Italian Turkey Bistro Burger

Please read more.....please select the "Read more button" for my hot summer night comfort food turkey burger!

You have had a busy, busy day, and you are just exhausted.  Plum tuckered out!  You have ground turkey in the refrigerator, and a few other fresh herbs and items on hand; so what do you do?  I thought I wanted to make Italian meatballs and serve with a tomato-based sauce and ravioli, but, it was a hot summer day and I was not relishing a pasta facial.  I thought I wanted to make turkey tacos, but again,  I did not want to work over the hot stove.  I just simply could not make up  my mind!  A mentor of mine suggested stroganoff, which would have been great, but I did not have all of the ingredients in my pantry. So.......

What is my all-time favorite go-to meal when I am in doubt? 

Yes, BURGERS!!!

Here, just for the fun of it, is my Italian Turkey Bistro Burger. And so I would not have to work over the hot stove top, I decided to bake them on a baking sheet with a rack on it.  It was great to let the oven do the hardest work.  Here's what I did:

My starting line-up:
2 eggs for the ground turkey + 1 egg to fry for each burger
1 pound ground turkey  (but chicken or a combination would be great!)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons Smoked Paprika
1/2 palm full of dried oregano, crushed in your hands
1 teaspoon Smoked Pasilla chili powder or Chiptotle powder
1 Fresno Chili, ribbed, seeded and finely chopped
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon Balsamic Vinegar
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 yellow or red onion, finely chopped
salt and pepper
Half a palm full of fresh Italian flat-leafed parsley, finely chopped
Your favorite buns or toast
10 fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons fresh grated parmigiano cheese
1 cup grated or sliced mozzarella cheese
drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

There is no trick to this. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Prep the ingredients as I have mentioned above, except the bread, and combine them in a large bowl with the ground turkey.  Form them in to four to six patties, and indent the center so they do not puff up.

Place foil on the bottom of your baking sheet with the wire rack over it, spray the rack with non-stick spray, place the burgers on to the rack and place in the oven.  Bake for about thirty-five minutes, turning gently at the eighteen minute mark. Add the grated parmigiano cheese to each burger at the eighteen minute mark.  Remove from the oven, let the burgers rest, and place the buns or bread into the oven and broil.  Remove them to a safe plate.

Meanwhile, fry the egg, over easy or over hard, whatever you like.  I like mine, for burgers, over hard.  I heated the pan with garlic infused extra virgin olive oil, cracked the egg in it, reduced the heat to low, covered it, and that was how I avoided working over hot stove top for this meal.  I made four burgers, but only ate on that evening, so I only fried one egg.  You would want to crack 4-6 eggs in a larger skillet.

Add whatever condiments you wish to the buns or bread.  Add the mozzarella cheese to each bun top or bottom, add the washed and patted-dry fresh basil leaves to the top bun, and put your burgers together.  Enjoy the fragrant flavors of Italy in a burger!  This was one of those incredible comfort food burgers, and not too bad for you!  The tasty fresh basil from my garden was fragrant and amazing.  This one's a keeper!

Enjoy!