Who doesn’t want to have simple and tasty meals?

Maintaining a clean eating lifestyle is all about keeping things simple; if it is complicated, you make it harder for yourself. My focus recently has been on creating recipes that can be prepared and cooked quickly on a busy weeknight.

We all struggle to make healthy and tasty meals while keeping on top of everything else in life. This recipe is healthy, delicious and easy to make. You can cook on a single tray in the oven, and it is cooked in under 30 minutes. The preparation takes no more than 20 minutes, involving all the slicing, dicing, and mixing.  Each meal is portioned to feed four adults.

Takeaway alternative

We all love a naughty takeaway, but we can all live without the extra calories and the expanding waistlines. You don’t need to live without your takeaway; swap it out for a delicious and healthier fakeaway. These burgers have quickly become one of my favourite burgers to make. During the many months of COVID lockdown here in Auckland, these burgers were my go-to cheat meal. Even with lockdowns a distant memory, I still break these burgers out when I’m craving something naughty but don’t want all the processed crap that comes from real takeout. The best thing about these burgers is the cheese-filled open top; the filling delivers a light cheese crust with a beautifully creamy and spicy filling. 

Jalapeno burger recipe

Ingredients 

• 1 jalapeno pepper 
• 1 tbsp. yoghurt 
• 4 tbsp. mozzarella cheese, grated
• 30g Goat cheese
• 180g minced beef
• 1 garlic clove, minced 
• 1/2 tbsp. Cumin
• 1/2 tsp chilli flakes 
• Sea salt 
• Ground pepper 

Slice jalapeño in half, remove the seeds and finely chop them.

In a bowl, mix together the yogurt, mozzarella, goat cheese, and jalapeño. 

Take a small muffin tray and divide the cheese mix between 6 cups of the muffin tray.

Place the muffin tray in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C / 360 degrees F

Line a baking tray with baking paper or a silicone liner

While the cheese is chilling, start on the burger mix.

Take a large mixing bowl and add the meat, garlic, cumin, sea salt, and ground pepper. 

Mix the meat well and divide it into six portions.

Remove the muffin tray from the freezer and remove the cheese mix from the tray.

Take one portion of meat and flatten it out into a pattie.

Add a cheese portion to the centre of the pattie and bring the meat up around the cheese gently.

You should have enough meat to cover most of the cheese; leave a small opening at the top of the burger.

Bake at 180 degrees C / 360 degrees F for 20 minutes.

The outside of the burger should be brown, and the cheese is bubbling out the top.

Serve on a bed of lettuce or between two quick rounds.

Equipment

• Knife
• Chopping board
• Fork
• Small mixing bowl
• Large mixing bowl
• Measuring spoons
• Kitchen scale
• Silicone muffin pan
• Spoon
• Baking tray
• Baking paper or silicone liner

Nutritional disclaimer

Nutrition information is provided as an estimate based on the ingredients used and available in my area (New Zealand). The nutritional information is here to help you understand the recipe; I use MyFitnessPal to generate my estimates. For more accurate nutritional information, please use a nutritional calculator with the ingredients in your area.