Culture Magazine

C O O K I N G W I T H C H E E S E 202 3 culturecheesemag.com 47 TURKEY BURGERS WITH MUENSTER AND CARAMELIZED ONIONS Written by Teresa Finney Sweet caramelized onions pair nicely with mild muenster in this turkey burger. Melted butter lends some additional fat to lean ground turkey. Serves 4 CARAMELIZED ONIONS: 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 2 medium Vidalia onions, sliced into half-moons ½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste ¼ cup vegetable stock TURKEY BURGERS: 1 pound ground turkey 1 large egg, lightly beaten 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon garlic powder 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 8 slices muenster TO SERVE: Burger buns, sliced and lightly toasted Sliced lettuce Sliced avocado Sliced tomato CARAMELIZED ONIONS: Add olive oil and sliced onions to a medium skillet set over medium-high heat. Sprinkle salt over onions and stir. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour in vegetable stock and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low. Cook onions for another 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. TURKEY BURGERS: Add ground turkey, egg, salt, black pepper, cumin, garlic powder, and melted butter to a large mixing bowl. Mix to combine with your hands or a wooden spoon. remove paper and weights. (You can reuse the rice or beans for blind baking a number of times.) Line a couple of rimmed baking sheet with paper towels. Core tomatoes with a paring knife. Using a serrated knife, slice tomatoes ¼-inch thick. Place a layer of tomato slices on the prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle with some of the salt. Top with additional paper towels. Repeat until all tomatoes are sliced and salted. Set aside for at least 30 minutes while you prepare the rest of the pie. This is an important step; if you skip it, the tomatoes in your pie will be soggy. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer bacon to a paper towel–lined plate to drain. Pour off all but about 1 tablespoon of the rendered fat from the pan. If you don't want to cook with bacon fat, you can pour off all the fat and add olive oil instead. (Alternatively, you can completely skip the bacon and start with 1 tablespoon olive oil.) Heat bacon fat or oil over medium heat, then add onion and cook until lightly caramelized and golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Working a layer at a time, pat tomatoes dry with paper towels. Place a layer of tomato slices in the bottom of the piecrust. Add half of cooked onion, bacon, and herbs. Season with pepper. Repeat to make a second layer. Combine cheese, mayonnaise, and pimento in a small bowl. Spread mixture on top of herbs in the pie crust. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 425°F, or until lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Slice with a serrated knife. Serve warm or at room temperature. Adapted from Secrets of the Southern Table by Virginia Willis © 2018. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved. Shape turkey mixture into 4 1-inch-thick patties. Transfer patties to a small baking sheet or dinner plate, cover with cling wrap, and chill in refrigerator for 10 minutes or up to overnight. Grease a 12-inch cast iron skillet and heat over medium-high for 5 minutes. Add turkey patties to skillet and cook on one side for 5 minutes. Flip patties, top each with 2 slices of muenster, and cook for an additional 3 to 5 minutes. TO SERVE: Place burgers on toasted buns. Garnish with lettuce, avocado, tomato, and caramelized onions. PIMENTO CHEESE TOMATO-HERB PIE Written by Virginia Willis Pimento cheese and vine-ripened tomato is one of summer's best culinary combinations, ranking up there with buttery lobster rolls and flame-licked burgers on the grill. Note that this recipe requires blind baking the pie crust before baking with the filling. Makes 1 pie 1 (9-inch) store-bought piecrust, or your favorite recipe 4 tomatoes (about 1½ pounds) 1½ teaspoons coarse kosher salt, for sprinkling 2 slices bacon, cut into lardons 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional) 1 Vidalia onion, very thinly sliced ½ cup mixed chopped fresh herbs, such as chives, parsley, and basil Freshly ground black pepper, to taste 5 ounces freshly grated extra-sharp cheddar (about 1¼ cups) ¹⁄ ³ cup mayonnaise 1 tablespoon diced pimento To blind bake, heat oven to 425°F. Crumple a piece of parchment paper, then lay it flat in bottom of the pie crust. Weight paper with pie weights, dried beans, or uncooked rice. This will keep unfilled piecrust from puffing up in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and

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