Taste of Italy turkey burger

In a large bowl, crumble the ground turkey along with the chopped red onion, garlic, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, basil and oregano.

In a medium bowl, beat the egg. Beat in the pasta sauce and olive oil. Pour the sauce mixture over the seasoned turkey and mix to combine.

Mix in the sun-dried tomatoes, bread crumbs and one-third cup of the cheese, mixing gently by hand until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.

Divide the mixture and form 6 patties, coating them with the remaining cheese. Set aside to rest briefly. The patties can be assembled up to one day in advance, covered and refrigerated until ready to grill; remove the burgers from the refrigerator 15 minutes prior to cooking to temper slightly.

Just before cooking the burgers, heat the oil in a small saute pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add the mushrooms with the salt and pepper and saute until lightly colored, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the wine and olives, and keep the mixture over low heat until ready to make the sandwiches.

Heat the oven to 200 degrees.

Cook the burgers: Because the burgers are delicate, you might want to heat a cast iron grill pan on the grill, or cook them in a large frying pan. Heat the grill or frying pan over medium high heat. Coat the surface with a little spray oil and gently add the patties. Lower the heat to medium and cook the burgers for 4 minutes, careful not to move them until they are ready to turn. Gently and carefully flip the burgers using a spatula and your hand. Cook an additional 4 minutes, and check for doneness; a meat thermometer inserted should read 165 degrees.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and top the burgers with cheese. Continue cooking until the cheese melts, an additional 2 to 3 minutes. Gently remove the burgers and set aside to rest for a couple of minutes.

While the cheese is melting, slice the rolls. Place them in the oven to warm for a few minutes.

Assemble the burgers: Spoon the sauteed mushrooms and olives over the bottoms of each of the 6 rolls, followed by a slice of tomato. Place a burger on top of each. Divide the pasta sauce among the 6 burgers, spooning one-fourth cup of sauce over each. Cover each burger with a roll top and serve immediately.