Greek Turkey Burgers

Today I was craving a burger, but with a kick.  I used bits and pieces from a few different recipes and came up with a really great end result.  Highly recommend!  Serve with some fries or boiled or bbq'd corn on the cob and you've got a flavor packed meal.

1/2 c. greek yogurt

1/2 english cucumber, peeled, seeded, and grated

2 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 c. chopped mint

1.5 lbs ground turkey (or lamb)

2/3 c. crumbled feta cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

red onion, sliced in to rings

tomato, sliced (optional... I'm not a tomato fan)

Mix yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice, 1 clove garlic, 2 Tbsp mint, with dash of salt and pepper in bowl and set aside.

Mix turkey, cheese, 1 clove garlic, remaining mint, salt, pepper in another bowl.  Divide in to four patties.

Grill patties until done and transfer on to hamburger buns.  Top burgers with sauce and onion and/or tomato slices.

*Make Ahead - you can make the sauce and patties the night before serving.  I think the sauce gets more flavorful the longer it sits.  Just stir it well before serving.

Sloppy Joe's

Who doesn't love a good Sloppy Joe sandwich!?  I had come across a Sloppy Joe recipe by Rachel Ray and wanted to give it a try.  I'm not a big fan of her or her crazy slang ("E.V.O.O.", etc), the positive reviews for this recipe spoke volumes.  Plus, it has a very short cooking time and would make for a quick dinner!

Once you've got all the veggies cut up, you basically saute them with the browned meat, add the tomato sauce and paste and you're good to go!  Next time I wouldn't add quite as much brown sugar.  I also added 2-3 Tbsp of the steak seasoning (it needed more tang), and used 3 Tbsp tomato paste.

We all loved the finished product and I definitely plan to make again.

Rachel Ray's Super Sloppy Joes:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 pounds ground beef sirloin
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 tsp to 1 Tbsp steak seasoning blend, such as McCormick brand Montreal Seasoning
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
1Tbsp red wine vinegar
1Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 c. tomato sauce
2 Tbsps tomato paste
4 crusty rolls, split, toasted, and lightly buttered

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil and meat to the pan. Spread the meat around the pan and begin to break it up. Combine brown sugar and steak seasoning. Add sugar and spice mixture to the skillet and combine. When the meat has browned, add onion and red peppers to the skillet. Reduce heat to medium and cook onions, peppers, red wine vinegar and Worcestershire sauce with meat for 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce and paste to pan. Stir to combine. Reduce heat to simmer and cook Sloppy Joe mixture 5 minutes longer. Using a large spoon or ice cream scoop, pile sloppy meat onto toasted, buttered bun bottoms and cover with bun tops.

Turkey Burgers with Carmelized Onions

Tonight I was craving turkey burgers with carmelized onions.  Similar to the ones featured on burgers at Geraldine's Counter.  Sweet with a slight tang.

And with a little guess and by gosh I made carmelized onions so tasty that neither Tony or I put any condiments on our burgers.  Heaven.

Jodi's Carmelized Onions, enough for 2 burgers

1 large red onion, sliced in rounds

1 Tbsp unsalted butter

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1-2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

dried oregano, dried thyme, kosher salt, fresh ground pepper

Melt butter with olive oil in pan over medium heat.  Add onion and cover. Let the onions sweat for a good 5-10 minutes.  Keep an eye on 'em though... if they start to brown too quickly, turn down the heat.

Uncover onions and sprinkle a scant amount of oregano and thyme and keep cooking, tossing frequently. After a few more minutes add 1-2Tbsp good quality balsamic vinegar to the pan and stir.  Use this added liquid as a chance to scrape up any bits of onion that have cooked to the pan.  Add kosher salt and a tad of ground pepper and continue to cook/carmelize for another 15-20 minutes.  (Taste one of the onion pieces after about 20 minutes of total cooking to see if you need more salt - you want these bad boys to have flavor!)

Serve hot, and place directly on your burger patty.

My only regret with this recipe?  Not using two onions as I could have slathered twice as much on my burger!

Jodi's Secret Turkey Burgers, serves 2 adults and 1 kiddo

1 package ground turkey (usually they're around 20 oz or so)

diced red onion - 2-5Tbsp depending on your love for onions

1 1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp each: dried oregano and dried thyme

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

Breadcrumbs - I only occasionally use these if I feel like the meat isn't holding up.  I'll add about 1/4-1/3 cup.

Mix all above ingredients together and form in to two large patties and one kid sized patty.  Cook on the grill and top with swiss cheese in the final minutes of BBQ'n.  (I personally prefer a nice white cheddar, like Ford Farm's Coastal Cheddar.  The Coastal has a great tang and a crunch to it! - you can usually find at Costco)

Blackberry Pie

Tonight we had our friends Cam, Anne and baby Savi and Nick, Steph and little Matt who just turned 1 year old over for dinner. It was so much fun that I forgot to take a picture of the kiddos! Blake had fun sharing his toys with Matthew, and Savi enjoyed lounging in her parents' laps. Steph and Anne both brought amazing dishes that we paired with my all time favorite turkey burger recipe. To finish off the meal we enjoyed fresh made blackberry pie with the berries from the cabin and vanilla ice cream. Yum!

Now here is where I become my grandma.  I don't really have a recipe for the pie, I just learned the end flavor I want to create by watchin her make this pie with freshly picked blackberries from the cabin.  So here are the basics, but add more/less depending on taste...

Blackberry Pie

4 c. fresh blackberries

1-3 Tbsp flour (depends on how juicy they are - more juice, more flour)
1 c. sugar (more or less depending on how sweet/ripe the berries are)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (you can also add a bit of zest for a citrusy hint)
1 Tbsp butter
2 discs of rolled pie dough

Line pie pan with one rolled pie dough. Gently combine blackberries, flour, sugar and lemon juice and pour into pie shell.  Top with chunks of butter and cover with second pie dough.  Cut little steam vents on top pie crust. Bake in 425 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 and back for another 30 or so minutes.  Basically, you want the top crust nice and browned.