Inside out Feta Cheese Burgers!

Quite a tasty little treat these were! Change it up by using lean ground beef, ground turkey, or ground chicken. Any of them would work beautifully as the meat for this stuffed burger!

These are so easy to throw together! I have lately become a rather lazy cook and seek out those kinds of meals. After a full day of work, sometimes I just can't muster up enough energy to do a 5 star meal. Anyways, lets get to it!

Ingredients AND Directions:

 

Part One: For the Salsa Topping

3 roma tomatoes, diced

2 tablespoons of sweet onion, diced

2 t fresh chopped oregano

2 T red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp salt 

Mix all ingredients together and let sit at room temperature until burgers are ready.

Part Two: For the Filling

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp fresh chopped oregano

A small handful of sun-dried tomatoes 

A small handful of sliced black olives

1 tsp Olive Oil

Mash all ingredients together with a fork.

For the Meat

1-2 pounds of ground meat (I only used 1 pound, but had enough filling for 2 pounds!)

1 T Garlic Pepper

Mix garlic pepper into meat and then form into 4-8 balls, depending on amount of meat. You have 2 options at this point. Mix a little topping throughout each ball and then form into patties. OR. Press your thumb into the middle of each ball and place about a tablespoon of filling in each hole.

Cover holes and form into patties

I went with option 2, but i think option one would give you move flavor throughout the entire burger.

Throw these guys on the grill until cooked though (Juices run clear)

Serve topped with salsa! You can serve these on buns/sandwich flats etc. I personally think they would taste great with a shmear of hummus on them as well!

Here they are:

Enjoy :) And feel free to leave out any of the stuffing if you aren't a fan! Take out the olives if you aren't a fan! Very versatile stuffing!

Spice up your life! Cilantro Turkey Burgers topped with Chipotle Ketchup!

These were some of the easiest burgers to throw together, quickest to cook, and delightful to eat! If you aren't a cilantro fan, try substituting parsley or basil, however, I cannot guarantee the ketchup will pair quite as well- you may want to stick with regular ketchup in that case!

Anyways, here are the ingredients!

1/3 cup whole wheat bread crumbs

1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro (or more really)

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 pound ground turkey

For the Chipotle Ketchup (if you opt in):

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tsp of chipotle in adobo SAUCE (you could chop up one of the peppers if you dare!)

I would just like to say that I grilled these all by myself :) Nick was out of town, so I had the pleasure of cooking with my dearest friend, and Washington-bound, Marissa. We enjoyed these thoroughly with some baked sweet potato fries and grilled corn on the cobb! They were MIGHTY TASTY!

Anyways, for those of you who need instructions:

1. Preheat grill or broiler

2. Mix all ingredients for burgers together and form into 4-6 patties.

3. Grill about 5 minutes per side or until done

4. If you desire, serve atop a whole wheat bun and top with ketchup, maybe lettuce and tomato if you are in the mood!

Enjoy :)

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Jerk Turkey Burgers with Grilled Veggie Skewers!

It's time to introduce you all to the latest addition to our family. Webbie! (Our grill!) He did all the work to make this meal, and it was quite tasty! If you don't have a grill, feel free to broil this. I've made these burgers in the oven before, and you can always roast veggies in the oven! Either way, you'll enjoy this one! PROMISE!

Jerk Burgers:

Looks like a lot of ingredients, but its mostly spices you have on hand! 

1/3 cup whole wheat couscous (yes, you can use regular)

1/2 cup water

1 pound ground turkey

1/2 cup finely diced red bell pepper

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Combine couscous and water and let it stand for 20-30 minutes to absorb all the water and soften up.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a small nonstick skillet. Add bell pepper, garlic, thyme, curry powder, cumin, allspice, ginger, salt, pepper, paprika and cayenne. Cook until bell pepper is softened a little (about 1-2 minutes)

Combine all ingredients. Turkey, bell pepper mix, and couscous. Mix WELL and form into patties. You should get about 6 good sized burgers. Grill until browned and no longer pink on the inside. Cooking times will vary!

I had to take some shots of them on the grill!

Look at these grill marks!

Now, you do have the option to serve these on buns with lettuce and tomato like any other burger! We just didn't!

Grilled Veggie Skewers

3 bell peppers (I used green because they are cheapest!)

1 red onion

1 yellow squash

1 zucchini

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced

You'll want to core your peppers and the cut into 1 inch pieces. For the onion, cut it into quarters and then peel off the layers one at a time. For the squash and zucchini, cut in half lengthwise, then slice into inch thick pieces. 

Then, toss them in oil, salt, pepper, and garlic. Skewer in any variety you choose!

On they go!

