Turkey burgers are a great way for the carnivore in this house and the mostly vegetarian (me) to compromise. I do enjoy turkey, especially over the last year or so. It has good flavor, and something about it does not trigger the gag reflex so many vegetarians talk about when they smell raw meats. So, I’ve come to like turkey and I’m trying to find good ways to prepare it.

This was my first try at a turkey burger and it turned out great.

I bought one pound of ground turkey thigh at Whole Foods. I put it in a big bowl and added:

• 2 cloves chopped garlic
• 1 small chopped onion
• some scallions, sliced
• 1 TB Worcestershire
• 1 TB olive oil
• some Urfa pepper flakes from Savory Spice Shop (use red pepper flakes if you don’t have the kind I used)
• a splash of Harry’s Habanero, from the Boulder Hot Sauce Company
• 3 TB of crumbled feta

I put mine on a small ciabatta bun I picked up at Whole Foods, and topped it with some local lettuce from Munson Farms, and a simple mushroom sauté of a medley of little mushrooms I picked up from Hazel Dell that I sauteed in butter, garlic, and sea salt. Those little mushrooms really didn’t need any special treatment since they were so flavorful on their own… but I do apologize for not recalling which shrooms made it into the mix.

In the end, it turned out to be a tasty burger.

Thank you Ollin Farms for this week’s share of veggies. I got some Hon Tsai Tai, Lemon Cucumbers, Beets, Paris Market Carrots (which are French heirloom), Young Yukon Potatoes, Swiss Chard, Lacinto Kale, Garlic, Zucchini, and Eggs!

I will be putting most of the greens in my Vita-Mix for my daily healthy lunch smoothie, so we will literally consume this entire pile of food. Looking forward to it.

Now here’s a good way to eat your turnips. I had 2 bunches of turnips that I got over 2 weeks from Ollin Farms‘ CSA. So, part of my CSA Challenge was figuring out what to do with turnips. To be perfectly honest, I thought I was sick of turnips. I got a bunch of scarlet queen turnips one week and they sat in my fridge until the following week when I got another bunch. I officially had more turnips than I could eat… or so I thought.

I sliced them and a local walla-walla onion I got at the Boulder farmers market, and tossed them in a dressing of:

• 2 TB Worcestershire
• 1 TB dijon mustard
• 3 TB heavy whipping cream
• 3 TB maple syrup
• 1 TB olive oil
• 1 TB grated parmesan
• fresh ground black pepper

Could it get any better than banana chocolate chip coconut walnut bread? Or, in this case, muffins? I made muffins because they bake so much more quickly than a loaf, and in the summer heat, that makes a big difference. Muffins are also more manageable… you can easily count how many you’ve eaten. That might not be a good thing, but this recipe is.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 very ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour
• a pinch of sea salt
• 1 tsp baking soda (a little less if at altitude)
• 1 TB cinnamon
• 1/2 cup toasted and coarsely chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl (except for the nuts, coconut, and chocolate). With the mixer on a slow speed, add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Finally, mix in the nuts, coconut, and chocolate chips.

I poured mine into muffin pans lined with If You Care baking cups. I like this brand because they are more environmentally friendly than your average baking cups.

My delicious muffins were done in about 20 minutes. But, make sure to check them by sticking them with a skewer or knife to be sure they’re baked all the way through. Cool on a wire rack and try to enjoy in moderation.