Turkey Burgers with a twist
Mar 29, 2010 Sandwiches
Today I did something completely uncharacteristic. I woke up at 6:00 so I could have time to work out, make breakfast, get ready, and write a blog post. I think one of the biggest struggles in my life is that I want to be a morning person, but I am through and through a night owl. It has always been really hard for me to fall asleep and really hard for me to wake up. No matter what time I go to bed, I rarely wake up feeling ready to get up. It’s terrible.
I have motivation though for waking up early now. I’m working on writing a book, and I’ve noticed ever since I started planning it out that I haven’t had a lot of time to do other things. I want to sit and write on this blog or do laundry or spend time with Brian, but the book is taking up a lot of my time. I think having an extra 2 hours in the morning might help me get a little more done. I also want to tone my arms and lose about 5 pounds before my friend Melissa’s wedding in June, so working out is an important part of that. I was pleasantly surprised this morning when I started my Wii Fit (for the first time in several months) to discover that since I switched jobs I’ve lost 9.5 pounds. I had no idea though, so it really doesn’t make that big of a difference, You would think I would notice 9.5 pounds leaving, but I didn’t at all.
Maybe it has something to do with the fact that we’ve been eating really healthy lately. Last week, for example, we made Turkey Burgers instead of regular hamburgers, and I wanted to share the recipe with you. It’s based on Rachel Ray’s recipe for Cranberry Bog Turkey Burgers, and I thought they were delicious. If you want a twist on a turkey burger, this is a good recipe.
Cranberry Turkey Burgers
Ingredients:
Makes 4 Burgers
- 1 1/3 pounds ground turkey breast
- 1/3 cup McIntosh apple, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup white onion, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup celery from heart of the stalk, finely chopped
- 1 rounded teaspoon poultry seasoning
- Salt and pepper
- Vegetable Oil for drizzling
- 4 slices provolone cheese
- 4 whole wheat hamburger buns
- 1/2 cup cranberry sauce
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise or reduced fat mayonnaise
- 8 leaves Bibb lettuce, cleaned
Directions
Combine turkey, apple, onion, celery, poultry seasoning, salt, and pepper in a bowl and form into 4 large patties. Preheat a large skillet or a grill pan to medium high heat. Drizzle skillet or brush grill with vegetable oil and cook patties 5 to 6 minutes on each side. When the burgers are almost done, place a slice of provolone cheese on top of each patty and heat until melted, about 1 minute. Toast open hamburger buns. Mix together cranberry sauce and mayonnaise. Spread bun halves with cran-mayonnaise and pile in burgers and Bibb lettuce.
Amazing Grilled Pizza
Pizza has been a huge thing in my life. I think if I had to pick one thing I’ve eaten more than anything else in my life, it would probably be pizza. But not just any pizza… amazing, healthy, perfect pizza. My parents have been extremely into pizza making for as long as I can remember, and the evolution of their pizza dough and toppings have changed a lot, but their passion for pizza has never changed. They love making it, and everyone who knows them loves eating it. It’s such a fun thing to make for a group. My dad will stand in his kitchen at the center island while everyone sits at the table talking, and he will go around the room and make sure everyone gets a turn to pick toppings for a pizza. He will stand there and make pizza after pizza until everyone is full, and then he’ll make one more to save and eat as leftovers the next day. I think my dad, more than anyone else in the world, loves pizza. Because of him I’ve grown up loving it too.
They make these pizza doughs called Skillet Pizza Crusts that are amazing. The recipe that I’ve included for the dough is the same recipe they use, but instead of putting on the grill like I talk about here, they eat one side of each dough in a skillet until it’s browned, and then they take it off and top it with their favorite toppings then cook it in the oven. It’s great because you can make the dough hours or days beforehand, and when it’s time to make pizza you can have a stack of pre-made 12-inch doughs sitting on a plate waiting to be topped. You don’t have to worry about rolling out the dough in front of your guests. Simply pick up a round flat crust and start topping! It’s perfect for a group.
I decided to make this dough last week and Brian suggested that we grill them. I wasn’t really sure how that would work since this dough is pretty thin, but it didn’t fall through the grill cracks or anything, it just worked magically! I loved it. I thought it tasted even better than the crust does pre-cooked in a skillet, but sometimes you can’t beat the convenience of pre-made dough.
So, I hope you try this pizza if you like pizza, because it’s really amazing.
Grilled Pizza
Pizza Dough
- 2 tablespoons Active Dry Yeast
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 3/4 cup warm water
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Directions
Mix yeast, sugar, and water together in a small bowl and let stand for about 8 minutes.
Mix the flour and salt in a food processor. Add the yeast mixture and the additional water and olive oil to the flour mixture. Mix in food processor until ball forms. Place dough in a glass bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let rise at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
Divide the dough into 6 equal portions and roll out thinly.
Now you can either use them for grilling, or you can lightly brown one side of each dough in a large skillet over medium heat.
You can immediately top them with sauce and toppings and bake them in the oven at 400 degrees for about 8 minutes, or you can save the dough wrapped air-tight in the refrigerator for about a week. OR… you can make grilled pizza:
Grilled Pizza
Makes 6 12-inch pizzas
- 6 Pizza dough rounds thinly rolled out (recipe above)
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- One 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons dried basil leaves
- Shredded Mozzerella Cheese- as much as you want. I prefer only about 1/4 cup on each pizza. It goes a long way.
- 4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan Reggiano
- Assorted Toppings. I suggested sun-dried tomatoes, pepperoncini peppers, cooked Italian sausage, and pepperoni, but certainly any of your favorite pizza toppings will work.
Directions
Mix the can of crushed tomatoes with the basil leaves. This is a simple sauce that tastes great with these pizzas.
Heat up your grill. Once it’s ready to go, Lightly brush one side of a rolled-out pizza dough with olive oil. Place the dough olive oil side down on your grill. Immediately brush the exposed side with olive oil, then close the lid for about 2 minutes.
Check the underside of the dough, and when it just begins to brown, flip it over on the grill.
Immediately place sauce, toppings, mozzerella, and parmesan reggiano on the dough and close the lid.
Cook for about 4 minutes or until cheese is melted and the underside of the crust is lightly browned. Remove the pizza from the grill, cut, and enjoy!
Tags: grilled pizza, grilled pizza recipe, healthy pizza, pizza crust, pizza dough, pizza dough recipe, pizza recipe, pizza sauce, pizza sauce recipe, skillet pizza
