One of my favorite foods to eat during a football game is a good, juicy burger... And spicy buffalo fingers... So, why not combine the two? Of course the thought of combining beef and buffalo sauce was not too appetizing to me. And, I am trying to eat more healthily. Beef? No. Turkey? Yes! To me, turkey and chicken are so versatile and are a great base for adding spice. This turned out to be yet another meal I could make immediately as I had every ingredient on hand. Well, almost immediately. I did have to wait for the turkey to defrost. I used one pound of 99% fat free ground turkey. Into the turkey went hot sauce (lots of it!), worcestershire sauce, diced scallions, a bit of Panko bread crumbs and a pinch of salt. Oh, and of course - Blue cheese!!!
I'm sorry - I don't have exact measurements since when I cook, I tend to throw in a little bit of this and a little bit of that. My friend Michaela is always asking me for recipes and I find myself having to almost make up measurements. She hasn't complained yet, so I think I'm doing okay. :) Since the turkey is so low in calories (120 calories per four ounce serving), I decided to go big and make only two burgers. What the heck? I was watching a football game, so I decided to splurge. The turkey, however is not where the splurging comes into play. The splurge is the delicious, creamy, tangy, Maytag blue cheese that filled these half-pound burgers.
I made four patties, piled the blue cheese on top of two of them and topped each of those with the remaining patties. Sinful, I know.
Because these burgers were so thick I didn't want to risk burning them on the outside before they were done instead - Especially being turkey! I browned both sides of the burgers in an oven-safe pan then finished cooking them in a 350 degree oven. I let them sit for 10 of the longest minutes of my life!
I didn't bother to top the burger with anything since my mouth was watering as I was taking the pictures. I wanted to eat the burger right away and didn't have time to search my fridge for accompaniments. Next time I make this - and there will be a next time - Maybe I'll be more creative and think of some fancy toppings. In my opinion, the burger was perfect as is. But who knows, I may be able to improve on perfection! And by the way - the game was not nearly as perfect as this burger. In fact, it was the exact opposite!
