These Turkey Pesto Burgers are lean but incredibly moist and tasty thanks to pesto. With sun dried tomatoes and a little grated Parmesan cheese, the mild turkey has plenty of flavor. The fastest and easiest way to cook the burgers is on the stove top. I don't bother to turn the burgers. Instead, the burgers get a tasty topping of sliced tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. The burgers are inexpensive to make and perfect for a casual company dinner. You can serve the burgers plain or put them in a bun. My preference is plain, topped with a few basil leaves. In lieu of a bun, I serve the burgers with crispy garlic bread. Enjoy!
Turkey Pesto Burgers -- Makes 6
16 ounces (or so) of ground turkey
1/4 - 1/3 cup of pesto (homemade or store bought is fine)
1 1/2 -2 cups of slightly stale bread, torn into small pieces (about 2 large pieces of bread)
1/2 cup of milk
1/2 cup of plain, fat-free or low-fat yogurt
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
3 - 4 tablespoons of chopped sun dried tomatoes
2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon of canola or olive oil
6 thick slices of tomato
6 thick slices of mozzarella cheese (preferably fresh mozzarella)
Basil leaves
In a large bowl mix together well the ground turkey, pesto, bread, milk, yogurt, egg, salt, pepper, sun dried tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese. If you can, refrigerate the mixture to let the flavors blend (if you can't don't worry about it). I usually mix up the ingredients for the burgers early in the day and let them sit in the refrigerator until dinner time. When you're ready to cook, place a non-stick skillet over medium heat and add the oil, swirling it around a little. Form six roughly equal patties and put them in the skillet. Let the patties cook a few minutes, then cover the skillet, turning down the heat a little if the patties seem to be browning too fast on the bottoms. Let the burgers cook for 10-15 minutes or until an instant read thermometer registers at least 165 degrees. Put a slice of tomato on top of each burger, then top each tomato piece with a slice of mozzarella. Recover the pan until the mozzarella melts. Top each burger with a few basil leaves.
Comments