Greek Style Turkey Burgers

A few weeks back on “The Chew”, Daphne Oz made the most delicious-looking Turkish Burgers. In fact, Mario Batali confessed that it was the best thing that she’s ever made on the show. And since Mario and I are practically BFFs now (see picture below, I say this in a very non-stalker way, BTW, but I did get a handshake and interview), I knew I had to try them too.

But as it always goes, I couldn’t keep the recipe as-is even if my bosom buddy said it was good. I won’t name all the changes I made, but if you’re really curious you can find the original recipe here. I took them in more of a Greek direction and they ended up being fabulous. The patties are so moist and flavorful and the crunch of the veggie salsa is just perfect. The thing that really sold me on these when I was watching Daphne make her version was the whipped feta cheese spread. Much to my delight it was just as good as it looked- creamy, tangy, and the perfect complement to the rest of the burger. Lets get started, shall we? I like to start out by making the veggie salsa first so it has time to mellow and blend flavors. I used a mix of tomatoes, cucumber, yellow bell pepper, sweet onion, dill, parsley, kalamata olives, lemon juice and a smidge of olive oil. Combine it all in a bowl and set aside.

Make the whipped feta spread by combining Greek yogurt, feta cheese, a clove of garlic, a few tablespoons of olive oil and a bit of dill. I used my mini food processor but a blender would work just as well. Mix until smooth and creamy.

And finally, we get to make the burger patties- you’ll add lots of flavor and some other elements to bind and moisten. You’ll season it with smoked paprika, cardamom, dill, cumin, salt, pepper, and oregano and give it a good mix.

Soak 1 whole pita (2 halves) in milk until very soft and pliable.

Using your hands, wring the extra milk out of the moist dough and add to the meat. This will add a little bit of fat to the meat and also make it very moist and tender. Add an egg, finely chopped onion, and flat leaf parsley; stir well but don’t overwork the meat because it can get tough.

Scoop your meat into small rounds using a cookie scoop- mine is about golf ball sized. I like to scoop it all out first and then flatten them into patties. You can make the patties any size you like, but I like to be able to stuff 2 or 3 smaller ones into a pita versus one big one.

Cook the patties in a bit of olive oil on the stove-top until they are browned on both sides and cooked through- about 4-5 minutes.

Brush pitas with a bit of olive oil and heat on the stove-top until warm and slightly toasted.

Stuff each pita with a few turkey patties, a big spoonful of veggie salsa and a dollop of the whipped cheese and prepare for the party that is about to commence on your taste buds and take a bite. Oooh, I’m hungry just thinking about it!

Greek Style Turkey Burgers

Serves 4-6 Servings     adjust servings

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Ingredients

• Burger Patties
• 1.25 lbs ground turkey
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 /4 tsp ground cardamom
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp dried dill weed
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 3/4 C sweet onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 C flat leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 egg
• 2 pita bread halves, soaked in milk
• 8-12 pita bread halves
• Veggie Salsa
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1/2 seedless cucumber, diced
• 1 small bell pepper, diced
• 1 /2 C sweet onion, diced
• 1/4 C kalamata olives, diced
• 1/4 C flat leaf parsley, chopped
• 1/2 tsp dried dill weed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• Whipped Feta Cheese Spread
• 4 oz. greek yogurt
• 6 oz feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 tsp dried dill weed
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

1. Veggie Salsa:
2. Combine tomatoes, cucumber, yellow bell pepper, sweet onion, dill, parsley, kalamata olives, lemon juice and olive oil. Stir and set aside.
3. Whipped Feta: Combine Greek yogurt, feta cheese, garlic, olive oil and dill in a food processor or blender. Mix until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
4. Burgers: Combine ground turkey with smoked paprika, cardamom, dill, cumin, salt, pepper, and oregano. Soak 2 pita bread halves in milk until very soft and pliable. Using your hands, wring the extra milk out of the moist dough and add to the meat. Add an egg, finely chopped onion, and flat leaf parsley; stir well but don’t overwork the meat.
5. Scoop your meat into small rounds using a cookie scoop and flatten into patties.
6. Cook the patties in a bit of olive oil on the stove-top until they are browned on both sides and cooked through- about 4-5 minutes. Brush pitas with a bit of olive oil and heat on the stove-top until warm and slightly toasted.
7. Stuff each pita with a few turkey patties, a big spoonful of veggie salsa and a dollop of whipped feta cheese.

by Heather Cheney

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