Grilled food is without a doubt some of my favorite food. I get so excited when it starts to get warm in the spring because that means that grilling season has finally arrived. Not to say that I won't grill in the winter because, trust me, I will. Over the past couple of months, I've grilled everything from salmon to turkey burgers to kabobs, but I wanted to try something a little different.
I was trying to come up with what I should cook for dinner for my boyfriend and myself. Chicken parm, one of his favorites, instantly came to mind. But I wanted to grill and I wanted to make something healthy. Then it dawned on me - why can't I have all three? How about healthy chicken parm burgers. I even stuffed in some spinach because I love getting in greens wherever I can.
Here's what you'll need:
-1 lb ground chicken
-1/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
-1/4 grated parmesan cheese
-1 tsp dried basil
-1 tsp Italian seasoning
-2 cloves garlic, chopped
-1 cup spinach
-1/3 cup tomato/marinara sauce
-1/4 tsp Himalayan sea salt
-1/4 tsp ground black pepper
-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
-1/3 cup part skim mozzarella, shredded
Instructions:
1) Mix together all ingredients except for the mozzarella in a bowl.
2) Form mixture into 3 to 4 burger patties depending on the size patties you'd like. We made 3 because we were going bunless.
3) Grill the burgers for about 8 minutes on each side. Watch the burgers closely because cooking times may vary by grill.
4) Add the shredded mozzarella to the tops of the burgers and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
5) Remove the burgers from the grill and serve as desired. You can also add some additional sauce if you'd like.
I also grilled some broccolini (tossed in olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes) and whole tomatoes as sides. They were both delicious and highly recommended! The tomatoes were great with the burger and are a good substitute for adding additional sauce.
I hope you enjoy these as much as we did! Let me know what you think, and feel free to subscribe to e-mail updates on new blog posts below!