MONDAY

Turkey & Zucchini Burgers with Green Onion & Cumin  |  Creamy Sumac Sauce

 

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother’s Day!  I returned home yesterday after a wonderful retreat here.  Days filled with yoga, hiking, swimming, massage, reading…resting.  It is not until you stop…really stop…that you begin to realize how much “noise”  is associated with day-to-day life.  Shutting off the sound every now and then gives us the opportunity to hear ourselves from the inside.  I left that very peaceful place with a renewed sense of clarity and an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the people and events that have brought me to where I am now in my life.  As we sat down to enjoy a very simple dinner together as a family last evening, I thought to myself…there really is no place like home.

The burgers, as well as the accompanying sauce, are extremely fragrant thanks to the additions of mint, cilantro, cumin,lemon, garlic & sumac.  Sumac is a sharply-flavored, powdered spice that can be difficult to find depending on your location.  I was able to purchase mine at the local Whole Foods Market but you can also order it online here or there.  Each burger was served, without a bun, on a bed of raw, baby spinach & red onion and dressed with some of the creamy sumac sauce.  Cold, seasoned cucumber chips rounded out our dinner.  We all agreed these burgers were amazing!

Begin by making the sauce…

Sour Cream & Sumac Sauce {adapted from Jerusalem, A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi}

• ½ cup sour cream
  
• 2/3 cup Greek-style yogurt
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 cloves of garlic, pressed
• 1½ tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon sumac
• sea salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Place all ingredients in a small bowl and stir well to combine.  Set aside or chill until needed.  

Turkey & Zucchini Burgers with Green Onion & Cumin {adapted from Jerusalem, A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi}

• 2½ pounds ground turkey
• 2 large zucchini, coarsely grated
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons fresh mint, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 4 large cloves of garlic, , minced
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 cup unseasoned bread crumbs or panko

1. Prepare a charcoal fire.
2. In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients and then mix together with your hands.  Form meat mixture into patties.
3. Grill the burgers, flipping once or twice to keep them from burning, until well browned and the internal temperature of each patty registers 160°F on a meat thermometer.  Remove burgers from the grill and serve each on top of a bed of raw baby spinach leaves and a few red onion slices, topping them with some of the Sour Cream & Sumac Sauce.

Makes 10 burgers.