Thursday: Apple-Cheddar Turkey Burgers with Yummy Cranberry-Strawberry-Spinach Salad

This one I found in a Rachael Ray magazine years ago, and it has been a family favorite every since. The cranberry flavor really compliments the apple-cheddar combo. Unfortunately, cranberry sauce is something that is usually seasonal. So, if you like this meal, get a bunch of cans that will last you for the rest of the year. Or you can always replace it with ketchup!

Recipe

2 lbs ground turkey breast
4 green onions finely chopped
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 TB grill seasoning
1 tsp poultry seasoning
2 TB olive-oil
1 granny-smith apple, halved, cored and sliced into 12 slices
8 slices extra-sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup whole-berry cranberry sauce
2 TB grainy mustard
4 english muffins, split and toasted
8 leaves of red or green leaf lettuce

1. Mix the turkey, green onions, parsley and seasonings together in a bowl. Form them into patties to fit the english muffins, pressing your thumb into center of each to prevent it from bulging. In a different bowl, mix together cranberry sauce and mustard, set aside.

2. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties and cook for 5 minutes on each side. Top with 1 apple slice and 1-2 cheese slices, tent pan with foil and cook until cheese melts about 1-2 minutes.

3. Slather cranberry mixture on to muffin tops. Pile 1-2 lettuce leaves on each muffin bottom, top with the patties. Enjoy!

Yummy Cranberry-Strawberry-Spinach Salad

Spinach leaves
Strawberries, sliced
sliced almonds or pine nuts
dried cranberries
TJ's Cranberry-Gorgonzola Dressing or a Raspberry Vinaigrette
goat cheese, crumbled (optional)

1. Mix all the ingredients together in your favorite salad bowl. Top with dressing when ready to serve.

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Who likes to change it up?

~Instead of cranberry sauce use ketchup on top and mustard on bottom half.
~Replace english muffins with whole grain hamburger buns or your favorite fresh bread.
~Try spinach instead of lettuce.
~Add ground chicken instead of turkey for the burger. ~For the salad try clementine, orange or tangerine pieces instead of strawberries.
~Use feta cheese instead of goat cheese for the salad.


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Does it matter what kind of ground Turkey I buy?

Honestly, I didn't even know there were different kinds of ground turkey. I thought it was all the same, until I started reading labels. If it's not labeled ground turkey breast, than usually it has skin and dark meat in it which causes it to have a high fat content, sometimes higher than lean ground beef! So, bottom line? Read those labels!