Veggilicious Turkey Burgers

Over the past week or so, what with my job in full swing as well as the start of my second-to-last (yay!) semester of college, I’ve noticed myself feeling a little depleted. During the beginning of August I was really getting into a groove with all of my daily to-dos, but all the new additions that came with September have made everything seem discombobulated. Just going through all my syllabi alone and putting the semester’s assignments and due dates in my calendar gets me all jumpy and twitchy. From the starting point of the semester, it all seems equal parts dizzyingly busy and incredibly repetitive.




In major need of refreshment and respite, I got down to business and created this recipe. Rather than typical hamburgers, whose heavy ground beef and pure meaty flavor can leave you filled to the brim and ready for naptime, I opted for something with a little spring in its step. Ground turkey is lighter, yet still substantial and delicious. Combined with a seriously huge dose of vegetables in the form of onion, zucchini, and bell peppers, these burgers are packed with yummy flavors and plenty of nutritional extras like vitamins A and C to get your body feeling all happy inside. Style it up however you like—cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, crunchy potato chips—and you’ve got a fresh, healthy meal to help escape any and all cases of the stressful blahs.


Veggilicious Turkey Burgers
A La Kocinera Original Recipe
Printable Recipe

16 ounces ground turkey
1 egg
1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 zucchini, grated
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce

In a large bowl, stir together the chopped onion, garlic, red bell pepper, and green bell pepper. Before adding the zucchini, place the grated zucchini in a double layer of paper towel and squeeze over the sink to remove excess moisture. Add zucchini to the other vegetables. Finally, scrape the rosemary leaves from the stem and chop them finely, adding them to the vegetable mixture as well.
To the vegetable mixture, add the ground turkey, egg, breadcrumbs, and olive oil, stirring to combine. (At this point, it may be easier to put on some plastic gloves and mix with your hands). Season with salt, pepper, and Sriracha sauce.
Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium heat. Meanwhile, form the turkey-vegetable mixture into 6 equal-sized patties. Once the grill is hot, cook the patties on one side for 6 to 8 minutes. Flip and cook for an additional 6 to 8 minutes, until there is no pink color inside the burger and the juices run clear.
Serve immediately with your favorite burger toppings.