Oh, just look at these!

Serve it up. Healthy, low car meal right here!

Enjoy! They are easy, they are summer-y, and they are delicious!

Stuffed Turkey Burgers with Parmesan Zucchini

Possible one of the best dinners I've made to date. No lie! Nick loved it. It was HARD for us to save some for leftovers, but we did it! Well, leftovers for ONE. The zucchini has no special trick to it, but somehow, yields this special taste as if you've been slaving over the dish. The burgers also have barely anything to them, and come out JUICY and tasty. TRY THIS ONE. You won't regret it!

For your Burgers:

1 to 1.25 pounds of lean ground turkey

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 cup chopped roasted red peppers

1/2 cup shredded skim mozzarella cheese

Mix the turkey, paprika, garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper. Make sure seasoning gets distributed throughout meat. Add more if you think it doesn't look like enough. Then divide your turkey into 4 balls. 

Take those 4 balls, and divide in half again. Take 4 halves and press them into patties onto a greased baking sheet

 

Now, divide your peppers into 4 equal parts and top each patty with them.

Do the same thing with the cheese!

 

With your four remaining meat-balls, form into patties, place on top of each dressed up patty and press edges together to form one STUFFED burger patty

After i had done that with each burger, I topped each patty with pepper and paprika.

At this point, refrigerate, covered, until ready to cook.

You could grill these, about 5 minutes per side. We don't have a working grill, so I broiled mine for about 7 minutes per side. If you have a meat thermometer, you want it to read 165.

 

Serve with ketchup, mustard, spicy mayonnaise, whatever you like on your burgers. Honestly, I didn't need any extra condiments. Nick used some mustard though!

Here's that cheesy pepper stuffing:

They were wonderful. We will be making them on a regular basis from now on! You could stuff these with feta cheese as well and I think you'd get a mighty tasty result! 

For the Parmesan Zucchini

4 medium zuchinni

1 large onion

1 T Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Slice your onion in half, and then make 1/2 inch slices.

Cook on medium-low heat for 10 minutes until soft.

Cut your zucchini into 1/2 inch slices on a diagonal and add to pan with onions.

 

Add salt and pepper and toss frequently for about 15 minutes. I kept mine covered except when I was tossing, so that the zucchini would soften a little quicker for me!

Once cooked through, add Parmesan cheese, stir, and allow to cook about 30 seconds. Remove immediately and serve

You know by now I like close ups

I served all this up with a baked sweet potato that we always top with butter and cinnamon, but you could add any "starch" you want. Rice, couscous, orzo, baked potatoes, you name it! You can't go wrong with the meat and vegetable part, GUARANTEED

 

ENJOY :)

Super Bowl Sunday, all Slimmed Down!

Burgers? Fries? Pasta Salad? Chips and Salsa? You want it all on Super Bowl Sunday, right? Well you got it! Some are recipes, some are just go to the store and buy it! Here's a diary of Mom and Myself cooking up a football sized dinner for our guys!

Turk-en Sausage Burgers

Thats right! Turkey and chicken sausage burgers. YUMM-Y!

All you do is mix one pound ground turkey with one pound of chicken sausage. (Chicken sausage can be any FRESH uncooked chicken sausage. Available at Fresh Market and Whole Foods. We used Green Pepper and Onion Chicken Sausage!)

Add 1 Tablespoon of Mayo with Olive Oil (Hellmann's makes it!)

Add about 1 cup of finely diced onions

Salt and pepper to taste

Form into patties and allow the burgers to sit in the refrigerator for at least an hour. We made them pretty thin so they would cook up faster!

Grill about 5-7 minutes per side, or until cooked through. (You may want to place them on wax paper while shaping them so you can just flip them over onto the grill- they are a little sticky!)

Mediterranean Chicken and Orzo Salad

Dressing:

1 T dijon mustard

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

3/4 t salt

1/4 t black pepper

3/4 cup olive oil

1/2 t dried italian seasoning

Orzo:

1 pound of orzo, cooked

1 cup of grape tomatoes, halved

1.2 cup black olives, coarse chopped

1/4 pound feta cheese, crumbled

2 pkgs (5 oz each) italian style pre-cooked chicken, bite size 

2 T chopped parsley

Whisk all ingredients for dressing, except olive oil and italian seasoning. Add those 2 slowly after others are blended. Cover and refrigerate until needed.

Mix other ingredients. Pour on 3/4 cup dressing. Fold together GENTLY then drizzle on remaining dressing

SERVE!

Chipotle Sweet Potato Fries

Yes, I've done fries before, but these had a definite kick to them! We did a 3 large potato recipe, just change your spices according to how many sweet potatoes you use!

