Father’s Day Cookout-movie star hamburgers and green tomatoes gone italian

When I asked my husband Sunday morning what he wanted for Father’s Day dinner he said let’s make it easy nothing fancy, burgers and corn. Ironically there was a recipe in the Parade section of my newspaper from Gwyneth Paltrow. Well we know she can act and she has proven to be a singer, saw the Glee episode but how about cook?

Cheesy stuffed burgers, I must admit I was willing to try it, I already had turkey meat in the fridge so no shopping  for this one.

Before toppings

My family was originally disappointed when I mentioned turkey versus beef burgers but no one complained once they took a bite.

These were pretty tasty, I have never tried stuffing my burgers with cheese and I think I pressed them too hard to see if they were done as a lot of the cheese came out.

Also a tip is to pour what cheese you need in a separate bowl so you don’t contaminate the entire bag of shredded cheese. ALso they do puff when grilled, don’t be afraid to make the patties thin when you are making them.

For a side dish, I did not want to do corn again as we just had it a few days ago. The  June issue of Southern Living had a whole section of green tomatoes. I have made fried green tomatoes once and will not go there again, but how about Grilled Green Tomatoes Caprese style? Southern tradition with an italian twist…

Why not, I only have green tomatoes in my garden right now, so I took a sacrificial one for this recipe. The original recipes serves 8 to 10 (4 tomatoes)  but I quartered it not sure if I would like it and did not even think the kids would touch it.

Wow, will definitely make this one again. What a surprise, wish I made more. The best part is you can make the tomatoes and marinade before and cook them right along side the burgers.

Have extra green tomatoes, try  Green Gazpacho.      
DESSERT- Chocolate Angel Food Cake
Transform a regular angel food cake mix into a chocolate lovers dream. No need to give up chocolate when trying eat well.
Just add 1/4 cup of sifted cocoa into the flour mixture, not egg white part. Mix well.
                           
For added chocolate taste, I shaved some bittersweet chocolate over half of batter. The results will be a ribbon of chocolate. I added too much into the bottom half so my line was not well defined.
Add some whip cream and marinated fruit….Seconds please.

Cheesy Stuffed Burgers

adapted from My Father’s Daughter by Gwyneth Paltrow
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon rosemary, finely chopped
1 pound ground turkey (my package was 1 and 1/3 lb)
1 pinch kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/2 cup grated cheese of your choice (we used cheddar)
1. Warm the olive oil in a skillet and cook the onion and rosemary until translucent and fragrant. Set aside to cool.
2. Add the ground turkey, onion, rosemary, and salt to a large bowl and mix everything together. Form the turkey into four evenly-sized burger patties. (I made 5 with the extra 1/3 lb as I am serving 3 kids) Place 1 large pinch of cheese into each burger and pull the meat over the cheese.
3. Warm a grill to medium heat and grill the burgers until they are cooked through and firm. Serve them on whole wheat buns with any toppings you prefer!

Grilled Green Tomatoes Caprese from Southern Living
Serves 8 to 10

  • Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 4 medium-size green tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices (about 2 lb.)
  • 1 (16-oz.) package sliced fresh mozzarella cheese
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1/3 cup thinly sliced fresh basil


  • 1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic freezer bag; add tomatoes, seal, and shake gently to coat. Chill 1 hour. ( mine sat for closer to 2 1/2- 3 hrs)
  • 2. Preheat grill to 350° to 400° (medium-high) heat. Remove tomatoes from marinade, reserving marinade. Grill tomatoes, covered with grill lid, 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until tender and grill marks appear.
  • 3. Arrange alternating slices of warm grilled tomatoes and mozzarella cheese on a large, shallow platter. Drizzle with reserved marinade; season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with basil.


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1 Comment

  1. JDaniel4's Mom on June 22, 2011 at 7:58 pm

    Wow! Both of these look wonderful!