Basil Turkey Burgers

As I mentioned before, ground turkey was an incredibly good deal, so we stocked up. Now we've got five pounds of turkey in the freezer and no clue what to do with it.

One lovely solution is to make a turkey burger. There are about a thousand different varieties - I know, because I looked at most of them. Each recipe sounds incredibly delicious, but I kept running into the same problem - I was missing one essential ingredient.

I finally found a recipe for Basil Turkey Burgers. I've got fresh basil in the garden, so I thought, "hey, why not?"

BASIL TURKEY BURGERS

Photo courtesy of Aric.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup fat-free mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil, divided
• 1/4 cup fat-free milk
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon dry bread crumbs
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 3/4 pound lean ground turkey
• 4 hamburger buns, split
• 4 lettuce leaves
• 1 large tomato, sliced

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise and 1 tablespoon basil. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
   
2. Coat grill rack with nonstick cooking spray before starting the grill.
   
3. In a bowl, combine the milk, onion, bread crumbs, salt, pepper and remaining basil. Crumble turkey over mixture and mix well. Shape into four patties.
4. Grill, covered, over indirect medium heat for 5-6 minutes on each side or until meat is no longer pink and a thermometer reads 165 degrees F. Serve on buns with lettuce, tomato and basil mayonnaise.

WHAT I DID DIFFERENTLY
1) I didn't include the mayo, because the mayo we have is...well...let's just say that we don't know how old it is.
2) I didn't include the tomato because I hate raw tomato.
3) Instead of milk (which we're also unsure of the age), we used an egg. Apparently eggs are good substitutes when you need a "binder." A word of caution - one egg is too much. Try half an egg.
4) I don't have plain breadcrumbs, but I do have Italian seasoned breadcrumbs. So tasty!
5) We cooked this on a Foreman grill. I believe it cooked for about 6 minutes, but don't quote me on it - Aric is the grill master.


The burgers were deliciously moist. The basil is adds a subtle sweetness, but is quite bold at the same time. I used a red onion, which gave the burgers a bit of a kick, but not too much.

I also picked some lettuce leaves from the garden, and the lettuce is a little bitter. It was a beautiful contrast to the sweetness of the burger.

When we make these again (which I know we will), I don't know if I'll try for the basil mayo. It was all so tasty by itself, I don't really think it needs another level of flavor.