Spicy Turkey Burgers with Avocado-Ranch Dressing

My husband and I have been grilling fools lately.  Probably a combination of the awesome weather we've been having, a new grill and a fantastic new brick courtyard we built.  But we are spending more time than ever outside.  At any rate, we grilled these turkey burgers the other night and they are amazing.  The burger itself is very simply seasoned, but garnished with spicy cheese, avocado-ranch dressing and if you like, a tomato and more avocado (yes, please!) makes it pretty sensational. 

The avocado-ranch dressing really cools down the spiciness of the pepper jack cheese and the burger itself.   Such a great combination!!  I make this sauce often - it's also fantastic with Southwestern egg rolls. 

Makes 4 burgers and 1 1/2 cups dressing 

Spicy Turkey Burgers

1 pound 93% lean ground turkey
1 tablespoon McCormick spicy grill seasoning
4 slices pepper jack cheese
4 good rolls (I used ciabatta)

Avocado-Ranch Dressing
1 cup ranch dressing
1 avocado, diced
1/2 teaspoon dried dill

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.  Divide the turkey into 4 equal parts and form each section into patties.  Make an indentation with your thumb in the middle of each patty to prevent the tops of the burgers from rounding.  Use the tablespoon of grill seasoning to sprinkle evenly over each one.  Place on grill and close lid, grilling for 4-5 minutes on each side or until they are cooked throughout (165 degrees using a meat thermometer).

Make the sauce: in a small bowl, combine all of the ingredients and mash with a fork (or I used my potato masher!).  Serve over the turkey burgers or as a dipping sauce or dressing.

Tomato Avocado and Mozzarella Panini

Tomato and Mozzarella sandwiches are one of my absolute favorites and we eat them often in our house.  But adding avocado and turning it into a panini definitely took our staple sandwich way up a notch.  Absolutely amazing!   

Quite frankly, eating it like this, without toasting the bread is fabulous as well.  I used Campari tomatoes (the smaller ones) and fresh slices of mozzarella.  

Gooey mozzarella and creamy avocado...are you drooling yet??

Makes 2 sandwiches

Tomato Avocado and Mozzarella Panini

2 fresh ciabatta rolls 

2 Roma or Campari tomatoes, sliced

6 slices of fresh Mozzarella

1 avocado, sliced

Mayonnaise (optional)

Balsamic vinegar

Italian Seasoning

Sea salt and fresh ground pepper

After everything is sliced, spread the mayonnaise on open sides of the ciabatta rolls.  Preheat your panini maker or skillet.  Layer 3 slices of mozzarella, 2-4 slices of tomatoes (depending on which you use), and a couple of slices of avocado on each roll.  Add a couple of splashes of balsamic vinegar over the layers, followed by a dash of Italian seasoning and salt and pepper to taste.

Place sandwich on panini maker and close the lid.  Allow the bread to toast and the mozzarella to melt a little, about 7-10 minutes.  You can also use a skillet with a panini press.

Mexican Chicken Soup with Limes

This is a very light, although very spicy, quick and easy soup!  It could easily be thrown in the Crock Pot but I started it too late in the day so I used my stove top.  The ingredients came together in minutes and I even threw in my chicken breast still frozen.  It will simmer for about a hour to cook the chicken, but I didn't even look at until the hour was up and it was time to shred the chicken.

I found this recipe on the blog, Budget Bytes, which I love because she breaks down the cost of each ingredient and the total recipe cost.  So, this soup is tasty and super cost friendly!  

I love the sourness from the lime juice that gets squeezed in at the end.  And the creamy, coolness of the avocado takes the bite out the spiciness.  And it is spicy!  That tickle the back of your throat spicy...my husband I were clearing our throats and coughing a bit while eating this.  You can absolutely omit the jalapeno if you want to cut down on the heat.  

 Serves 4

Mexican Chicken Soup with Limes

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 medium onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

1 tablespoon minced jalapeno (I used from a jar, but you can use 1 medium fresh)

4 cloves garlic, minced (I used minced from a jar which would be 2 tsp)

1 large chicken breast

6 cups chicken broth

1 can diced tomatoes with chiles, 14.5 oz

1/2 tablespoon cumin

1 or 2 limes

1 avocado

In a large saucepan or dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Cook the onion, celery, jalapenos and garlic in the olive oil for about 5 minutes or until tender.  Add the chicken breast, chicken broth, tomatoes and cumin to the pot.  Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to medium-low, place a lid on top and let simmer for one hour.  

After simmering for an hour, remove the chicken breast from the pot and shred with two forks.  Return the meat to the pot.  Squeeze the juice of 1 or 2 limes into the soup.  Serve and top with a few chunks of avocado and tortilla chips.  

(Source:  Adapted from Budget Bytes)

Shrimp Tacos with Corn and Avocado Salsa

 This meal is the like the epitome of summer time meals.  In fact, when the weather turns warm, this is one of the first meals we crave.  It's my husband's favorite dinner and he will request it for special occasions (actually he had me make this on Father's Day for him!), but I love it just as much and so does our toddler.  And great for me, because there's really nothing to it.
  

So this is the really easy (but just as delicious) way to make these tacos, but I'm also going to give you a couple of hints on how you can go above and beyond if you have the time.  Like using fresh corn and grilling it before making the salsa.  If I had the time, I would do this every time - grilled corn is fabulous!!  I have another amazing recipe for grilled corn that involves lots of butter, lime and chili powder, but that's for another day...soon, I promise!!

P.S. These are amazing with my Light and Easy Margaritas!

Makes 2-4 servings

Shrimp Tacos with Corn and Avocado Salsa

Salsa

1 Roma tomato 

1 can whole kernel corn (or 4 ears of fresh corn, shucked)

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon minced jalapeno (I used jalapenos from a jar but you can use 1 small jalapeno if you want to use fresh)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1 avocado, diced

Shrimp

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon spicy McCormick grill seasoning

8 flour tortillas

1 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese 

To make the salsa:  Cut tomato, remove seeds and dice.  In a medium bowl, combine tomato, drained corn (or corn cut from the grilled corn cob), lime juice, jalapeno, olive oil, cumin and salt.  Fold in avocado.

To make the shrimp:  Combine the first four ingredients in a bowl.  Cover and let stand for 30 minutes.  Saute over medium high heat until shrimp turns pink, 3-5 minutes (or place on skewers and grill for 2-3 minutes on each side).  

While shrimp is cooking, place tortillas between 2 damp paper towels and microwave for 45 seconds to warm.  

Assemble tacos with tortillas, shrimp, corn salsa and cheese.