Chipotle Turkey Burger

Ground turkey has rarely found its way into our house as beef has ruled for burgers. Most turkey burgers I have tried have been bland and dry. It was like nobody put any spices in them or something. However, it was time to explore the world of ground turkey with good seasoning and flavors. I looked through some Cooking Light recipes and others and created this new chipotle variety. Chipotle chili powder is a favorite new spice in our pantry and finds its way into a lot of our cooking. It forms the base for this recipe.

In serving this burger we put it on an Arnold sandwich thin with lettuce, cucumbers, spanish onions, tomatoes, topped with anaheim peppers and some mustard for a low fat, low calorie sandwich at about 330 calories. Making your own turkey burgers from scratch are the way to go. I am now a believer that they can have a place on my grill, but beef still rules when you just have to have that taste.

Recipe

1 slice of white bread (crust removed)
1/4 cup low-fat milk
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1 lb ground turkey breast
2 chilies (optional – poblano or anehiem)

Soak peppers in water if they are dried or roast them if they are fresh and set aside.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

Place bread in a food processor and pulse 5 times until coarse crumbs equal about 1/2 cup. Combine breadcrumbs and milk in a large bowl and let stand 5 minutes. Add chipotle chili powder, cumin, and next 5 ingredients mixing the spices by hand until combined. Divide turkey mixture into 4 equal portions (about 4oz) and form burger patties. Place patties on grill rack coated with an oil or cooking spray. Grill 3 minutes on each side or until done.

Garnish the bottom half of each bun and then add the burger. Put slices of the peppers on top of the burger and complete with the bun top. This is also great just as a patty with other sides.

Servings: 4

Cooking Times
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 8 minutes