Looking for a "lighter" way to have a cheeseburger, no tofu please!

Lizzy622 wrote: »

Queenmunchy wrote: »

Because lean beef can be so dry, I mix it with finely chopped mushroom and it gives moisture without taking away from the meaty flavor.

Yum that sounds like something I would like to try.

I do this also. And use dehydrated minced onion to help hold moisture....

I'm in the "if you want a burger have a burger camp". If you make it at home though, it's certainly easier to make them fit into your plan. I make mine with 85/15, but you could easily use a leaner meat or use turkey (which gets too dry IMHO). This is what I do:

1lb 85/15 ground beef
4oz cheddar cheese shredded or small cubes
1 egg
1T Worchester sauce
1/4c onion grated
salt and pepper to taste

I mix by hand until just combined and form into 1/4lb patties. That's it. I can't do gluten so I use lettuce for my "bun" which actually saves around 150 calories and top with other veggies like mushroom, tomatoes, onions, etc. I like grating the cheese because then it gets evenly distributed in the burger patty itself.

I love the heck out of a cheeseburger. It's my favorite thing - but I've realized a few things: 1) I'm a snob. If I'm going to eat a cheeseburger, it's going to be a really, really good one - so I only eat the ones I make at home or the ones from a handful of favorite burger joints. 2) Honestly, I can't ACTUALLY finish a whole cheeseburger. I mean, I can, but I usually feel crappy afterward. So when I eat a cheeseburger, I usually split one with my daughter. 1/2 a cheeseburger, even a "bad" one, really isn't that bad. 3) Fries are rarely worth it. I can count on one hand the number of places that make a French fry worth eating. So I almost always skip the fries.

93/7 ground beef mixed with diced onions and red pepper flakes
Gouda cheese

I have celiac disease so I never have a bun. ( they don't taste good enough to spend the money or the calories.)

I make burgers at home all of the time...93% and pre-sliced sharp cheddar.

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ground turkey. make patties like a hamburger. I put mustard on them (no calories)

If you have the lean ground beef, mix some Jimmy Dean ground sausage in with it to add the "moisture" it needs so as not to be dry. A one ounce serving is only 90 calories ... then you can forgo a bun and wrap that juicy cheeseburger in large lettuce leaves. 93/7 ground beef is typically around 170 calories for 4 ounces. Add the 1 ounce of sausage and 1 oz of gouda cheese (about 90 calories) for a total of around 350 calories ... that is a pretty good calorie count in my book!

@lemurcat12 mmm spicy brown mustard and raw onions for me

If I want to have a burger I'll buy the 93/7 beef. It's a lot more expensive at almost $5/lb but it's only 160 calories per 4 ounces. We also buy turkey burger but that's 250 calories so I tend to not use that for burgers knowing I'll be putting mayo and cheese on it and using a bun.

I am all about skipping the bun. I've also recently discovered the joys of getting a burger with a fried egg on it (best if the yolk is still runny), and I would much rather cut up a bunless burger with an egg than have a non-egged burger with a bun.

And yea, throw some lettuce and tomato under that and it's the best...mmm...

I learned that burgers taste far better without a bread bun and usually without cheese. I wrap mine in lettuce or cabbage, add onion, horseradish, ketchup, mustard. I think the bun takes away from the taste of the meat. Thinwhiches are OK, but might as well just save nearly 100 cals and not bother. I rarely taste the cheese well enough in a burger to make a difference. I will occasionally lightly sprinkle something like blue, feta, or goat cheese on my burger, but otherwise, I don't bother.

When I want to spluge on a burger, I will buy bison. My local Costco just started carrying ground bison again, so I will be picking some up next week. Bison is just...omg, you won't go back to ground beef for burgers. All of my family are bison burger converts. Otherwise, we go with salmon or turkey burgers.

There's Gardien Veggie Burgers - 110 calories each, rice based.
I really liked them, they have visible vegetables in the pattie and they're spiced similarly to sausage.

Queenmunchy wrote: »

Because lean beef can be so dry, I mix it with finely chopped mushroom and it gives moisture without taking away from the meaty flavor.

Oooh, this sounds like a great idea! Need to try this next time I make burgers.

For OP: I make my burgers with lean ground beef (seasoned with salt/pepper/paprika), gouda or havarti cheese, avocado, onion and spinach. Sometimes a fried egg and/or bacon for extra protein.

I used to love brioche buns (and just eat half of the burger), but I recently started eating my burgers without the bun and don't miss it :]

amyrebeccah wrote: »

I don't like the light buns because they just kind of taste like cotton to me, but I switch out buns for a light english muffin, which is 100 calories. Otherwise I do what people do above, leaner beef, carefully measured cheese. Sometimes even a slice of bacon and/or some bleu cheese. Cheeseburgers are pretty easy to fit to calories.

Thomas makes an excellent multi grain english muffin that is only 100 calories. They're great! And don't taste like cardboard. I've been using them for everything.