Juicy Greek Turkey Burger Recipe

I wanted to update this old Greek turkey burger recipe because it’s one of our favorite recipes that kids can help to make some of the steps. As an occupational therapist, I definitely love cooking with kids because of the developmental benefits. Plus, when kids are involved in making dinner, even more complex recipes like cooking this Greek turkey burger, they get a sense of autonomy and independence that they can carry over to other life skills.

This is a great cooking life skills recipe because it has different levels of tasks:

Our Greek Turkey Burger recipe has chopping, stirring, slicing, cooking the burger, spreading the ingredients. You can see how different steps require different levels of motor skill as well as safety and cognition. You could alter this recipe depending on the level and age of the kids who are helping you make it!

Greek Turkey Burger Recipe

Is there anything that says “Summer” more than a burger hot off the grill? Burgers, sun, and good times with friends and family are what summer is all about.  When families go to Fourth of July picnics or grill out, it is fun to make delicious foods that help to celebrate summer.  This Greek Turkey Burger recipe is a great addition to your summer grilling, and uses fresh ingredients.  

 
 
Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues

 

Greek Turkey Burger Recipe

 
I love a good burger.  There is no denying that.  It’s my go-to meal when I need to get dinner on the table in a hurry.  One of my favorite ways to add variety to burgers is by trying new combinations of toppings and mixed-in ingredients.  These turkey burgers were a new spin on the classic hamburger and they were a huge hit in our house.  (One that we’ll be making again very soon!) 
 
 
It’s a Greek-style turkey burger with a juicy cucumber sauce topping and basil and tomato feta that is mixed right into the ground turkey.  
 
Anytime cheese is mixed into the burger meat, it’s a win in my book! The flavored feta adds a nice pop of taste, but what really makes this turkey burger flavorful is the cucumber sauce.  It’s an easy sauce to whip up. (So easy in fact, that my two year old helped me make it!).
 
 
Anytime a shopping trip is made easier when there are four kids aged 8 and under in tow, it makes this mama smile.  When we hit the grocery store, I usually have all four attached in some variety to the shopping cart so it can be a bit of a spectacle to see us troop through the produce aisles. 
Fresh veggies go well on a Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues
This recipe is nice because it has a healthy addition of extra veggies. 
 

Ingredients for Greek Turkey Burger

Gather your ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup yogurt (you can also replace the yogurt with a ranch dressing)
  • 1/4 cup peeled and minced cucumber
  • 1 lb ground turkey
  • 3/4 cup crumbled basil and tomato feta cheese, divided
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 4 onion rolls
 
It’s a place where you can save time and money while getting fresh ingredients to help you celebrate summer!

Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues
 

yogurt sauce for turkey burgers

The yogurt sauce for the Greek Turkey Burger is the main flavor ingredient. The sauce uses:

  • 1/2 cup yogurt (you can also replace the yogurt with a ranch dressing)
  • 1/4 cup peeled and minced cucumber
 
Cucumber ranch sauce to go with this Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues
 
To make the yogurt sauce for the turkey burgers, you’ll need to:
  1. Chop the cucumber into small pieces.
  2. Mix the ranch dressing and chopped cucumber in a bowl and place to the side.

 
Cucumber ranch sauce to go with this Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues
 


My two year old helped me mix up the cucumber sauce.  We love cooking together. Cooking with kids is such a great way to add learning into the kitchen as they read and follow recipes, problem solve, motor plan, and build executive functioning skills.  I think that getting the kids involved in making the foods that they eat really encourages them to try new things like these turkey burgers.  

When kids scoop and stir with real ingredients, it develops the visual motor skills that they use in everyday tasks. It’s great to offer a task like this one to young kids because they can really get involved in making dinner. They are a huge help!
 

Prepare the turkey burger

Next, you’ll prepare the turkey burger. 

  1. Combine the ground turkey with 1/2 cup feta cheese and the black paper. Shape the ground turkey into 4 oz. patties and flatten them slightly.
 
 
Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues
 

2. Grill or broil the turkey burgers, using direct medium heat for 6-8 minutes per side or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.

Get that feta cheese ready. We used a feta mixed with crumbled basil and tomato.