3 large, skinny sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into fries

1.5 tsp cinnamon

1.5 tsp chili powder

3 tsp brown sugar

3 tsp salt

3 tsp adobo sauce (From the chipotle canned peppers)

3 T EVOO

I put all the fries in a large bowl and tossed them until WELL coated in the oil and seasoning. 

Once coated, line in a single layer (probably 2 baking sheets) and bake 15 minutes at 400 degrees. Flip them over (and switch trays top to bottom if necessary) and cook 10 more minutes.

Serve :)

OH YEAH! Even Jack-man liked these french fries, and he's a picky french fry eater

CHIPS AND SALSA!

We obviously STARTED the evening with this, but i can take no credit for the recipe nor the chips, so i'm ending the blog with it!

Go to www.sizzleandspice.blogspot.com for the salsa recipe. Go to Whole Foods for these AMAZING chips! We devoured both bags!

These are 2 bags for 4 dollars- organic- baked- yummy chips. They come in MANY MANY flavors!

Dip anyone?

Killed off the salsa too!

Just because we love him, here's me pushing my little nephew around in a too-small tupperware. That kid will let me try almost anything if it involves pushing/pulling/flipping him.

A Few Highlights from a Strange Week....

This week, I was able to be at home ONE night. No cooking Monday or Tuesday, cooking while babysitting Wednesday night, and a normal meal on Thursday. Not every single dish was a success, so I'm highlighting what we/I liked!

First up, a low fat version of spinach salad, really easy, really yummy! This recipe comes from Ellie Krieger at FoodNetwork.com

Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon and Apple Cider Dressing

10 oz baby spinach, washed

2 slices bacon, finely chopped

3 ounces canadian bacon, finely chopped (I used 5 ounces and omitted regular bacon)

2 tsp olive oil

1/2 red onion, sliced

1 pound button mushrooms (I used half a pound)

1 cup apple cider

2 T apple cider vinegar

1 t dijon mustard

Salt and Pepper

*I added a handful of honey toasted almonds, as well as a handful of craisins*

Place spinach into a large bowl. Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat for about 4 minutes, or until it is just crispy. Add Canadian bacon to the skillet and cook for 2 more minutes, stirring frequently. Remove meat from pan and place on a plate lined with paper towels. Drain any remaining fat from the skillet. 

Add olive oil and onions to the skillet and cook for about 2 minutes, or until onions soften slightly. Add mushrooms to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 more minutes. Put onions and mushrooms on top of the spinach. 

Add apple cider and vinegar to the skillet and turn the heat up to medium-high. Stir to scrape up any bits that are stuck to the bottom of the pan and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until cider is reduced to about 1/2 cup.

Whisk in mustard, salt and pepper, to taste. Pour warm cider dressing over the mushrooms and spinach and toss until the vegetables are well coated. Sprinkle the bacon on top and serve.

We served this guy alongside Pasta Putenesca (featured early on in this blog!)

Next up, Mexican Night. I made some homemade BAKED tortilla chips with some tortilla soup and Turkey Burrito Burgers. The soup was nothing to write home about, but I'll share the chips and burgers with you!

Chili and Sea Salt Baked Tortilla Chips

12 whole wheat tortillas (or any corn or wheat tortilla you prefer_

Cooking Spray

Chili Powder

Salt

Any kind of salsa you want to dip in, or make your own using the recipe off of sizzleandspice.blogspot.com

All I did was spray the top of a tortilla, sprinkle some chili powder, stack a new one, and repeat. Once I had all 12 stacked up, I sliced them into eighths, put them on 2 baking sheets, and baked them at 400 degrees for about 10-12 minutes, watching closely to prevent them from burning!

Take them out, sprinkle with sea salt, or any salt, and serve alongside your salsa! Healthy and delicious! Use any spice you'd like before baking: Cumin, cayenne pepper, garlic powder etc.

The bean burgers. I will post these mainly because one of my best friends has requested that I do so. I enjoyed these, however, my husband had nothing fantastic to say about them. I did make 1 error, and that was that I added too much cooked rice to the meat, so they were falling apart, and I think thats what turned him off. Anyways, the taste is very Mexican, and personally, a perfect fit after the chips and salsa appetizer!

Turkey Bean Burrito Burgers (Rachael Ray)

1 cup (and 1 cup only!) leftover brown rice

1 pound ground turkey

1-15oz can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

Palmful chili powder

1.5 t cumin

1.5 t coriander

1 T grill seasoning

1 T Olive Oil

Optional Toppings such as avacado, roasted garlic, sour cream, jalepeno, red oinon, guacamole, etc.

