Semi-Primal Burgers with Semi-Primal Buns

A.K.A. the best freaking thing I have eaten it a long time! I devoured my burger like a wild primaly animal. Sadly I only had enough turkey to make two of these so we only got one each. I totally could have scarfed at least one more.

The buns I used followed this recipe that I originally found from a link on Mark's Daily Apple. In this application they were a revelation! I couldn't believe how perfect everything tasted together. Eaten alone though, or with just turkey bacon as I tried to do for breakfast yesterday, the buns get a big "Eh". They tasted too dry and eggy for me. For the burgers though, perfect. I actually cut the edges off the buns, where I thought they looked too dry.

Sometimes you just gotta have cheese, right? I mean unless you're vegan or 100% primal, or my friend Shana who had to give it up during her pregnancy. (You are all stronger than I.) I know cheese is not totally Primal, but it's not entirely cheating either. I was really craving a gooey cheese burger, with a little turkey bacon for good measure, and that's exactly what I got.

(Primal?) Bacon Cheese Stuffed Turkey Burgers

1 Pound Ground Turkey (7% fat)

4 Slices Turkey Bacon

1/2 Cup Grated Cheese

1 Onion

1-2 Teaspoons of your favorite Grill Seasoning or Seasoning Blend

A good squirt of Mustard and (Primal) Ketchup and (Primal) Worcestershire Sauce

Sea Salt and Pepper

A little Olive Oil for Cooking

Saute onion over low/medium heat. Cook until they start to smell sweet. You don't want to brown them, just cook them slowly to the point of carmelization. (About 10 minutes) About half way through the cooking add the grill seasoning to the onions, this will give the spices a chance to mellow.

Cook your bacon in the pan while the onions cool to the side.

Mix together turkey meat, condiments, salt & pepper, and onion mixture once cool. Don't over mix, it will mess up your burger texture. Good texture is a burger's friend.

Place crumbled bacon and grated cheese on a plate next to you, where you won't contaminate more than you need with your raw turkey hands.

Form turkey mixture into four equalish parts. Grab one part, form it into a ball, then flatten it with your hand. Take a good amount of cheese and crumbled bacon and stick it right in the middle of that flatten piece of turkey. Fold it over and pat into a burger-like shape. The less holes the better, unless you like a pool of runny cheese cooking under your burger, which you might!

Heat a little olive oil in your pan over medium-high heat, you want a fairly hot pan - burgers should sizzle when they hit it. Cook the burgers, lowering the heat to medium after about 5 minutes. Flip when browned on the bottom. Cook second side on Medium for about 5-10 minutes til cooked through. (burger will be sort of firm to the touch and juices will run clear) Let them rest for a few minutes before serving.

Assemble your burgers.

Go, "YUM!"

All in all this was one of the most satisfying things I have had in a long time. I probably won't make them this decedent all the time, but there are a million variations to try, and now that I have a bun to use as a building block, I feel like the possibilities are endless.