3. Meanwhile, heat the onion rolls only until they are warm. For each burger, spread 2 tablespoons of the cucumber and yogurt sauce onto each roll. Place the burgers on the rolls and top each burger with 1 tbsp of feta.

4. Add slivered onions and lettuce. 

Enjoy!


Fresh veggies go well on a Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues
 

This recipe has many tasks that require precision and fine motor control. You can have older kids slice the onions and chop the cucumbers. We covered how cooking improves fine motor skills in a previous post.
 

Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues
 



 
Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues
 
 
Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues

Greek Turkey Burger Recipe, perfect for summer cooking and barbecues


Let us know if you try this Greek Turkey Burger at your summer picnics this year. What are your favorite Fourth of July foods?

 

 

Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

Vegan Smashed Potatoes with Avocado Pesto

We’re continuing to cook our way through the alphabet and we are up to letter V.  Vegan recipes are the topic for today with the Cooking With Kids bloggers.  We decided to create a Smashed Potato with Avocado Pesto.  


This might just be my favorite recipe that we’ve made so far in our Cooking With kids series.  My kids on the other hand?  They tried the avocado pesto.  And did not like it.  But a taste was all that I asked, so I’m happy that they tried a new food.  


It really was a tasty recipe, though (once you get past that green pesto lump on the smashed potato).  The almond/avocado/lemon/basil blended nicely with the salt and oil of the potatoes and made a great side dish for dinner.


We used almonds in our pesto recipe instead of pine nuts like is typically used in pesto recipes. 

Vegan smashed potatoes with avocado pesto.  Pesto is made with almonds instead of pine nuts.  Cooking with Kids recipe that kids can cook and try new foods!

Vegan Smashed Potatoes with Avocado Pesto Recipe



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To make the Vegan Smashed Potatoes and Avocado Pesto, you’ll need these ingredients:
6-7 Baby red potatoes
olive oil for brushing
salt to taste
1 avocado, chopped
1/4 cup almonds, finely chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil
2 additional Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp lemon juice
3 Tbsp water
1 small chopped tomato
pepper to taste

Vegan smashed potatoes with avocado pesto.  Pesto is made with almonds instead of pine nuts.  Cooking with Kids recipe that kids can cook and try new foods!

Have your child wash and dry the potatoes to remove any dirt specks.

Vegan smashed potatoes with avocado pesto.  Pesto is made with almonds instead of pine nuts.  Cooking with Kids recipe that kids can cook and try new foods!

Boil the potatoes until soft.  Allow to cool.  Rub olive oil on the outside of the potatoes and sprinkle with salt.


Layer a sheet of aluminum foil on a cookie sheet.  Place the potatoes on the foil.  Smash with a Kitchen Mallet. My four year old loved this part!

Vegan smashed potatoes with avocado pesto.  Pesto is made with almonds instead of pine nuts.  Cooking with Kids recipe that kids can cook and try new foods!

 

Vegan smashed potatoes with avocado pesto.  Pesto is made with almonds instead of pine nuts.  Cooking with Kids recipe that kids can cook and try new foods!
 

Chop the almonds and pull the basil apart into small pieces.  An adult should chop the almonds, but kids can pull apart the basil leaves.  It’s a great fine motor exercise for little hands.


In a blender or food processor, blend the almonds, basil, lemon juice, water, and olive oil.  Blend until well mixed into a puree.  You may need more water.  


Scoop spoonfuls of pesto onto the potatoes.  Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes.  

Vegan smashed potatoes with avocado pesto.  Pesto is made with almonds instead of pine nuts.  Cooking with Kids recipe that kids can cook and try new foods!



Pull the potatoes out and add chopped tomatoes.  Sprinkle with black pepper to taste.

Vegan smashed potatoes with avocado pesto.  Pesto is made with almonds instead of pine nuts.  Cooking with Kids recipe that kids can cook and try new foods!
Vegan smashed potatoes with avocado pesto.  Pesto is made with almonds instead of pine nuts.  Cooking with Kids recipe that kids can cook and try new foods!

