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Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger

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Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger are healthy, delicious, turkey burgers made juicy thanks to added zucchini and topped with a summer garden tomato bruschetta set over a bed of baby arugula – no bun required!

Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger are healthy, delicious, turkey burgers made juicy thanks to added zucchini and topped with a summer garden tomato bruschettaNaked Turkey Bruschetta Burger

I love turkey burgers and make them so many ways, but these have been one of my most popular summer burgers! I always keep ground turkey in my fridge, and turkey burgers are my weekly go to. You can also try this traditional Turkey Burger Recipe, or these juicy Turkey Burgers with Zucchini, Greek Feta Turkey Burgers, and if you like it spicy, try these Buffalo Turkey Cheeseburgers!

This dish was inspired by a meal my girlfriend ordered during a girl’s night out. I always get inspired when I go out to eat, and created this lighter version which turned out delicious. For the turkey burger, I went with my skinny turkey burger recipe I posted a few years back, it’s made with shredded zucchini which gives it lots of moisture and great flavor. They are delicate, so I prefer to make them on a skillet instead of the grill.

This is the perfect summer meal for under 300 calories, especially if you have lots of tomatoes in your garden. You can easily make these vegetarian by using a boca burger or veggie burger of your choice.

Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger are healthy, delicious, turkey burgers made juicy thanks to added zucchini and topped with a summer garden tomato bruschetta

Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger are healthy, delicious, turkey burgers made juicy thanks to added zucchini and topped with a summer garden tomato bruschetta

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Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burgers

4.80 from 10 votes
7
Cals:288
Protein:27
Carbs:10
Fat:14
Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger are healthy, delicious, turkey burgers made juicy thanks to added zucchini and topped with a summer garden tomato bruschetta set over a bed of baby arugula – no bun required!
Course: Lunch
Cuisine: American
Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger are healthy, delicious, turkey burgers made juicy thanks to added zucchini and topped with a summer garden tomato bruschetta topping over a bed of baby arugula – no bun required!
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 8 minutes
Total: 20 minutes
Yield: 5 servings
Serving Size: 1 burger 

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup chopped red onion
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
  • 3 medium vine ripe tomatoes
  • 2 small cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tbsp fresh basil leaves, chopped
  • 3 oz part skim mozzarella, diced

For the turkey zucchini burgers:

  • 1.25 lbs 93% lean ground turkey
  • 1 small zucchini, grated (1 cup, or 5 oz)
  • 1/4 cup seasoned whole wheat breadcrumbs, or GF crumbs
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • 1 tbsp red onion, grated
  • salt and fresh pepper
  • oil spray

For serving:

  • 2 medium tomatoes, sliced into 10 thin slices
  • 4 loose cups baby arugula

Instructions

  • Combine the red onion, olive oil, balsamic, salt and pepper in a large bowl.
  • Set aside a few minutes while you chop the tomatoes, then place in the bowl.
  • Add the garlic, basil and additional salt and pepper, to taste and mix well and set aside.
  • Toss in the cheese when ready to serve.
  • Squeeze the excess moisture from the zucchini in a paper towel.
  • In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey, shredded zucchini, breadcrumbs, garlic, onion, salt and pepper.
  • Form into 5 equal sized patties about 5 oz each, forming them as flat as possible.
  • Heat a large skillet on medium-high heat.
  • When hot, lightly spray with oil.
  • Add the burgers to the pan and reduce the heat to medium-low.
  • Cook until browned, about 4 minutes, then flip and cook another 4 minutes, careful not to burn.
  • To serve, arrange 3 slices of tomatoes on each dish, then place 1 cup arugula on top in the center, then top with the burger and finish with the bruschetta (don't forget to add the cheese), serve right away.

Last Step:

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Nutrition

Serving: 1 burger , Calories: 288 kcal, Carbohydrates: 10 g, Protein: 27 g, Fat: 14 g, Saturated Fat: 2 g, Cholesterol: 10 mg, Sodium: 169 mg, Fiber: 2 g

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122 comments on “Naked Turkey Bruschetta Burger”

  1. This is one of my favorite Skinnytaste recipes! I’ve been using it for years and it always makes me happy. My teenage daughters actually request this to be on the menu and my husband doesn’t ever ask what’s in it even though he knows it’s healthy.

