Grilled Turkey Burgers

Last weekend, despite the not-so spring-like weather, we brought out the grill! And I am glad that we did because I made these delicious turkey burgers. I stopped eating beef almost four years ago now and I don’t even miss it. Turkey burgers can end up being really dry, but by adding yogurt and mustard, they can turn out moist. Here is my version of the turkey burger. Bring out that grill this weekend and enjoy these awesome burgers. Serve with a pickle and a Spotted Cow!

Ingredients:

1 ½ pounds ground turkey

2 tbsp plain low fat yogurt

2 tsp worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp grainy mustard

1 tsp Kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

4 hamburger buns (toasted)

Olive oil

Instructions:

Put some olive oil on a paper towel and rub it onto the grates on the grill to prevent sticking.

Preheat grill to medium-high.

In a large bowl place the turkey, the yogurt, worcestershire sauce, mustard, salt, and pepper.

Mix together with your hands. Since these burgers are wetter than beef burgers, put some oil on your hands before you start mixing.

Divide the mixture evenly into 4 sections and form meatballs and then flatten them out. Don’t flatten them too much, but don’t make them too thick since they need to be cooked all the way through.

Grill on one side for 6 minutes and then flip and grill for another 8-10 minutes.

For Serving:

Avocado (Squeese some lemon juice on it to prevent browning)

Lettuce (I used Bibb)

Tomato with salt and pepper sprinkled on it

Aioli

Aioli Recipe – In a small bowl, whisk 3 tbsp good mayo (I used Hellman’s with olive oil), 1 minced garlic clove, ¼ tsp Kosher salt, and a few light squeezes from ½ a lemon. Slowly add and whisk about 3 tbsp of olive oil. Spread on the top burger bun. I love this stuff!

These make good leftovers too. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Food Network Kitchens: How to Boil Water

Triple Chocolate Guinness Brownies & a Shamrock Shake

Since I wont be going out drinking this year at a local Irish pub wearing green beads, I thought that I could still have a little St. Patrick's Day fun with desserts! With all the blogs that I follow on Facebook, I happened to come across these two desserts that I thought would be perfect to celebrate St. Patty's Day. Warm triple chocolate Guinness brownies paired with a homemade Shamrock shake sounds perfect to me! By no means are these two recipes low fat, but every now and then it is ok to indulge, especially if it's homemade goodness.

   I found the recipe for Guinness brownies here. I don't even like Guinness, but having it mixed in with three different kinds of chocolate, I knew it would be good. And of course it was! I don't think things get any better than a freshly baked brownie. They also make your kitchen smell delicious! The only things that I changed with this recipe was that I used all-purpose flour and a 10 oz bag of dark chocolate and about 3/4 cup of the milk chocolate. I also melted the butter and chocolate in the microwave. I would stir the mixture every 30 seconds two times and then put it back in the the microwave for about 10 more seconds. Make sure you watch it so it doesn't burn and make sure you slowly add your chocolate mixture into the egg mixture or you could end up with scrambled eggs!

   I have never had a Shamrock shake from McDonald's, but I am sure they are great. Here is the recipe for a version that you can make at home with only a few ingredients. Very easy! If you want it a little thicker add more ice cream. I used Breyer's "half the fat" vanilla ice cream and 1% milk. I topped it with whipped cream and some green sprinkles. To make whipped cream you use an electric mixer to beat 1 cup heavy cream, 1 tablespoon sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. It will take a few minutes.

Enjoy & Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Tomato & Goat Cheese Tarts - a little slice of heaven!

Goat Cheese - some people have tried it and some have not. Some people like it and some do not. I really enjoy it especially when it is baked between puff pastry and a large slice of tomato! Yup, you heard that right....Tomato & Goat Cheese Tart is what I'm talking about today.

This is Ina Garten's recipe, which you can find here, but I changed it up a bit. I didn't really change it, I just omitted a few ingredients to simplify it a bit. You can make this recipe as an appetizer, but I actually find eating two of them as a satisfying meal. Goat cheese has a smooth texture and tart flavor, so when you pair that with flaky puff pastry and a juicy tomato - the end result is amazing! So good!

Tomato & Goat Cheese Tart 

Makes 4

Ingredients:

1 Package of puff pastry (I like Pepperidge Farm) - DEFROSTED (You find it in the freezer section, so make sure you read the instructions on the back about defrosting)

3 TBSP Olive Oil

1 TSP Minced Garlic (I like prepared minced garlic in the jar, but you can also mince about 3 cloves)

4 oz. Garlic & Herb Goat Cheese (Comes in a log)

1 large Tomato cut into 4 slices

Parmesan Cheese (Grated)

Salt & Pepper (I prefer Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Unfold a sheet of puff pastry on a cutting board (or a lightly floured surface) and roll it lightly to an 11 by 11-inch square. It does not have to be perfect. Using a 6-inch wide bowl or other round object as a guide, cut 2 circles from the sheet of puff pastry. Repeat with the second pastry sheet to make 4 circles in all. Place the pastry circles on 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper. You can throw away the pastry scraps or form them into bread stick shapes and bake those too. Puff pastry is too good to throw away! 

Using a sharp knife, score a 1/4-inch-wide border around each pastry circle. Prick the pastry inside the scored lines with the tines of a fork.

Mix 3 TBSP olive oil with the minced garlic and spread that evenly on top of the pastry circle, staying inside the scored lines. I use a pastry brush to do this, but the back of a spoon would work too.

Next, crumble the goat cheese evenly among the pastry circles. Again staying within the scored lines.

Put one slice of tomato on top, then sprinkle some parmesan cheese, and top with salt and pepper.

Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until the puff pastry is brown. You may need to bake the bottom sheet longer if it didn't brown as well. 

Serve warm or at room temperature. I like them best at room temperature. Enjoy!

Tomato & Goat Cheese Tart