Corinn's Spicy Hamburgers

The nutrition facts were designed at Calorie Count!

Corinn's Spicy Hamburgers 

Burger patties:

1 pound ground beef 80/20 (not any leaner than that)

1 minced shallot or 1/4 of a minced purple onion

2 cloves minced or crushed garlic

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon coarse black pepper

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary

1/2 teaspoon coriander powder

1/2 teaspoon mustard powder

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 egg

1/4 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce

Garnishes (all are optional and not included in the nutrition facts):

Green leaf lettuce or arugula

Sliced purple onion

Sliced dill or bread n' butter pickles

Sliced tomatoes

Sliced avocado

Sliced cheese of your choice (I find Havarti, baby Swiss and sharp cheddar to be my favorites)

Strips of cooked pork belly bacon

A fried egg

Good quality sandwich rolls

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl place the pound of ground beef, the egg, the seasonings, the minced or crushed garlic and the minced shallots or purple onion. Add the bread crumbs and mix to combine but be careful not to over-mix and mush up the meat. When mixing is complete, if the mixture is too wet, add more panko to dry it out. It should have a slightly wetter consistency than the raw ground beef alone and should easily form into dense patties. Heat an iron skillet (or any pan with high heat conductivity) to temperature; you'll know it's ready when a drop of water skitters across the surface. Use a small piece of the meat mixture as a "test" for seasoning; cook it through and taste it, then adjust salt and heat levels accordingly.

Once the burger mix is appropriately seasoned, cook on high heat on both sides until nicely browned (if medium doneness is desired). If you want well-done burgers, cook them on medium-high heat for a longer period of time. When the burgers are just a hair away from finished, place a slice of cheese of your choice on top and cut off the heat, allowing residual heat from the pan to finish the burgers themselves and melt the cheese. Allow the burgers to rest for 10 minutes before eating--this is a good time to prepare any garnishes or toast your buns.

After the burgers rest, plate up with your favorite garnishes or buns, french fries, coleslaw, potato chips or any side dish of your choice and enjoy. :)

Crazypotato98’s Thick and Juicy Hamburgers

Can a calorie counter eat a hamburger? Of course, The important thing is planning, low cal side dishes, and portion control. The nutrition facts were created at Calorie Count!

Crazypotato98’s Thick and Juicy Hamburgers

Ingredients:

(Makes 6 servings)

9/20 kg 90% lean ground beef

1/3 cup oats

2/3 cup water

1 tbsp ketchup

1 tbsp teryaki sauce

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp mustard

1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. 

Pat out six patties and fry in nonstick skillet until no longer pink in the middle. 

Serve on whole-wheat buns, ketchup and pickles. Lettuce and tomato make it more delicious. If you add cheese, don't forget to log the calories!

Meganr's Vegetarian Sloppy Joe with Tempeh

A delicious twist on a sandwich usually associated with meat. So easy to make you can do this on a work night! The nutrition facts are at Calorie Count.

Vegetarian Sloppy Joe with Tempeh

Ingredients:

(Makes 2 servings)

1 tbsp olive oil

½ cup onions, chopped

½ cup red bell pepper, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup mushrooms, chopped

2 zucchinis, chopped

½ cup catsup

2/3 cup water

1 tbsp brown sugar

1 tbsp mustard

1 tsp celery seeds

½ tsp chili powder

4 ounces tempeh, chopped

Directions:

Heat olive oil in medium saucepan. Saute onion, bell pepper until tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Add garlic, saute 1 minute.

Stir in mushrooms, zucchini, catsup, water, brown sugar, mustard, celery seeds and chili powder. Heat to bubbling.

Stir in tempeh, reduce heat and simmer, covered, 10 minutes.

Spoon mixture onto your choice of bread or buns.

Janice's Sloppy Jose

It's easy to swap out turkey for ground beef in many recipes. The great thing is to ramp up the seasoning because turkey is a much milder flavor.

The chili powder gives this recipe a nice Tex-Mex flair!

The nutrition facts for this delicious twist on sloppy joes can be found at Calorie Count!

Sloppy Jose

Ingredients:

1 T  olive oil

½ c  carrots, grated

1 small  onion, chopped

4 t  garlic, chopped

¼ t  pepper

1/8 t  salt

3 T  tomato paste

1 pound  ground turkey (93% lean)

1 1/3 T  chili powder

15 oz  tomatoes, crushed

2 ½ T  brown sugar

1 T  cider vinegar

2 t  Worcestershire sauce

10  100% whole grain wheat buns

Directions:

Heat olive oil in large pot, saute carrots and onions for about 5 minutes, add garlic and saute 3 more minutes.