  2. Love this! Perfect summer meal. So tasty; make the bruschetta topping (without the cheese) the day before to let all the flavors marinate.
    What are the nutrients for just the burger? I ran out of the bruschetta. 🙂

  3. Avatar photo
    Audra M Smith

    Just Wow! Couldn’t taste the zucchini at all, which I wouldn’t have at all minded! I might add some bigger chunks next time and thought should have added my shitake mushrooms I had left over in my fridge, too 🙂

    I’m up early mealplanning for my week – my nutitionist said this is one of her favorite food blogs for recipes, and I LOVE that you have a “print” button. Others she forwarded me did not have, so I will not be going back….I can’t remember the recipe, and you certainly cannot put this up on the phone with all the ads that come through. So thank you for the forethought!!!

  4. Absolutely delicious!  My sister and I made this when I was visiting her.  We substituted feta cheese and it was divine!  I’m trying the same recipe tonight with ground chicken.

  5. Avatar photo
    Julie Michailidis

    Well I made Gina’s bruschetta last night and we all loved it. My grandkids helped me make it and they said ” we don’t like it – we LOVE it. So now I will use the bruschetta for these burgers tonight. Thanks Gina! You always have my back with these tasty and creative ideas! Love them

  6. I love these burgers so much that last week I bought 3 pounds of ground turkey and made a huge pile of the burgers and froze them.  So I just saw this recipe and had to try it.  This has to be one of my favorite Skinny Taste recipes of all time.  I think I could eat this every day.  I have lost 77 pounds in one year.  I use Skinny Taste recipes at least 3 times a week.  They are almost always delicious!!!!!!

  7. Made this tonight but mistakenly bought turkey patties premafe. It was still delicious so I can’t wait to make it using the zucchini and breadcrumbs etc in my burger! Even my picky hubby liked this!?

  8. This was a delicious and easy meal! I made this and corn on the cob to go with it – perfect weeknight meal! Will definitely use the turkey burger and the bruschetta recipes again on their own!

  9. I just made these whole30 compliant by leaving out the breadcrumbs in the burgers and the mozzarella in the bruschetta. As long as you *really* squeeze the juice out of the zucchini (I did- there was only about a third of a cup after removing all the juice), the burgers hold together just fine without breadcrumbs and with nothing else added. I didn’t miss the cheese either. It’s FANTASTIC! Will be making this again for SURE! Thanks Gina!

  10. If I made this with 99% turkey which now on WW freestyle is 0 sp does anyone know what the sp would change to? 

  11. These are WONDERFUL. I’ve’ been making them exactly this way since I discovered Skinnytaste a few years ago.

    Full disclosure, if it’s a quick dinner night, I buy the bruschetta and they are still delicious.

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  15. Hi Gina
    Is the nutritional information for the burger only or the burger plus the arugula salad?

    Thanks!

  16. Avatar photo
    Wilhelmena Burise

    I made this, and we never missed the bun.  It was delish, and I plan to make again!  Thanks for sharing.

  17. I already had the turkey burgers in the freezer now just have to make the bruschetta.  I love different ways to use zucchini   

  18. As someone who has never been inclined to make or order turkey burgers, I was SO surprised by how delicious this recipe is! The burgers have so much flavor and are perfectly moist. I couldn't believe how much I loved them and am looking forward to leftovers tonight. GREAT recipe!

  19. We have SO many tomatoes! I'm going to make this tonight for my fiancé, I know he'll go crazy over it. Everything I've made from your website is AMAZING! Can't wait to buy your book in September!

  20. Avatar photo
    Michelle Baron

    I just made this recipe this weekend and it was absolutely delicious. It is definitely my new favorite burger! Love Love Love your site, so many wonderful recipes to try xo

  21. I bought some frozen turkey burgers but made the bruschetta topping and bought arugula. I'm hooked on this! I had it a few times for dinner last week, and I can't wait to eat some more this week.

  22. Avatar photo
    Kristinawilson82

    I made this to eat for lunch all week and it is amazing! I love the burger and can't see myself ever making another burger without zucchini in it. Great recipe! 🙂

  23. I just made the turkey burger and didn't add all of the other stuff. It was really good i normally don't like ground turkey but i couldn't even tell. All the ingredients in the patty helped the taste for me. Will def make again.

  24. I made this tonight and it was delicious!! Loved how much flavor the bruschetta provided, and the serving size was just right! Love the idea of making "naked" burgers, no one in my family even missed the bun! I've made so many recipes from your site, and haven't had a bad one yet. Thank you!

  25. Made this tonight and it was great! Even my 6 year old loved it and ate every bite! Your recipes are awesome, keep 'em coming, thank you!

