Burger ingredients: buns, cheese, tomato, lettuce, onion, ketchup, etc.
For the guacamole
1Hass avocado
1tablespoonlime juicefrom ½ lime
1tablespooncilantro leaveschopped
1teaspoononionfinely minced
1very small garlic cloveminced
½teaspoonolive oil(optional, use only if your avocado is not very ripe)
¼teaspoonsaltor adjust to taste
Pepper to taste
¼small jalapeno(optional, or use a pinch of cayenne pepper)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F. (See notes)
Saute the chopped onion and minced garlic in about ½ tablespoon oil for a few minutes until the onion starts softening and browning. Or skip this step and use a teaspoon of onion powder and ½ teaspoon garlic powder instead (I do not recommend skipping, see notes).
Combine all the ingredients for the turkey burgers (ground turkey, egg, oats, sauteed onion or onion powder, salt, pepper) into a bowl and mix well with a fork. Try not to mash the turkey, but to mix it instead. Using wet hands, form 4 - 6 burger patties. Wetting your hands between each burger will prevent the turkey from sticking to your hands.
Heat up some the olive oil (1-2 tablespoons) in your oven-safe pan, and carefully place the burgers in the the pan. Cook for 3 minutes on each side over medium-high heat, or until each side is nicely browned. The inside will still be raw at this point, that's OK.
Transfer the browned burgers into the oven, and bake for 20 minutes, or until the inside of the burgers is fully cooked at 165F. Optional: top the burgers with cheese and put back in the oven for another minute, or until the cheese melts.
While the burgers are in the oven, prepare the guacamole: Mash the avocado in a bowl. Add the rest of the guacamole ingredients, and mix well.
Assemble your burger! Don't forget to toast the bun :)
Notes
If you don't want to take the extra step of browning the diced onion and garlic, you can either use raw onion and garlic, or a teaspoon of onion powder and half a teaspoon of garlic powder instead. I find that the sautéed onion adds lots of juiciness and flavor to the whole burger!
SAVE A BIT OF THE DICED ONION FROM THE BURGER and use it for the guacamole, so you don't have to chop onions twice, and mince 3 garlic cloves so you have 1 ready for the guacamole
You can sauté the onion and garlic in the same skillet, just wipe it clean with a paper towel before cooking the turkey burgers so the onion residue doesn't get too browned
Brown your turkey burgers in a cast-iron pan or another oven-save skillet, so you can transfer it directly to the oven. If you don't have an oven-safe skillet, or if your burgers don't fit in one pan, you can line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and bake the burgers on that to reduce extra dishes
The nutritional data estimated for this recipe is for 1 burger patty and guacamole, assuming 6 servings, not including the bun or other toppings. Actual nutrition will vary based the exact ingredients you use.