Add salt, pepper, and tomato paste and stir for about 1 minute.

Add ground turkey and chili powders. Stir til the turkey is cooked through.

Add 1 can crushed tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce. Simmer about 15 minutes.

Serve on the buns (calories are included in the nutrition facts).

Options:

Add cheese, but you will have to add the calories.

If not spicy enough, add some Tabasco. Once my kids were able to handle the heat, I just started adding Tabasco to the simmer stage. Yum!

Instead of buns, serve on tortillas and adjust the calories.

Crazypotato98's Sloppy Joe

Crazypotato98 said "the first time I made it, my husband came into the kitchen when I was not there and ate some. Then he found me and said, “What was that wonderful guisado you made?” A guisado is basically the word for stew, but not eaten like soup but instead spooned onto bread or tostada shells or rolled up in tortillas."

Now it's a favorite at their house. This version is so simple to make, your family will love it too. The nutrition facts for this great recipe can be found at Calorie Count!

Sloppy Joes

Ingredients:

24 oz  90% Lean Ground Beef

4 oz  Fresh Chopped Onions

1/3 cup, chopped  Green Pepper

10.75 oz  Tomato Soup

3 tsp  Worcestershire Sauce

3 tsp Yellow Mustard

Directions:

Cook ground beef, onion, and green pepper and drain off fat when meat is browned. 

Stir in the soup, Worcestershire Sauce, and mustard. 

Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Siimmer, covered, for 5 minutes. 

Serve on toasted buns with whatever condiments you desire (pickles, etc.)

Suggestions:

Excellent served with a side of oven-baked fries or oven-baked sweet potato fries with a dash of nutmeg and seasoned salt. 

I’ve also found that some nice baked acorn squash tastes good as a side with the sloppy Joes.

Trancendenz's Vegan Gyros

The same mix can be used to make Vegan "Chicken" Patties! The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count!

Vegan Gryos

Serves four

Ingredients:

1 package (8 oz) Grated Tempeh (use a cheese grater)
1 Grated onion
1/3 cup panko (or the "binder" of your choice such as vital wheat gluten, bread crumbs, or flour)
1/4 cup Parsley, fresh (use as much as you want, but I use what I can rip with one hand)
1 tsp Dill (or use 1 or two fresh sprigs)
Juice of one lemon or lime
1/8 t Salt
1/8 t pepper
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/8 t Sage (a small pinch)
1/8 t Basil (a pinch)

Directions:

Chop parsley and dill. Mix with grated tempeh and onion, lemon juice, seasoning, and garlic. Once well combined mix in the binder. Form patties and fry for 5 minutes a side in 1 tbsp olive oil on lower heat.

Pile onto flat bread with onions and other wonderful gyros toppings!

Or you can bake them in an oven like a "chicken" patty.

Laura's Caprese Pita & Lemon Flax Vinaigrette

When counting calories, it's easy to get into a rut at each meal and eat the same thing over and over until you just cannot face it anymore and pig out on something else. This sandwich is a great alternative to that tired old turkey sandwich or salad for lunch.

Laura's quick and easy "flexitarian" sandwich is a good source of fiber/protein and her flexitarian ingredient suggestions are in parenthesis. The recipe was analyzed for calories and nutrition using the first ingredient listed.

The nutrition facts for this delicious sandwich can be found at Calorie Count!

Caprese Pita (1 sandwich)

Ingredients:

1 oz. fresh mozzarella, chopped (alternative:  1/4 cup white beans, rinsed/drained - or add both as Laura does!)

1 cup halved cherry tomatoes

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1 tbsp pine nuts

2 tbsp low fat Italian dressing or Lemon-Flax Vinaigrette (see below)

1 whole-wheat pita pocket, cut in half

Directions:

Mix mozzarella and/or beans, tomatoes, basil, pine nuts and dressing together.  Stuff mixture into pita halves. Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts for Vinaigrette.

Lemon-Flax Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

1/4 C lemon juice (1-2 lemons)

1/4 C flaxseed oil

1/4 C white balsamic vinegar

 1 T Dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, minced

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Whisk ingredients and place in a small jar with a lid; lasts in the refrigerator for about 7 days.