  26. Absolutely outstanding! Have made this 3 times now. I always make a double batch to have leftovers for lunch for a few days. I typically skip the mozzarella and just do the tomatoes with the EVOO and balsamic vinegar with smashed garlic on top. LOVE this pairing with arugula!

    1. I didn't use breadcrumbs or any replacement for them. They were juicy and delicious! You could make breadcrumbs from GF bread…

    2. I didn’t use breadcrumbs either and id not replace them. Make sure to really squeeze all the juice from your zucchini. I had only about a third of a cup once all the juice was squeezed out. They will hold together just fine, no need to add anything else.

  27. Made this tonight! Yet another AH-mazing dinner! My 9 year old son, aka my picky eater, put the turkey(shhhh-zucchini) burger on wheat bread and said it was the best burger ever!! Everyone else loved the bruschetta and arugula!

  28. I can't wait to try this with our very own greens! We just planted romaine in the garden yesterday … Great one!!

  29. making this tonight – I think I'm going to sneak some finely chopped mushrooms into the burgers as well as the zucchini. It looks delicious, thanks for the wonderful recipes!

  30. Loved this Gina! My kids (8 and 10) LOVED this and said it was better than any other burger I've made! Even full fat ones! I didn't top theirs with the bruschetta but rather added sliced fresh mozzarella and sliced fresh tomatoes to theirs and drizzled balsamic vinegar/EVOO over the top. I left off the onions for them. Made my husbands on a bun with bruschetta mixture and mine on salad as stated. Only changes I made was to add crushed red peppers and granulated garlic and onion to the beef mixture. OUTSTANDING!!!

  31. So exciting about the target version of the cookbook! One question, will it include all the same recipes as the regular version and then some or will some recipes be swapped out for target exclusive ones?

  32. Great way to serve a turkey burger, Gina! And here I thought shredded zucchini was MY secret ingredient to keep turkey and chicken burgers moist and juicy! LOL Great minds think alike!

  33. Avatar photo
    Sophia Del Gigante

    Great recipe Gina! Congratulations on all your success that is soooo amazing! As another Long Island blogger it is nice to see someone succeed! XOXO!

  34. Congratulations Gina! You've given us all sooooo many outstanding recipes over the years, I am really happen that it will benefit you with financial success as well!!!

  35. Hi Gina. I love this recipe. It is a great way to sneak in some veggies and it also smells delicious. I have made meatballs with this same recipe (minus the brushetta) and have also made mearloaf (just yesterday actually). It is a big hit in my kitchen and I cant wait to get my cookbook. So excited!!!

  36. Avatar photo
    Lindsay Poplawski

    This is by far my favorite turkey burger but someone in the house is now gluten free. Can the breadcrumbs be omitted or replaced with anything?

  37. Hi Gina! I am SO excited for your cookbook – I've been following your blog for years and I am just so thrilled with all of your success! I already pre-ordered your book on Amazon, but you mentioned that Target version will have exclusive content (and maybe extra recipes?). Would you recommend purchasing that one instead?

    I'm sure you can't give out too many details, but just wanted to know if I should switch up where I order from 🙂

    1. The Target edition will include 4 extra bonus recipes in the book…. I guess if you already preordered on amazon you could cancel that order since it has not shipped and order the target edition instead…

  38. These turned out great! I made them for dinner tonight, and used ground chicken instead of turkey. My burgers were just a bit bland, so I think I'll add more spice to them next time. It was hardly noticeable, though, with the bold taste of the bruschetta. Also, we used mesculin mix greens, instead of arugula. I really enjoyed the zucchini in the burgers, too. I thought that was a nice touch. Thanks for posting such great recipes! :o)

  39. hi! I am 13 and following you blog to see what you eat . I NEED to lose weight ! so do you have any tips maybe so my parents can't tell I am trying ? please help.

  40. Great recipe! made it exactly and loved it. Was very healthy and fresh.. i think this would be great with chicken too. and comes together so much faster if you precut the veggies ahead of time.. Thanks again!

  41. I've made these twice now and they are delicious. The changes that I made were using romaine instead of arugula. I also using dried spices instead of fresh since that is what I have on hand. I've served with brown rice which goes well. The second time I made these I used shredded cheese instead of cubed and it wasn't as good. I would definitely recommend this recipe 🙂

  42. Avatar photo
    Jackie Barry

    This was a terrific dinner, came together quick and the kids and hubby loved it! Really added a lot of flavor to ho-hum turkey. Thanks for such a great site!

