Avocado-Lime Cheeseburger [Recipe]

I’m bored with my usual birthday posts. More often than not, I end up making promises for this blog—and to myself—that I’ll most likely never keep. So, since it is a Thursday, I think today would be the perfect day for the next installment of my randomly recurring “Taste Bud Thursday” series instead. And since, for many of you, tomorrow marks the official start of the Memorial Day weekend and the start of grill season, I thought I’d share my recipe for avocado-lime burgers.

To be honest, I don’t remember exactly what inspired me to concoct this recipe. If I had to guess, I would say that I probably ordered something similar at a restaurant and figured I could make them at home. I’ve spent years experimenting on this recipe, years of pulling my hair out trying to keep my patties from falling apart. The avocado is excellent at keeping the patties juicy and plump. However, it’s best feature was also my worst enemy. I’ve tried adding bread crumbs and oatmeal, and I’ve tried using less avocado. My burgers fell apart all the same. Finally, after some research, I found a link that led me to an advice page for celebrity chef Rachel Ray’s website. In it she recommends refrigerating or freezing the patties for at least an hour before grilling. She goes on to point out that the patties should only be flipped once in cooking process. Excessive flipping contributes to breakage. Other websites recommend forgoing the bread crumbs and oatmeal all together. I gave Rachel Ray's suggestions a try and sure enough, it worked!

If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook or Twitter you will know that I actually I posted the above picture two weeks ago. I had teased this recipe and had hoped to post it that Thursday but—oh well! Here it is now. I hope you enjoy. Please, comment with your feedback below. I’d love to hear your thoughts. And happy summer!

INGREDIENTS & INSTRUCTIONS

Makes 4 servings

Burger Patties

• Half of a California (Hass) avocado, cubed
• Juice from half a lime
• 1 Tbsp cilantro, coarsely chopped
• 1 lb Extra lean ground beef
• 1/4 tsp black pepper 
• 1/2 Tbsp onion powder 
• 1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp French’s Worcestershire Sauce, Reduced Sodium 
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 whole California (Hass) avocado, halved and sliced into strips
• 4 slices Pepper jack cheese

Optional Ingredient

• 4 roll Arnold Sandwich Thins, Pre-Sliced, 100% Whole Grain 
• Uncooked red onion(s)
• Mixed greens
• Alfalfa sprouts (not pictured)

Steps

1. In a large mixing bowl, lightly mash cubed avocado with lime juice and cilantro and mix well. (I personally like to leave this mixture on the chunky side.) 
2. Add ground beef, onion and garlic powders, and worcestershire sauce. Mix well. 
3. Divide into 4 quarter pound patties and lay out on paper lined tray. Patties will be VERY moist and fragile. 
4. Refrigerate or freeze for at least an hour or until firm. 
5. When ready to grill, lightly salt each side of the patties before putting on the grill.
6. On a lightly sprayed grill, cook first side for 4–6 minutes, then flip. 
7. Layer avocado and cheese on top of burgers and cook for an additional 4–6 minutes. 
8. Serve with sweet potato fries and your favorite cold beer.

On a side note, I calculated the Weight Watcher’s points for this recipe. The patties are 8 PointsPlus each with avocado slices and a slice of pepper jack on top. I prefer to use Arnold Sandwich Thins (3 PointsPlus) for my bread. I serve this with some 3 PointsPlus sweet potato fries and wash it all down with about a hundred points in beer.