Avocado Chicken Burgers

I am usually not a big fan of chicken burgers. The red meat carnivore inside me always says, "no thanks." But these are different. The fresh avocado is mixed right into the ground chicken before cooking and the texture of two together just works. Seasoning is a must because chicken can tend to be a bit bland. I added a little diced onion and a touch of cumin for extra flavor.  Since I do not work with ground chicken often, I also used my meat thermometer to be sure it was cooked enough. Served with grilled romaine, a perfect summer dinner.

The recipe called for these to be grilled, but it is was a rainy night so I did them right in a skillet and I have a feeling that might have been hard to keep together on a grill with the chucks of avocado, so I am adjusting the original recipe to be cooked indoors. I also cheated on my "grilled" romaine and did that inside too. It's not as crispy but just fine in a pinch.

The recipe comes from Laughing Spatula, and looks much more appetizing than my amateur late-night pictures!! Thank you Kathi for opening my eyes to chicken burgers!!! The changes that I made were the addition of onion, cumin, and cooking indoors. Everything else is original.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground chicken 
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large avocado (or 2 small) - cut into cubes (use one on the firmer side)
• 1/2 yellow onion finely chopped 
• 1/3 cup almond meal
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• salt and pepper to taste (give a little extra pepper for flavor)

Method:

1. Sautè chopped onion over medium heat for 3-4  minutes with cooking fat until the onion starts to become translucent.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken, almond meal, garlic, cumin, and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Gently fold in the avocado chunks only until incorporated into the mix.
4. Form into 4 or 5 burgers.
5. Heat cooking fat in skillet over medium-hight heat and cook about 5 minutes a side. Use a meat thermometer to be sure the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165℉.

If preparing the grilled romaine, cook it simultaneously because they take about the same amount of time.