Beef and Turkey Sliders

Sliders have been on my mind since yesterday, and they are in my belly today! I made seven mini burgers for dinner this evening. I used a combination of ground beef and ground turkey--ground turkey is my favourite way to lighten up a dish. I use that in place of ground beef in pretty much all my recipes, with the exception of burgers, where I like to maintain the ground beef flavour. I used to use a 4:1 ratio of beef to turkey, but today I used 1:1 ratio and the burgers still tasted rich and meaty. I'm not a fan of adding filler like bread crumbs, but I got the idea to use hemp hearts some time ago, and the result was tasty and nourishing. I have a package of wheat bran I'm trying to use up, so today I used a combination of hemp hearts and wheat bran. These burgers were tiny but tall and surprisingly hearty. The sliders were super delicious, and I plan to make them again in a day or two. I've included my recipe below as a rough guideline, but if you decide to make these, please feel free to tweak the recipe to suit your tastes!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb ground meat (today I used ½ ground beef and ½ ground turkey)
• 5 tbsp hemp hearts (today I used 3 tbsp hemp hearts and 2 tbsp wheat bran)
• 2 eggs
• Seasonings to taste (you can use whatever you like--today I used salt, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, white pepper, and cumin)
• Splash of red or white wine (optional--today I used a splash of dry vermouth)
• Grated cheese (optional)
• Oil (for cooking)
• Buns (today I used Dempsters Pull-Aparts)
• Condiments and toppings to taste (today I used spicy ketchup and pickled hot peppers)

METHOD

1. Put meat, hemp hearts, eggs, seasonings, and wine into a bowl and combine thoroughly (I use my hands).
2. Separate into 5 equal patties (or 7-8 for mini burgers).
3. Heat oil in a large pan or cast iron skillet.
4. Cook patties over medium heat until cooked through (approximately 5 minutes on each side).
5. Transfer patties to a plate and pile grated cheese on top.
6. Place patty on a bun and add desired condiments and toppings.

Serves 2 generously.