Mmmm, Turkey Burgers!

My wife injured several of her teeth, and while recovering from root canals, her ability to chew is limited, so I've been expanding my range of things made with chopped meat. I've never been a fan of chopped turkey, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

So I bought some chopped turkey, started experimenting, and have come up with a recipe for burgers that we all really like! I first bought the meat from a typical supermarket, but found that they often add flavorings and water. It worked OK, but I prefer the meat I can buy at Whole Foods, and I mix equal portions of white and dark meat at a combined price of about $5/pound.

Curried Turkey Burgers recipe

1 pound chopped turkey meat
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic granules (or powder)
1 teaspoon onion granules (or powder)
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 cup panko*
1 egg

Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix well (I use my hands, same as with meat loaf) and form into 4 patties. Grill or saute as you would hamburgers. I haven't measured the time it takes, but I think it takes longer than pure beefburgers. I suggest using an instant-read meat thermometer and after cooking 4-5 minutes per side, take the temperature. You're looking for 165 degrees.

*Panko is a Japanese form of bread crumbs, available at Asian groceries. You can substitute other bread crumbs, but make them as fine as possible.

Strange Fruit

Why is it that breakfast joints, even some otherwise good ones, insist on serving "Mixed Fruit" jelly? Guess it's cheaper, especially the no-name foodservice brands like Sysco.

Why do they think people want mixed fruit jelly? Do we buy it at the store? No!

A diner in northeastern Pennsylvania is attached to a grocery store. They don't sell Mixed Fruit Jelly in the store. So why do they think the same customer wants it when he dines out?

C'mon, restaurants, please serve real preserves, and spend the extra two cents to give us a decent name brand like Dickinson, Knotts Berry or Smuckers at least, OK?