Inside-Out Turkey Bacon Cheese Burgers with Oven O-Rings
Serves 4
Rachael says, "I made this for my friend Valerie Bertinelli, who is watching her figure but still cooking for her teenage rockstar son. This one deserves an encore! You’ll make it twice a week."
Ingredients
- 6 slices turkey bacon, chopped
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 teaspoons smoked chipotle powder or 2 teaspoons chili powder
- About 1 cup flour, for dredging
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 1 large sweet onion, sliced 1/2-inch thick and divided into rings
- 2 pounds ground turkey breast
- Salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup spicy brown mustard
- 3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded or crumbled
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
- 1/2 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
- 1 beefsteak tomato, sliced
- 4 kosher dill pickles, chopped
Directions
- Pre-heat the oven to 425ºF.
- Arrange bacon in a large nonstick skillet and heat over medium heat. Slowly crisp up the bacon for 3-4 minutes on each side, remove and chop. Reserve bacon and add 1 tablespoon EVOO to the remaining drippings.
- While the bacon is crisping, combine the cornmeal and chipotle powder in a shallow bowl. Set up two more bowls, filling one with the flour and other with the buttermilk. Dip the onion rings first in the buttermilk. Next, dredge the rings in the flour, tossing them lightly in your hands to remove the excess. Dip them once again in the buttermilk, and finally coat them fully with the cornmeal mixture. Place the dredged rings on a cookie sheet and bake until crispy, about 15-18 minutes.
- While the onion rings are baking, place the ground turkey in a large mixing bowl, season with salt and pepper and mix in the mustard. Divide the meat into four equal parts. Take a quarter of the meat into your hand and shape it into a burger, making a well in the center of it. Fill the well with a quarter of the crisp bacon and 2 tablespoons cheese. Carefully form the burger around the cheese and bacon filling – make sure the fillings are completely covered with the meat. Repeat to form four burgers.
- Wash your hands after handling the raw poultry.
- Add patties to hot EVOO and cook for 2 minutes on each side over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook burgers 5-6 minutes longer, turning occasionally. Do not press down on the burgers as they cook.
- Serve each burger on a bed of lettuce topped with sliced tomato, chopped pickles and a few oven O-rings.