Buns are optional as well, but I opted out

Combine your rice, meat, and beans with spices and grill seasoning. Form into patties. I ended up with 7. I know, right? Who makes an odd number. Anyways, add your oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook patties 7-8 minutes on each side.

Mine fell apart in the skillet, so I baked them about 15 minutes at 375 to finish them off.

 

Yes, they resemble rice patties. Not my finest moment, but they tasted the same as they would have in perfect round circles.

Now.. here's the real reason they don't look perfect:

Trying to put dinner together with this little 1 and half year old was a trip! But worth it nonetheless! Who can resist that little boy?

Last on the list, and BEST, in my humble opinon:

Butternut Squash with Onion and Fennel

Nick and i both went crazy over this SIMPLE SIMPLE side dish!

1 medium-large butternut squash, peeled and cubed

1 sweet onion, sliced into wedges

1 bulb fennel, sliced into 1 inch pieces

3 T olive oil

1 t dried thyme

1/4 t cayenne pepper

All you do is put onion, fennel, and squash in a large bowl and toss with olive oil until all veggies look well covered in oil

Sprinkle with thyme and cayenne pepper and toss again

Spread onto baking sheet in a single layer, and bake 40 minutes at 400 degrees, stirring about halfway through. I took mine out at about 38 minutes- I could tell the squash was soft and onions were starting to brown.

WE LOVED THIS! Try it :)

I know this was a random post, but I had some flops this week, and I would never want to advertise a bad tasting dish to you! That was never my goal in blogging :) So enjoy these dishes however and with whatever you choose!

Better recipes next week, I promise :)

Carribean Turkey Burgers with Sweet Potato Fries!

For those of you who participated in the poll ..... I fully expect you to make these... AND COMMENT on them if you like them or hate them. And I quote my husband... "These are the best turkey burgers I've ever had." That's right! So get your shopping list out and lets get to it.

These are HEALTHY burgers, HEALTHY fries, and I cooked up some of our favorite green beans (easiest recipe you'll ever find). This beats fast food calories every day of the week! (Scroll to the bottom to see the final plate!)

Carribean Turkey Burgers

• 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
• 3 tablespoons chopped green onions
• 1.5 tablespoons dried parsley 
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon Caribbean jerk seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 pound LEAN ground turkey
• 1 teaspoon olive oil

 Optionals:

• 4 whole wheat hamburger buns, split
• 4 lettuce leaves
• 1 medium mango, peeled and sliced (I took this option!)
  
• 4 (1/4 inch thick) rings sweet red pepper (I took this option!)
  

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix together WELL. Form meat mixture into a large ball. Divide into 4 equal parts, 6 equal parts, or 8 equal parts. I chose 6- and it made pretty small patties. You'll want to press down the patties to about 1/2" thickness.

Saute olive oil over medium-high heat and cook burgers about 5 minutes per side or until juices run clear.

Once they are ready, get whatever toppings you chose ready and doll them up. I just did a red pepper ring with a mango slice

If you want to make sweet potato fries and green beans, keep reading, and don't miss the final plate at the bottom!!

Baked Sweet Potato Fries:

3-4 sweet potatoes

Cooking Spray

Cumin

Chili Powder

Ground Red Pepper

Paprika

Salt

Preheat your oven to 425

Spray baking sheets (I needed 2 for how many fries I made)

Cut your potatoes in half (short-way, not the length)

Then cut them in half again (long way)

Place cut side down and start slicing small fry shapes, or you could go for wedges

Once sliced, place in a single layer on the baking sheet(s). Spray cooking spray over the fries to coat them. Sprinkle all spices over. (I probably used about 1tsp of each, maybe less of the red pepper!)

Bake on the bottom rack 20 minutes, then move to the top rack for 10. You'll want to watch them CONSTANTLY. They will go from perfect to burned to a crisp quickly depending on the heat your oven puts out. Just monitor and taste test! You'll know when they are ready!

Easy Almond Green Beans

1 16 oz bag of frozen green beans

(If you can get them from Trader Joes, I highly recommend doing so!)

1/4 cup sliced almonds

Heat a dry skillet over medium heat. Toast almonds, stirring constantly until browned. Remove and set aside.

Add a couple of tablespoons of water to the skillet. Bring to a boil (This should happen almost immediately after cooking almonds). Add frozen beans.

Cover, and cook 10-12 minutes. Drain, toss with almonds and serve immediately.

We have this anywhere from 1-2 times a week. NO LIE. Add some salt and pepper at the table, and enjoy! (We also add spray butter!)

So here was the final plating of the meal. So much better than a fast food burger! You felt GOOD after you ate it, not guilty! So please try these and ENJOY them! They are guilt-free!