Pizza Burger Patties

School will start again soon around here. Just a week and I am going to have to be super organized again. Either that, or give up eating all together. Sometimes I think that would be easier, but then I love to eat and my hunger always wins. Since my son (and partner) decided to leave the school last spring, I am pretty much left to run the place with just my few volunteers. We are going to make it, but I suspect that the first few weeks will be a bit stressful. Therefore, I am making monthly menus this weekend rather than a weekly one. Fewer things to think about means less stress. Planning really does make a healthy lifestyle possible--for me it is essential.

For the Diner News for September, I have planned a theme of Time Savers. Today's recipe is one of those. I make a big batch of these tasty burger patties. We ate a couple and the rest went into the freezer. Now when the busy weeks of school start up, I will be able to grab a burger patty for my lunch at school and John's at the radio station. These can go with a salad, cut up veggies or even a cup of soup. Good meal guaranteed with so little effort.

These are not boring burger patties. They are good with absolutely no additional condiments. The herbs and garlic, tomatoes and cheese make them so appealing. I used dehydrated tomato pieces, and you could sub sun dried if you prefer. Then there is that pepperoni flavor. Oh yeah. You could add in some bell peppers or mushrooms too if ya like. Today, I served some garden fresh zucchini and tomatoes as a simple saute on the side. With summer fresh produce, simple is better because the veggies are so naturally flavorful. Beautiful dark red home grown tomatoes.

 I am working on some ideas for make ahead  T.V. dinners too. These patties would be a great candidate for those too I think. Be looking to see all I come up with in the September Diner News.

Pizza Burger Patties

2 lb lean ground beef
4 oz pepperoni, finely diced
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp minced onion
2 tbsp Italian Herb blend
2 tbsp dried tomatoes
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese

Combine beef, pepperoni, cheese, onions, herbs, tomatoes and garlic powder. Use your hands to mix the flavorings into the meat very well. Divide meat into 8 equal portions. Form into patties. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or grill. Top hot patties with 2 tbsp shredded Mozzarella cheese. Serve or cool and wrap to freeze.

Serves 8:   397 calories  2 g carbs

I wanted to take a minute to thank all of you who have ordered books and the Diner News from me this summer. Because of you, I was able to keep our school building and get the rent paid on time. Your support has been my saving grace. To those of you who donated directly, may God bless you a hundred fold.

I will continue to use my book sales for the school. No one is taking a salary yet, and I am hoping to at least offer some small stipends this year to my tutors. We have some new teens coming this year, and I am so excited about the difference we are going to be able to make for them. If you think your small contribution wouldn't make a difference, think again! I see it everyday.

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