freezer this afternoon.

Ground turkey has been much more reasonably priced recently than ground beef.  Last week, I found lean ground turkey on sale at Marc's for $1.99/lb.  I picked up 3 lbs and made a batch of meatballs in addition to 2 batches of these turkey burgers.  My freezer is well stocked for busy summer days ahead.  The burgers came together in just about 10 minutes of prep time and 15-20 minutes of grill time.  We enjoyed them for lunch on Saturday and topped them with our favorite burger toppings (lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mustard, pickle, and mayo).  One pound of turkey yielded 6 bigger patties and 2 smaller patties, just perfect for our family of 5 with a couple leftover for lunches.

This turkey burger recipe contains shredded zucchini and cheese mixed in with the ground turkey, kind of like the gourmet stuffed burger patties you find in the butcher shop of the grocery store.  I wasn't sure how the the addition of the zucchini would affect the taste or texture of the burger.  I'm happy to share that the zucchini made the burgers very moist and juicy, and the kids didn't seem to notice too many green specks in them.  I put the burgers on the buns before I served them, so they didn't have too much time for close inspection.  That might have helped.  My middle one did notice the addition of the basil flavoring saying "it tasted a lot like that new pizza crust", so if your kids don't like basil, maybe leave that out or substitute parsley.  The bread crumbs kind of held it all together, but it did give the patty a bit of a meatloaf/meatball texture.  For the cost, ease, and taste, however, this is a recipe that will be making a repeat performance in our meal schedule.

Here's the recipe:

Turkey Burgers
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 medium zucchini, trimmed and shredded (about 1 cup)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp basil
1/4 tsp pepper
1 Tbsp bread crumbs

Pick up ground turkey on sale for 1.99/lb or less

1.  In a large bowl, combine all ingredients with a fork (or your hands) until well combined.
2.  Divide meat mixture into large balls, compressing mixture slightly as you form the ball.
3.  Flatten each meat ball into a patty, about the width of your palm, making a slight indentation in the center (this keeps the patty from shrinking and swelling during grilling)

Make an assembly line on your kitchen cabinet and get ready
to stock your freezer with a meal for the grill

4.  Grill for 8-10 minutes per side until cooked through.

or

4.  Freeze individual patties between sheets of wax paper and place in ziploc bag.
5.  Thaw completely in frig overnight.
6.  Grill for 8-10 minutes per side until cooked through.

Serve turkey burgers on buns with your favorite toppings.




Grilled turkey burgers
(this one did not get the pretty grill marks on it;
must have been why it was last picked on the plate!)

What's your favorite way to top a grilled burger?