Greek Turkey Burgers with Tzatziki

The variety of flavors and meals that we enjoy in our house pretty much span the worldy spectrum. There isn't anything we won't try (well...maybe a few things are off the list) and I try my hardest to avoid repeating a meal. It might be surprising though that when we make an exception and repeat a dinner, it's most likely in the form of a burger! I have really started to enjoy playing with different ingredients to kick our burgers up a notch. We don't just throw some ground beef together with salt and pepper and throw it on the grill. With a combination of fresh herbs, garlic, shallots, a sprinkle of cheese any other fresh ingredient to add some pizazz, we turn an American favorite into something much more. It's just the way we do it around here. I recently came across a recipe for a delicious Gyros and got the idea in my head to mix up those flavors into a Greek Turkey burger. And the perfect condiment? Tzatziki sauce. Ashley made this for me back in April when we had a Charlotte dinner date and my life has been forever changed. Making Tzatzki sauce in your own kitchen couldn't be easier! If you look closely, you can see the perfect grill marks on these burgers. Mark was pretty proud and I was impressed myself. With a fresh Greek salad on the side, this was a quick, under an hour weeknight meal, grill time and all! And Mark went back for seconds.

Greek Turkey Burgers

1 lb. lean ground turkey

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 shallot, minced

Handful fresh Basil, chopped

Tbsp. or so of fresh Oregano, chopped
1/4 cup crumbled Feta

1 egg

Salt & pepper, to taste

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. If you let the flavors marry together for 30 minutes or so in the fridge, the burgers are EXTRA tasty. Grill for 5-6 minutes on each side.

Tzatzki Sauce

recipe adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

16 oz. plain 0% fat Greek Yogurt (such as Fage or Oikos)

1/2 English cucumber, peeled and seeded

2-3 cloves garlic, finely minced

1 tsp. red wine venegar

Salt & pepper

Squeeze of a fresh lemon

Olive Oil

Shred or grate the cucumber. Wrap it in a paper towel and squeeze as much water out of the cucumber shavings as possible. Place in a small mixing bowl with yogurt, garlic, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper to taste and lemon juice. Mix together, and slowly add a drizzle of olive oil. Refridgerate for at least 30 minutes before serving- the flavors will astound you! Tzatziki don't have just one purpose either- I used the leftovers as a dip for an afternoon snack of fresh veggies.