burger

Taco Turkey Burgers

Growing up I thought I hated tacos. I know, I can't even believe it myself. It's actually worse than that. I thought I hated Mexican food period. I remember being forced to eat ground beef tacos in hard shells with all of the fixings (i.e. tomatoes) that I hated as a 4 or 5 year old (P.S. I thoroughly enjoy tomatoes today). That was the first and last time I remember trying anything Mexican related for 10 years. I literally avoided Mexican food like the plague for the first 15 years of my life.

Fast forward 10 years, and I agreed to go out to dinner with a friend's family. And where did we show up to but at a dreaded Mexican restaurant. I didn't know what anything was, but I was pretty sure I hated it all. I think I just ordered whatever my friend got because that was the easy way out, and I tried to smile through a bite. I can picture 15 year old me nervously moving the fork towards my mouth. Wait, this is freaking delicious! And that was that, folks. Mind instantly changed. Mexican food is easily one of favorite cuisines today. I've literally been hooked ever since.

So taco Tuesday rolled around this week, and I obviously had to celebrate. I didn't have any tortillas, and I wasn't initially feeling a taco salad. So I decided to mix it up a bit and try out some taco turkey burgers, and boy were they delicious! I whipped up a cilantro lime Greek yogurt sauce and topped the burger with it and some of my other favorite goodies, and Taco Tuesday was a huge success!

Here's What You'll Need:

-1 lb ground turkey
-1/2 large white onion, chopped
-2 green onions, chopped
-1/2 bell pepper, chopped
-2 tsp Just Spices Flavors of Mexico Seasoning (the code juststacy15 will get you 15% off on their website)
-1 clove garlic, minced
-1/8 tsp sea salt
-1/8 tsp black pepper

Makes 6 burgers

Optional Cilantro Lime Greek Yogurt Sauce:
-6 oz Wallaby Plain Greek Yogurt
-1 tsp dried cilantro
-1 tsp lime juice

Instructions:

1) In a large mixing bowl, thoroughly mix together all of the burger ingredients with your hands.
2) Form the mixture into 6 balls, and flatten into burger patties.
3) On a grill or in a pan on a stove top over medium high heat, add the patties, cover, and cook for 4-5 minutes. 
4) Flip the burgers, and cook covered for an additional 4-5 minutes until cooked through.
5) Serve, top with the sauce, salsa, and/or any other fixings you like, and enjoy!

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They're great on a bun, on their own, or even to top off a delicious taco salad. Let me know how you used yours and what you think in the comments below!

 

Thai Peanut Turkey Burgers

I had the pleasure of trying Sky Valley's organic Thai peanut sauce recently, and I really mean pleasure. Honestly, it's just so freakin' good. So obviously I've been wanting to put it on everything. I used it on salmon and tofu, and then the brilliant idea came to me - turkey burgers. I decided to take the Thai peanut theme and run with it, and it was definitely a good choice. Top the burgers with some extra peanut sauce, and you will not regret it.

Here's what you'll need:

-1 lb ground turkey
-3/4 bell pepper, seeded and chopped
-1/2 yellow onion, chopped
-3 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
-1/4 cup Sky Valley Thai peanut sauce

Instructions:

1) In a big bowl, mix together all the ingredients thoroughly with your hands. 
2) Form the mix into 5 patties.
3) Grill each patty for 5-7 minutes per side depending on grill.
4) Serve, top with desired extra peanut sauce, and enjoy!

I enjoyed mine with some baked sweet potato fries and broccoli one night and on a bed of greens with veggies the next day. Let me know how you enjoy your burgers and what you think in the comments below!

Healthy Chicken Parmesan Burgers

Grilled food is without a doubt some of my favorite food. I get so excited when it starts to get warm in the spring because that means that grilling season has finally arrived. Not to say that I won't grill in the winter because, trust me, I will. Over the past couple of months, I've grilled everything from salmon to turkey burgers to kabobs, but I wanted to try something a little different.

I was trying to come up with what I should cook for dinner for my boyfriend and myself. Chicken parm, one of his favorites, instantly came to mind. But I wanted to grill and I wanted to make something healthy. Then it dawned on me - why can't I have all three? How about healthy chicken parm burgers. I even stuffed in some spinach because I love getting in greens wherever I can.

Here's what you'll need:

-1 lb ground chicken
-1/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
-1/4 grated parmesan cheese
-1 tsp dried basil
-1 tsp Italian seasoning
-2 cloves garlic, chopped
-1 cup spinach
-1/3 cup tomato/marinara sauce
-1/4 tsp Himalayan sea salt
-1/4 tsp ground black pepper
-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
-1/3 cup part skim mozzarella, shredded

Instructions:

1) Mix together all ingredients except for the mozzarella in a  bowl.
2) Form mixture into 3 to 4 burger patties depending on the size patties you'd like. We made 3 because we were going bunless.
3) Grill the burgers for about 8 minutes on each side. Watch the burgers closely because cooking times may vary by grill.
4) Add the shredded mozzarella to the tops of the burgers and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
5) Remove the burgers from the grill and serve as desired. You can also add some additional sauce if you'd like.

I also grilled some broccolini (tossed in olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes) and whole tomatoes as sides. They were both delicious and highly recommended! The tomatoes were great with the burger and are a good substitute for adding additional sauce.

I hope you enjoy these as much as we did! Let me know what you think, and feel free to subscribe to e-mail updates on new blog posts below!