Burgers are a perennial game-day favorite, but not always a nutritional win. Root for the healthier team by swapping out beef for salmon and cheese slices for a velvety feta yogurt sauce. And then finish everything off with a stack of veggies. To let all the other flavors and textures shine through, consider subtracting the bun. For burgers, panko bread crumbs or quick-cooking oat flakes can be used as a replacement for almond flour.
Thrill of the grill
The salmon burgers can be prepared on the grill—but they’re delicate, which makes placing them directly on the grill grates a risky undertaking. If you want to safeguard against burgers sticking to or falling through the grates, you can lay a cast iron griddle on top of the grill and use that to heat your burgers. A greased metal vegetable basket can also work as a cooking platform.
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 2 oz feta cheese crumbled
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 3 Tbsp chopped dill
- 1 lb skinless salmon chopped into 1 in chunks
- 1 large organic egg
- 1/3 cup almond flour
- 1/3 cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 shallot peeled and chopped
- 1 small jalapeno pepper seeded and finely chopped
- 2 tsp capers optional
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp grapeseed oil or avocado oil
- 4 whole grain hamburger buns preferably toasted
- 4 slices thicktomato
- 1/2 cup sliced cucumber
- 2 cups arugula or baby spinach
- For sauce, to food processor or blender container, add yogurt, feta, lemon juice, and dill; blend until smooth. Remove sauce from container and set aside. Clean container.
- For burgers, in food processor container, place salmon, egg, almond flour, sun-dried tomatoes, shallot, jalapeno, capers (if using), lemon zest, salt, and black pepper; pulse several times until you have a chunky paste. Form salmon mixture into 4 equal-sized patties. Refrigerate patties for at least 15 minutes.
- In skillet over medium-high, heat oil. Place salmon burgers in skillet and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, or until crispy on the outside but just barely cooked through in the middle. The thickest part of the burgers should reach 145 F when tested with a food thermometer.
- Place burgers on bottom halves of buns and top with feta sauce, tomato, cucumber, and greens. Top with more sauce and place tops of buns on burgers.
Per serving: 589 calories; 46 g protein; 32 g total fat (9 g sat. fat); 28 g total carbohydrates (7 g sugars, 2 g fiber); 679 mg sodium
