FAMILY FAVORITES / Turkey Burgers

I would have to say that we have turkey burgers pretty much every week at our house. they’re super easy to prepare ahead, if I’ve got extra time i can make them “gourmet burgers” (add caramelized onion, sautéed mushroom, avocado, fresh tomato, pineapple, etc.) and they’re a satisfying meal for both adults and children!

-approximately 1½ pounds of ground turkey, ground chicken (or even ground beef) – this amount feeds a family of 5

-your favorite cheese, sliced

-hamburger buns – 1 per burger!

-additional ingredients: avocado slices, caramelized onion **, sautéed mushroom, pineapple slices, ketchup, mustard, bar-b-que sauce, mayo, anything your family likes to pile on their burgers.

1) lightly spray broiling pan with cooking oil.

2) form meat into patties – one for each member of your family. place on lightly oiled broiling pan. (can be prepared to this point the morning of or the night before!)

3) preheat broiler for at least 5 minutes.

4) broil patties on first side for 5 minutes.

5) flip patties over, broil on other side for 5 additional minutes. at this point, check for doneness, which, of course, will vary depending on ovens, thickness of patties, type of meat. you’ll have to judge. may need to flip over and repeat steps 4 and 5.

6) just when patties are done, place slices of cheese over patties and return under broiler for just a minute or two until cheese is bubbly and golden.

7) serve on to heated buns and pile high with delicious toppings! (the more veggies, the better!)

** note: to caramelize onions, i just heat up my cast iron skillet quite hot, add about 1-2 Tablespoons canola oil, and lay sliced onions on the skillet. don’t stir them for at least 5 minutes. flip over, and again, don’t stir them for 5 more minutes. you want them to get really brown and toasty. the sugars from the onion will cook and “caramelize” the onion. no additional ingredients are necessary. keep cooking until they reach your desired degree of caramelization. (is that a word?)