Oklahoma Barnyard Burgers

Another burger. Yes ma'am! This one raids the whole barnyard! It will have you mooing, oinking, gobbling and even clucking. The patty is a blend of ground chuck and lean ground turkey. Add in crumbled bacon and an egg to hold it all together, and you have a pretty amazing burger.

This one is smokey and tender and very flavorful. It is a shame to put any toppings on at all. And of course a bun is just an insult.


Oklahoma Barnyard Burgers

1 pound ground turkey
1 1/2 pounds ground chuck
1 2.8 ounce package of real bacon crumbles
1 onion, very finely diced
3 teaspoons liquid smoke
3 Tablespoons low sugar barbecue sauce, plus more for basting
1 Tablespoon chia seeds (optional)
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Blend all ingredients together. The meat mixture will be rather wet. Use a 1/2 cup measuring cup to scoop meat into a Foreman grill or skillet. Form into patty shapes on the cooking surface. Cook until done through. If using a skillet, let the meat set up until firm before flipping. After the last flip, or just before removing the patties from the grill, brush with additional barbecue sauce. Makes 12-13 patties.

The chia seeds help bind the meat mixture together and add some nutrition, but the burgers will work without them. I served ours tonight with some Nana's Coleslaw with a Kick. For toppings, some smoked cheese would be awesome-- just used regular slices that I had on hand.

I just had to name this burger in honor of my home state, with all of our heritage of ranchers. I was in Big Lots today. I almost always check out the cheap recipe books while I am there. Today, I picked up one from the Food Network that had recipes from regional restaurants. Always interested to see if they group Oklahoma in the South, the Southwest or the Plains states, I looked us up. Yep. The table of contents had 50 entries all right, but no Oklahoma. The District of Columbia had a section, but not my state. What the heck? Even Martha Stewart eats here in my home town. If the book wasn't already so dated, I would stage a protest. But--I guess since this book was on clearance at Big Lots, that speaks for itself. Yes, I am sneering now.