Turkey Burgers with Spinach and Feta

We are a burger loving family, but are trying to cut back on our red meat consumption, so that’s why I love experimenting and creating burger recipes with turkey meat. I already have a few awesome turkey burgers on my blog that we eat over and  over. Two of our favorite’s are; my favorite turkey burgers and rosemary and thyme turkey burgers.

Lately we’ve been loving these feta spinach chicken sausages, so I thought why not create a turkey burger with the same flavors. These turkey burgers with spinach and feta are chock full of flavor and cook up perfectly moist and delicious. The feta adds an amazing salty flavor and the red pepper flakes give it a kick, and Popeye is always happy when you include some extra spinach. If you have a dairy issue, you might be ok with these burgers, as feta is made from sheep and goat milk, so it’s a cheese I can tolerate.

I love making a double batch of these burgers, so I can have leftovers. I just sauté 2 big handfuls of spinach in some avocado oil, add some sliced turkey burger and whatever else I have in the fridge.  Below is sautéed spinach, turkey burger and oven roasted potatoes. This was a killer leftover lunch! 

This is seriously a $20 burger. These turkey burgers with spinach and feta are a great alternative to beef burgers, and chances are you’ll probably love them so much that you will add them to your burger rotation menu. 

Turkey Burgers with Spinach and Feta

makes 4 patties

• 1 tablespoon avocado oil
• 4 cups packed fresh spinach, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup diced red onion
• 1 teaspoon fine Celtic sea salt, I love this Celtic sea salt, as it’s unrefined and chock full of minerals
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese, I just get a block of feta and crumble it over a 1 cup measuring cup
• 1 lb ground turkey – preferably the dark meat, as it has more flavor 
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes – if you want less heat, then use 1/2 teaspoon, we don’t mind a kick of heat
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Sauté the diced onion and teaspoon salt in avocado oil for 3 minutes over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and sauté for roughly 30 seconds, add the chopped spinach and sauté until spinach is wilted, roughly 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, transfer mixture to a medium sized bowl to cool down a bit.

Once the onions are cool to the touch, add the feta, turkey, red pepper flakes and pepper to the bowl.

Using your hands, gently mix everything until well combined. It could take a few minutes to make sure the ingredients are well combined. When you make your burgers if the ingredients are well mixed up, each burger should look the same. If you’ve under-mixed, then you will have one burger that has more spinach, or red onion than the others, etc, so may sure you mix them up good!

Gently form the mixture into four patties. Use your thumb to create a dimple or well in the center of the patty, as this will ensure the burgers cook evenly without plumping up. Start cooking the burgers indentation side up. The below photo is of my rosemary and thyme turkey burgers, as I didn’t take a photo of the indentation with these burgers. 

TIP – Chill the raw patties: Chill the patties for 1/2 hour or more in the fridge before cooking. This really helps the burgers hold their shape and not crumble once they hit that hot grill. We’ve done it with out chilling them, and they still hold up well. 

You can either grill up the burgers, or cook them up in a skillet. Steve cooks them on a pre-heated grill over medium heat. If you’re going to cook them up in a skillet, put a little avocado olive oil in the skillet to keep the burgers from sticking, and cook them over medium heat on a pre-heated skillet. Cook the patties until cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes per side, or until an instant read thermometer inserted in the burger reaches 165 degrees.

I love these burgers on a salad topped with my roasted red peppers, some sliced avocado and an heirloom tomato.  Kids love these burgers on a toasted English muffin or brioche bun with my easy dairy free tzatziki. Ketchup also works great!

If you make these, please share! I wold love to hear what you tweaked, or how they turned out for you.

I just created these turkey burgers with sun-dried tomatoes, basil and feta and I think they might tie in first place with these burgers. 

If you love turkey burgers, then try my favorite turkey burgers. These are a family and fan favorite!

My rosemary and thyme turkey burgers are chock full of flavor, as well as dairy-free and gluten-free.

I love pairing these burgers on a salad with my easy oven roasted potatoes. These potatoes take under 30 minutes to roast up to crispy, browned perfection.  No need to pre-soak or boil these bad boys to get them browned and crispy, the cast iron skillet and broiler create the magic.

If sweet potatoes are more your thing, then pair these with my oven roasted sweet potato halves.