Sliders and Strings

I'm always curious about trying new and interesting burgers, but find myself reverting back to the standard ground beef, yellow cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mustard, and red onion. I always want more from my standard burger and every time I go to try a new flavor I get scared that Husband won't like it. But, this time he actually recommended trying ground turkey burgers! I was so thrilled that he actually suggested it that I immediately knew I'd use the ground turkey for a recipe I'd printed off of PioneerWoman a few weeks back. The original recipe called for ground beef so I was worried about the substitution. Wow! I am glad I tried this variation on an incredible recipe! We are looking forward to eating these again in regular burger size!

Turkey Mushroom and Swiss Sliders
Source: adapted from PioneerWoman
Serves: 2-3 hungry adults

Ingredients:
Burger Sauce:
1/3 cups mayo
2 T ketchup
1 tsp Cayenne pepper (less if you want to cool it down)
Burger Topping:
2 T butter
1/4 yellow onion, finely diced
4 ounces fresh white mushrooms, chopped finely
3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
Burger:
1 T butter
1 lb ground turkey (or beef, or chicken)
2 T heavy whipping cream
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
4 slices swiss cheese, cut into 4 for a total of 16 squares
8 slider buns, split in half, buttered, and toasted

Directions:
-Mix ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl; set aside.
-Toast the buns under the broiler.
-Melt the 2 T butter in a large skillet. Add the onion, mushrooms, Worcestershire, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat for 5-8 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onions are translucent. Transfer to a separate bowl.
-Mix ground turkey, heavy cream, Worcestershire, salt and pepper in a bowl. Use your hands to form 8 small patties; make an indentation in the middle of each patty with your thumb (to keep them from plumping up too much when they cook). In the same skillet used for the onion mixture, melt the 1 T butter over medium-high heat. Add 4 patties at a time, indented side up. Cook for 5 minutes, then flip. Spoon generous portions of the onion mixture on top of the patty, then top with 1-2 slices of swiss cheese, depending on how cheesy you want your burger. Place lid on skillet and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, until burgers are cooked through and cheese is melted. Remove to a plate and keep warm while you finish up with the rest of the meat.
-Spread the spicy sauce on both halves of each bun. Place patties between the buns and serve with the following onion strings.

Onion Strings, or Manna from Heaven
Source: PioneerWoman
Serves: 2-3 hungry adults

Ingredients:
1 huge yellow onion
2 cups buttermilk (I goofed and used heavy whipping cream instead and they were still amazing, but use buttermilk)
2 cups flour
scant tablespoon salt
pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
1-2 qts cooking oil (veg or canola)

Directions:
-Heat oil to 375.
-Slice onion into super thin rings and transfer to a large, rectangular dish. Cover with the buttermilk and allow to sit for at least an hour.
-In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne.
-After the onions have had a nice long bath in the buttermilk, transfer a couple of tong-fuls of onions to the flour mixture and toss to coat well. Shake off excess flour and put them in the hot oil. Fry for just a couple of minutes until they're golden brown--they brown quickly so watch them like a hawk!