Turkey Burger Sliders

Trying out some new recipes from a new cookbook (a gift from my in-laws, Thanks!) This is the first time I've ever bothered making sliders instead of full sized burgers but It's always nice to try something different. Of course you could just make these into 4 full sized quarter pound patties if you want. A nice tasty, and healthier, alternative to cheeseburgers. The Wife and I enjoyed them a lot with a side of Italian Oven Fries.

This recipe is adapted from The Chew Cookbook from the show on ABC. Click here to see/watch the recipe http://beta.abc.go.com/shows/the-chew/recipes/Turkey-Sliders-Clinton-Kelly. In my adaptation I dropped the egg white, added some cheese for extra flavor, reduced the onion and toasted the buns and cooked the patties in BUTTER!!! 

Makes 8 Sliders or 4 Quarter Pounders

Ingredients:

1 Lb       Ground Turkey
1/2        Yellow Onion, Grated (about 1/2 Cup)
2 Tbs      Dijon Mustard
1            Egg Yolk
1/2 Cup  Panko Bread Crumbs
1/4 Cup  Romano Cheese, Grated (or Parmesan, Asiago or another hard, dry cheese)
1 tsp      Cumin
1/2 tsp   Salt  
1/4 tsp   Pepper 

8 Potato Buns, Slider Buns, Dinner Rolls etc

Directions:

• In a medium mixing bowl lightly beat the Yolk then add the Turkey, Mustard, Cumin, Romano, Onion, Salt & Pepper. 
• Add some of the Bread Crumbs and begin to mix until combined. Add more bread crumbs as necessary for the mixture to be cohesive. Don't over mix!
• While you let the mixture sit melt some Butter on medium heat in a skillet and toast your Buns. Once toasted remove buns and wipe out the skillet with paper towels.

Mmm... Toasty Buns!

• Heat oil on medium heat in the skillet while you shape the mixture into 8 equal patties. Once the oil is hot add a bit of butter to the skillet and swirl the oil and butter together. Put the patties in the pan and leave them alone for 4 minutes. Season the top with extra salt & pepper. Then, turn them over and give them (at least) 4 minutes on the other side. 
• Note: It's very important that the turkey gets fully cooked to 165 F. Use a meat thermometer or cut into one of the sliders. There should be NO pink and the juices should be clear. Don't worry about over cooking them, the grated onion and breadcrumbs will make sure they stay juicy. 

Before

After

• Spread the buns with Mayo, Ketchup and Dijon and top with tomato and lettuce. You may need to toothpick the sliders together.

Oven Fries Recipe Coming Soon!

YUM!

Breakfast Burritos for the Freezer

I LOVE breakfast burritos. I also love to spend as little time as possible on breakfast on a workday. So I'm making Sunday's breakfast and breakfast for the whole week in one fell swoop.

I got my inspiration from Kim's blog Stirring the Pot here: http://mykentuckyhome-kim.blogspot.com/2012/09/lets-talk-freezer-meals-burritos.html 
and also Here:http://mykentuckyhome-kim.blogspot.com/2012/08/spicy-chorizo-zucchini-and-egg.html 
She's got lots of good stuff posted, check her out.

I'm cooking up Chorizo, Zucchini, Onion and Potato, along with a big batch of Scrambled Eggs and topping them off with Cheddar, Monterey Jack and Manchego cheese and Chipotle Tobasco sauce.

Looks good. Smells even better. 

Fill em

Wrap em, stack em

This is the first time I've thrown a Zucchini in the mix and it was fantastic! They were so good we were lucky to get 5 (out of 9) into the freezer for later! Looking forward to breakfast this week. I'm also looking forward to trying this filling in a taco as well. 

Freeze em

Here's a rough recipe. Exact measurements aren't essential:

1 Small Zucchini (Diced)

1 Small Onion (Diced)

2 Small Potatoes (Diced)

1/2 - 3/4 Lb Chorizo

• Cook the Chorizo on med-high first, try to get some browning on it, once cooked through add the veggies. Lower heat and cover. Let the veggies soften and the flavors meld. Pour mix into a bowl, scrap out the pan and melt butter and scramble the eggs. 

9 Eggs

1 Big Splash Milk/Half and Half/Cream

1-2 Tbs Butter

Salt & Pepper

• You know how to scramble eggs, right?

What do you think of this filling? What do you put in your breakfast burritos? Make it? Like it? Let me know in the comments! 

Albondigas

Mexican Meatballs in a Chipotle Tomato Sauce over Rice. It's a little bit like Mexican Spaghetti and Meatballs. If you like Albondigas Soup you'll like this spicier, tomato-ier cousin. We make it a lot, it's one of our favorites. I picked this dish up from an episode of Everyday Food on PBS a few years back and have tweaked it over time.

Meatballs:

1 Medium     Zucchini (Grated, Liquid squeezed out)

1 Medium     Yellow Onion (Grated, Liquid Squeezed out)

1/2 tsp         Cumin

1/4 tsp         Coriander

1/4 cup        Bread Crumbs (plain)

1                 Egg

1-1 1/2 Lbs  Ground Pork

Salt & Pepper

• First, grate a Zucchini and an Onion on the big holes of a cheese grater. Using a clean towel, cheese cloth, or paper towels squeeze out as much liquid as you can. 
• Lightly beat an egg in a mixing bowl. Add pork, zucchini, onion, bread crumbs and all the seasonings and combine until mixed. 
• Form mixture into 16 equally sized meatballs. Place meatballs on a baking sheet as you go.
• Put the meat balls into the freezer for 15 minutes. This will help keep them from falling apart and will promote browning in the pan.

Once they're in the freezer it time to make the sauce. It's super simple.

Sauce: 

1 28oz Can   Whole Peeled Tomatoes 

1-2              Chipotle Peppers OR 1-2 Tbs  Chipotle Tabasco Sauce 

Salt & Pepper

Either of these work well. The peppers give more heat, the tabasco gives more flavor. 

• Add tomatoes (just the whole tomatoes, not the juice they're packed in) and the chipotle to a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Season with Salt & Pepper

 Start heating a small amount of oil in a large skillet on Med-High. After the 15 minutes remove the meatballs from the freezer and cook them until they are well browned all over. Pour the sauce over the meatballs and bring to a simmer. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and let simmer 5 more minutes. 

After simmering

Serve over White Rice and top with Cilantro. (Don't skip the cilantro!) 

Rojo, Blanco y Verde

Hecho en mi cocina!
Also check out my Enchiladas Verdes and Crunchy Beef Tacos!