Love Life, Hate Kittens

[My rendition of a healthy turkey burger! My phone camera is crappy.]

Originally this recipe was inspired by Rachel Ray’s Eggplant sub. But ewwww. Eggplant is pretty weird in texture and with bread? Yuck. It’ll become a soggy mess. So I decided that I would use the eggplant as the base and make real turkey burgers with a tomato basil compote to top it. Use the American eggplants for a big base or use the smaller eggplants for mini appetizers!

Eggplant Turkey ‘1/2 Burgers’ with Tomato, Basil Compote

Ingredients

• Olive Oil
• 1 tsp garlic
• 2 Roma Tomatos
• 1 lb of either ground turkey/chicken/pork
• Black Pepper
• Steak Seasoning
• 6-7 basil leaves
• 1 large eggplant (the American ones)
• 1/2 cup of green onions chopped
• Ricotta Cheese
• 1/2 cup of bread crumbs or panko

Directions

Cut stem and bottom of eggplant. Cut horizontally in 1/3 - 1/2 inch slices. These will be the base for your turkey ‘burgers’. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Heat a grill pan to high and grill eggplant for apprx 8 minutes (4 on each side).

As your eggplant is grilling, mix ground turkey, bread crumbs, green onions, and garlic in a bowl. Salt and pepper to your liking (ideally 1 tsp of each). Form 4-5 patties. Set aside.

Remove eggplant from grill pan. Set aside to cool. Cook burgers 4 minutes on each side for medium.

As the burgers are cooking, dice your tomatos and slice your basil into small strips. Mix in a bowl with olive oil and black pepper. If you’d like you can use some steak seasoning in this too. Set aside

Now the fun part! Arranging your burgers. Use the eggplant cylinder as base. Spread ricotta cheese on it liberally. Top with turkey patty. Garnish with a spoonful of tomato and basil mixture. Enjoy!

Verdict

I love it! The eggplant was just the right consistency and way healthier than bread. The burger was slightly charred and delicious with the tomato and ricotta cheese. Must make again! First recipe in the Ronnie Cookbook!