Italian Turkey Burgers Recipe (with Video)

For the pickled red onions
1. Slice off the root ends of the red onion, slice the onion in half through the roots and peel the onion. Thinly slice both halves into half moons.
2. Add the slices to a mason jar or glass container. Ideally the onions will just barely fit. Fill almost all the way with red wine vinegar (the amount of vinegar you need depends on the size of the container) then screw on the lid. Let this sit for at least 30 minutes but it can sit in the fridge up to 3 weeks.
For the burgers
1. If using dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes, put them in a small bowl and submerge with very warm water. Let them sit for 10 minutes, then drain and pat dry.
2. If using oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, pat them dry.
3. Either way, once the sun-dried tomatoes are ready, chop them into small pieces (not a fine dice, but not large chunks).
4. In a large bowl, add the ground turkey, Italian seasoning, salt and garlic powder, then the drained and chopped olives and the chopped tomatoes. Mix with your hands, wooden spoon or spatula until everything is evenly distributed.
5. Divide the mixture into 6 equal portions: pat the mixture into a flat slab in the mixing bowl and use your hand to divide it in half. Then divide each half into 3 sections that look like pizza slices. Form each portion into a burger patty, roughly 3/4" thick.
6. Heat a grill, grill pan or skillet over medium high heat. If using a skillet, add the avocado oil.
7. Add the burgers (if using a grill, close the grill) and cook for about 5-7 minutes per side, until they reach 165°. Don't touch them while they cook! Just let them sear until they're ready to flip.
8. Let them rest for 10 minutes.
For the balsamic aioli
1. While the burgers cook, make the balsamic aioli by stirring the balsamic vinegar into the mayo in a small bowl.
To serve
1. To serve, lay down a few lettuce leaves, then the burger, aioli, pickled red onions and chopped fresh basil. Top with more lettuce leaves and dig in!