Club Burger Sliders with Avocado Ranch Dressing

For the Fourth of July I wanted to make an All-American dish, of course. I had come across these club burger sliders in my recent Rachael Ray magazine and thought they were a great twist on two classic American dishes, the club sandwich and burgers. I loved the addition of the avocado ranch instead of your typical mayo or mustard. It had such a bright and fresh flavor. This dressing would be great on other sandwiches as well. What's also neat about these burgers is that the bacon is inside the burger. The burgers were moist and flavorful and were the perfect little bite. You could easily make these into bigger patties and serve them on regular hamburger buns if you want. I used lean ground turkey for these and it worked great. I wouldn't recommend using the turkey breast because I think it would dry the burgers out. You can also use this same idea for regular beef burgers as well, just sub the poultry seasoning for your favorite beef marinade. This is a great party appetizer or just eat two or three and add some side dishes for a well rounded meal.

Club Burger Sliders with Avocado Ranch Dressing
Source: Slightly adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray

Ingredients:
For Burgers:

3 slices turkey bacon or regular bacon, cooked & chopped
1 pound ground turkey
1/2 vidalia onion
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
Salt and pepper

Handful of parsley, chopped (optional)

For Avocado Ranch Dressing:

1/2 hass avocado
1/2 cup sour cream
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 to 1 clove garlic, finely chopped

Salt & Pepper
handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
handful of fresh chives, finely chopped (optional)
handful of fresh dill, finely chopped (optional)

For Assembly:

8 slices whole wheat bread
Bibb or butter lettuce leaves, for serving
1 plum or vine-ripened tomato, thinly sliced

Directions:
Preheat an outdoor grill or griddle pan to medium high. Place a skillet over medium-high heat. Spray pan with cooking spray and add the bacon to the pan and cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels to cool, then chop.

While the bacon cooks, place the turkey in a large bowl. Grate the onion on top of the turkey to get 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons onion juice. Add the poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, and parsley. Add the cooked bacon, mix and form 8 slider patties, about 2 1/2 to 3 inches wide. Cook on the grill or griddle, turning once, until cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes.

While the sliders cook, place the avocado in a food processor or blender. Add the sour cream, lemon juice, garlic, and herbs. Season with salt and pepper. Process into a smooth, thick sauce.
Taste and add more herbs or seasonings if necessary.

Toast the bread in a toaster or you can broil it in the oven. After bread is toasted, use a 2 or 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut out rounds of bread (size of cookie cutter depends on the size of your burgers), discard the crusts. Serve the bacon-turkey sliders with the lettuce, tomatoes and avocado-ranch sauce between the toasts.