 



Looking for more Vegan recipes?  See what the other Cooking with Kids bloggers have made:

Stop and see more of our Cooking with Kids recipes:

Quinoa Lettuce Wraps  

Q is for Quinoa: Quinoa Lettuce Wraps 
R is for Rice: Vegetable Rice 
S is for Spaghetti: Leftover Spaghetti Cups

Cooking With Kids Recipes

We’ve been busy cooking our way through the alphabet with our Cooking With Kids A-Z series.  You can find all of the recipes here.  We love the learning and therapeutic benefits to cooking with kids so this series is a winner for us.  Try all of these recipes for tasty dishes that you can cook together as a family.

Cooking With Kids recipes for learning in the kitchen.  So many healthy meal ideas on this site that kids can make and learn while cooking.

Cooking With Kids A-Z Recipes

 Apple Dumpling Recipe  Banana Cheesecake Bites Veggie Puffs Recipe Homemade Pasta Recipe

A is for Apples: Apple Dumpling Recipe | B is for Bananas: Banana Cheesecake Bites Recipe
C is for Carrots: Veggie Puffs Recipe | D is for DoughHomemade Pasta Recipe

 Overnight Egg Strata Recipe   Strawberry Whole Wheat Pancakes  Fruit Pizza Recipe  Honey Peanut Butter Crispy Treats

E is for Eggs: Overnight Egg Strata Recipe | F is for FlourStrawberry Whole Wheat Pancakes
G is for Grapes: Fruit Pizza Recipe | H is for HoneyPeanut Butter Honey Squares
Wedding Soup Recipe  Jam and Greek Yogurt Dip Frozen Fruit Kabobs  Lemon bar Mason Jar Cookies
I is for Italian: Wedding Soup Recipe | J is for Jam: Jam and Greek Yogurt Dip
 K is for Kiwi Fruit: Frozen Fruit Kabobs | L is for LemonsLemon Bars Mason Jar Cookies
Vegetable Quesadilla Recipe   Honey Nut Popcorn  Antipasto Skewers
M is for Mushrooms: Veggie Quesadilla Recipe | N is for Nuts: Honey Roasted Nuts Popcorn | O is for OlivesAntipasto Skewer Kabobs

Stay tuned for more Cooking With Kids Recipes.
P is for:
Q is for:
R is for:
S is for: 
T is for:
U is for: 
V is for: 
W is for: 
X is for: 
Y is for: 
Z is for:

Holiday Themed Cooking With Kids Ideas

   

Book Related Cooking With Kids Ideas

  


More Cooking With Kids Ideas

   

  

Stop back for more Cooking With Kids Ideas.  We’re cooking up a storm all the time!


Some of our favorite tools for Cooking With Kids are ones we use every day. (Affiliate links are included.)
KitchenAid Mixer
Safety knives
Sturdy Cutting Board
Plastic Measuring Cups and Spoons


You will want to follow along on our Cooking With Kids Pinterest board, too:





Want to cook healthy foods for your family?  Grab Yum! Deliciously Healthy Meals for Kids, a cookbook for busy families that want healthy meal ideas. 

Healthy recipes for kids

Recipes for Sensory Play

  We love all things Sensory Play.  So when we went through the link ups from last month’s Share It Saturday linky party, we were drawn to the sensory activities.  Even better than sensory play with the kids, is a material that needs to be mixed, baked, whipped, or stirred.  Part of the sensory play experience is creating the concoction from scratch with the kids.  It’s a great way to get the kids involved in the sensory play set up and learning with measurements, direction following, and sequencing.  These recipes are fun ways to explore the senses and create with recipes for sensory play!

Recipes for Sensory Play

Recipes for play dough, paint, slime, cloud dough and more

Liquid Driveway Chalk is a fun way to explore the senses while creating. 

Cherry Glitter Paint from Mini Monets and Mommies

Colored Sand 

Cake and Ice Cream Play Dough from Dabbling Mama

Kool Aid Puffy Paint 

Marshmallow Paint from Fantastic Fun and Learning

Homemade Play Dough Recipes from Crystal & Co.

Fizzing Sidewalk Paint from Kids Activity Blog

Textured Paint 

Gold Slime from Fun-A-Day

Coconut Cloud Day from Fun-A-Day

Baking Soda Dough 

Sensory Play with kid-tested recipes for sand, puffy paint, soda dough and more.