Southwest Turkey Sliders

Lately I have been trying to makeover my recipes to more healthy versions. I have made sure to increase our fresh fruit and veggie intake. Spinach and fruit smoothie's have become a favorite in our home. We have almost completely cut out red meat. We still have it occassionally, about once every week or so. Ground turkey and chicken tenders have been the usual replacements.

One thing that Corey, my husband, and I took great pride in are our awesome hamburgers. It all started when we were watching the Food Network and heard about some festival somewhere (like we were paying attention to that part. Hello?! There was food on the tv!) that people would go to from around the country to show off their best hamburger ideas. That's when we busted out the grand idea- We need to create a signature burger. And that we did.

This is not the exact recipe. This is a slightly more healthy version. And, of course, smaller (portion control, people).

Majority of my own recipes are very versatile. You will find that a lot of stuff can be replaced for something else that you have in your pantry. That's what I love about it. Who has time to run to the store for one missing ingredient? Not this mom with two young kids.

For this you will need:

• 1 cup French's Fried Onions
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/3 cup salsa
• 1 can beans, drained and rinsed
• Buns (I normally use the Hawaiin King Honey Wheat Rolls)
• Pepperjack cheese

I used blackeye peas because my daughter goes crazy for them. However, black beans would be more true to the Southwest part of the sliders. Any bean will work, it's a great add in since we will be using turkey instead of ground beef. Also, I used green salsa because it is what I had on hand. I have always used regular salsa and absolutely love the way it turns out as well.

Pour everything into a large bowl and mix well. Add more fried onions if it seems too runny.

Form into about 2 inch patties with your hands, cook well on the skillet or on the grill. Cook at 250 F that way it cooks slowly and all the way through. Remember that it is turkey, so no medium rare for these sliders! Top with some pepperjack cheese and all other condiments you enjoy. I added spinach and chipotle mayo onto ours.



They taste amazing! It has enough flavor that you won't feel like you are missing out on anything with it not being ground beef.