Official Bun Toaster

My little brother has been in town for a few days so the Mother Unit decided to pop up this weekend to visit the two of us. It was the perfect excuse for a dinner party. Appetizers away! We went with the standard cheese and cracker set up (2 cheese, 1 meat): Cabot Cheddar, Cranberry Wensleydale, summer sausage, and various crackers. The Dork picked out some garlic hummus so I whipped up some of my delicious homemade pita chips. We had the Cranberry Wensleydale on New Years and it was delicious so when I saw it at the store I scooped some up. The boys decimated half of the dishes before I could get a (horrible) picture, there was a lot more to start with!

Someone was looking a wee bit too comfortable on my couch....

It's always fun to put your mother to work in your kitchen. 

Her new title is "the official bun toaster"

The main meal: my yummy cranberry-cheese turkey burgers on brioche rolls (from Reading Terminal) with all the fixings, Old Bay Mayo, and Mr. Lawyer made his Cucumber Dill Pasta Salad (I totally just put everyone to work in the kitchen this weekend).

Mom took this picture of the burgers cooking!

Turkey Burger Sliders 

(adapted from allrecipes.com) 

Ingredients:
1 pound ground turkey
1/3 cup sharp cheddar, shredded (I used more like 1/2 cup of Cabot)
1/4 cup cranberries
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
1-2 Tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup white wine
Directions:
1. Mix together everything (Turkey through Red Pepper Flakes) except the Olive Oil and Wine. I like the “Claw” method of mixing and using my hand like a creepy raptor claw because all of my many food magazines inform me that over mixing the burger meat will make it tough and this method will avoid it. Really it’s just fun to pretend to be a raptor in the kitchen.
2. Make burgers 3 inches in diameters for sliders. The many food magazines also tell me to make a thumb print indentation in the middle of the patty to ensure even cooking time. Not as fun as the claw.
3. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Once it’s hot throw in your burgers. Cook them 2-3 minutes on each side.
4. Pour the wine over the patties, cover, and cook for 5 more minutes.
5. Remove the sliders and place on a paper towel and then eat them!
6. Drink the remain bottle of wine.