Perfect Turkey Burgers

I am a big fan of The Food Network Magazine.  It has great tips and ideas, along with lots of interesting recipes.  The June issue was called the grilling issue.  One of the articles was called Pick a Patty.  It featured 5 different burgers, beef, salmon, pork, veggie, and turkey.  They all looked delicious, but I went with the Perfect Turkey Burger.  I figured it was good to try for a leaner, healthier version of a burger, so I gave it a shot. 

You will need:

1 large portabella mushroom (I used a medium size)

1 tablespoon of chopped shallot

3 tablespoons lightly packed fresh parsley

1 and 1/4 pounds of lean ground turkey (I used a little less than a pound)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce

Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper

8 thin slices of manchego or white cheddar cheese (I used 3 slices of cheddar)

4 English muffins, split (I used three {do you see where this is going?} and I used the larger sandwich size version.

Dijon mustard and mayonnaise (I mixed them together, 2:1 mayo to mustard)

Sliced avocado for topping (I omitted this)

Scrape out the grills from underneath the portabella mushroom.  Then coarsely chop that and the shallot.

Put those items, along with the parsley, in the food processor.  If you don't have one, just really finely chop all of it together.

Pulse until they are finely chopped.

Add the mixture to the turkey along with the EVOO, Worcestershire, salt and pepper.

Mix gently until combined.  Do not over mix.  The heat from your hands and the friction of mixing can break down the small amount of fat that the turkey contains.

Divide into four even sized balls.  I used less meat, so I divided into three.

Press into 1 inch thick patties.  Cover and refrigerate until they are firm.  Any where from 30 minutes to a couple of hours.

Grill 8-10 minutes on the first side and then turn over and grill 6 or 7 more minutes.

Add the cheese and cover the grill until the cheese melts.

Let them rest while you toast the English muffins.

We served ours with our now favorite potato salad.  And as Paula Deen from the Food Network always says, don't forget your greens. :)

A bientot!  See you soon.