  43. These are really good. I used spinach instead of arugula because that's what I prefer. I will make again soon.

  44. This was fantastic! I am in love with the turkey burger recipe- it was so juicy and flavorful! Awesome!

  45. Avatar photo
    Raquel Westerdahl

    I made this last night and finished the last of it today for lunch and I'm so upset that it's all gone :(. This is such a great weekday meal I was blown away!! Definitely in the rotation from now on- soooooo easy!!!!!

  46. This is unbelievable! I want to bury my face in the bruschetta topping. I might. Don't tell anyone.

  47. Avatar photo
    Leland Yoder

    Tried these tonight, and they were delicious! My husband, who is not a great fan of poultry, thought they were great. I did make some variations to the recipe, however. Instead of putting the mozzarella in the bruschetta, I placed slices on the burgers just after flipping them, and let it start to melt while the other side cooked. Yum! After cooking, I schmeared about a tablespoon of pesto on each burger before topping with the tomato mixture. Double yum! I will DEFINITELY be making these again.

  48. Avatar photo
    Rosa Goldstein

    What a freaking incredible recipe!! I am obsessed. I even made it for my super picky boyfriend and he couldn't get enough. He even fought me for the leftovers. I will be making this over and over. Thanks so much for the post!

  49. Made this last night and it was so good. We ended up having them on buns because we didn't have arugula. My husband and I love our beef so this was a bit outside of our comfort zone but we will definitely be making these again… maybe even this week!

  50. This is my first Skinny Taste recipe. Made it tonight and my husband and I LOVED IT! The turkey burger was juicier and tastier than the one I ordered from a restaurant a few days ago. I can't wait to cook-up the leftover patties tomorrow.

  51. Avatar photo
    Rene Phillips

    Moist, tender and delicious! Husband had two! Larger than I expected. I kept checking to make sure I hadn't over-served myself because this was really filling. A lot of deliciousness for 7 WW points.

  52. These sound so amazing! Love both the zucchini in the burgers and the fresh summery bruschetta topping!

  53. We had these for dinner last night and loved them! Since there are only two of us we ate two and froze the rest for another night and then I just cut the topping recipe in half. Worked really well. Thanks for another yummy, quick dinner recipe.

  54. Avatar photo
    Jesica Kirrane

    My husband I and made these the other night… I have been eating the leftovers everyday! OMG the burgers are AWESOME! I'm going to do a double batch next time and freeze some so I have back ups! Thanks for all the wonderful recipes!

  55. Gina, I made these last night for dinner….So full of flavor, juicy, DELICIOUS!! Only thing I did different was omitted the mozz from the bruschetta and added a little skinny pesto instead. I just could not get over how much FLAVOR the burgers had with so little ingredients! Def a keeper. I froze the burgers I didn't cook, so I'll be having this again this week!

  56. Avatar photo
    Georgia | The Comfort of Cooking

    Awesome idea for a delicious, fresh summer burger! These look so scrumptious, Gina! Thanks for sharing and have a great weekend.

  57. Avatar photo
    Colleen Schaller

    I'm going to try this using carrots as you use in your buffalo turkey burgers. My 3 year old gets mad if his burgers don't have carrots in them now!

  58. I'm going to try this with ground chicken instead of turkey because my family prefers that. The kids prefer the texture of the chicken over the turkey. I think I'll also try doing them on our Foreman grill instead of on top of the stove. Thanks for the recipe!

  59. Thanks for this great recipe! I just picked up ground turkey with the exact intention to make burgers 🙂

    1. Avatar photo
      Skinnytaste Gina

      This happened by accident one summer when I had too much zucchini, now I do it intentionally, love it!

  60. This looks great. I think I am going to replace the bruschetta topping with more of a pico de gallo style topping. My family would like it better with Mexican flavors. I love the idea of serving the burger over arugula.

  61. This looks so fresh and yummy! I've tried the zucchini turkey burgers and they came out so moist and juicy. I think this time I'll add in a touch of cayenne, jalapeño or siracha to the mix as I like mine with a little kick!

  62. I'm going to try this with Buffalo Mozzarella cheese and replace the breadcrumbs with almond meal, sounds fantastic!

  63. Avatar photo
    Jaclyn Larisa Youngquist

    Yum! I have plenty of tomatoes that need to need to be used-perfect!

    xxx
    Jaclyn
    http://www.loveandbellinis.com