Middle Eastern lamb burgers

Rich, aromatic and full of flavour, these Middle Eastern lamb burgers are the perfect accompaniment to a balmy summer’s afternoon. The only hard thing about this dish will be summoning the willpower to stop yourself at just one. Try them this weekend.

Serves: Four

Ingredients:

Tomato yogurt sauce

• 1/3 cup tomato relish or chutney
• 1 teaspoon harissa paste or ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 200g reduced fat natural yogurt

Lamb burger patties 

• 500g lean lamb mince
• 1 medium onion, grated or finely chopped
• 1 cup grated pumpkin
• ½ cup dried wholegrain breadcrumbs
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon paprika

Additional ingredients

• Olive oil spray
• 180g haloumi cheese, sliced
• 4 wholegrain or sourdough rolls, toasted
• 1 small Continental cucumber, sliced
• 2 cups baby cos lettuce leaves, to serve

Method:

1. Mix relish, harissa and yogurt in a small bowl to make tomato yogurt sauce. 
2. Combine burger ingredients well in large bowl and form into four patties.
3. Heat non-stick frypan and cook burgers for 4-5 minutes on each side until brown.
4. Transfer to baking paper lined oven tray and bake at 180°C for 25-30 minutes.
5. Wipe frypan with absorbent paper and heat over medium heat.
6. Pan-fry haloumi for a couple of minutes on each side or until golden brown.
7. Serve burgers on toasted rolls with haloumi, yogurt, lettuce and cucumber.

We know what to eat to stay healthy. So why is it so hard to make the right choices?

Recipe courtesy of Legendairy – visit their site for more delicious food ideas.

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