Grilled Greek Turkey Burgers

This past weekend I was in Long Island visiting some family. After a long weekend of eating pizza, bagels and Chinese food, I wanted something hearty, healthy and fresh. I had some feta and some ground turkey, so I decided to make some Greek style turkey burgers with a fresh greek yogurt, feta, and cucumber salad.

These burgers hit the spot and are super healthy. I mixed the ground turkey with spinach, feta, shallots, dill, lemon zest and seasoning. 

Here's what you'll need for the burgers:

• 1 lb. Ground turkey (or chicken)
• 1/4 Cup Frozen spinach (completely cooked and drained of any liquid)
• 1/2 Cup Feta
• 1 Shallot (or red onion)
• 1/2 tsp Lemon zest 
• 1 tsp Fresh Dill chopped up
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder
• Black Pepper 
• 1 tsp Oregano
• Drizzle of Olive Oil

Chop up your shallot, make sure your spinach is cooked. If you don't have a zester, don't worry. You can lightly peel the lemon and mince it up.zzle some olive oil over the top. Put it all in a a bowl,  drizzle some olive oil over the topnd use your hands to mix it all up together. 

Next, take the mixture and roll them into big balls like a meatball. You'll flatten them out like a burger patty right before we grill it. Put the patties into the fridge and let them chill.

As the burger patties chill, it's time to make the cucumber salad. 

For the cucumber salad, you'll need the following:

• Cucumbers *
• 1 shallot
• Lemon juice
• Fresh Dill
• 1 1/2 cups of yogurt
• Drizzle of Olive Oil
• Salt & Pepper

*I love the crunchiness of English Cucumbers, but feel free to use what ever you have on hand.

Slice up your cucumbers and place them in a bowl. 

Now mix in all of the ingredients together. Throw the bowl into the fridge.

Now that the burger patties have chilled, and the cucumbers are in the fridge, it's time to start the grill. You can use the stove top to fry up the burgers, but since it's summer and the grill is the best way to cook meat (in my humble opinion), I'll be cooking outside. 

Take the chilled balls and squish them in to flat patties then throw them on the grill. Be sure to oil up the grill because the turkey meat will stick to the grates. 

Unlike beef, turkey meat needs to be cooked through and will need a longer cooking time. I let these puppies cook for about 5 minutes per side. You can test the doneness of the burger by pressing down on it. If it feels squishy (like the fatty part of the palm of your hand) then let it cook some more. You want it to be firm which will indicate that it's done.

Now, bring the burgers inside, plate them with some warmed pita bread and a generous scoop of the cucumber salad. 

YUUUMMMMMM!!!!!

Enjoy!

xo Em