Family Favorite Recipe: Greek Lamb Burgers

Frito-Lay has a new line of chips representing different parts of the country.

These chips were inspired by popular American regional cuisine and include:

1.       Northeastern U.S.  -  Lay’s Honey Mustard

2.       Midwestern U.S - Lay’s Creamy Garden Ranch

3.       Northwestern U.S - Lay’s Balsamic Sweet Onion

4.       Southwestern U.S - Lay’s Chipotle Ranch

5.       Southeastern U.S - Lay’s Cajun Herb & Spice

·All of the Lay's Regional Flavored potato chips are made with all natural ingredients and cooked in healthier oils, like corn and sunflower oils, which contain 80% or more of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat - the "good fats." They also contain 0 grams of trans fats per serving!

·There’s also less sodium in them than you might think  -  a 1-oz serving of our Lay’s Regional Flavored potato chips contains less salt than a plain bagel!

I guess I must be a Northern Girl through and through… the two flavors that sound the best to me are the Honey Mustard version (Northeastern) and the Balsamic Sweet Onion (Northwest). I can’t wait to try them.

To help spread the word about their new line of chips, Frito-Lay contracted some bloggers and asked them to share a recipe that offers a “Taste of Home” – some food that is popular in my part of the country. That got me leafing through my collection of recipes, trying to come up with something that says “ Western New York .”

When you think of food from the Buffalo, NY area, the first thing that probably comes to mind is chicken wings. Sorry, no recipe for that in my files. I do very little deep-frying, and my family isn’t into hot & spicy foods.

The next thing I thought of was “Beef on Weck” – Roast Beef on a salt-topped bun with Weber’s horseradish. Hmm… not much of a recipe: warm up some deli roast beef in au jus, toss it on a store-bought bun with some store-bought sauce.

When I was planning meals for this week, I thought of the perfect recipe: my Greek Lamb Burgers. There are some really good Greek restaurants in the Buffalo area, so I developed a liking for souvlaki, Gyros, and marinated lamb. Eating out can get expensive, so I started looking around for a good souvlaki recipe. It took a while, but eventually a friend gave a recipe that a friend had given her.

Several years ago, I started buying a lamb from the 4H auction at the county fair. I found myself with lots of ground lamb, and no recipes to use it up, so I tried making lamb burgers. My first few tries didn’t go over very well… it needed something. Eventually, I used my souvlaki recipe as a framework and developed this recipe for Greek Burgers. They have really become a family favorite!

Lamb Burgers

1 lb ground lamb

¼ c finely chopped onion

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 c feta cheese, grated or crumbled fine

lettuce

tomato

Greek salad dressing

Combine lamb, onion, oregano, salt, and garlic powder. Fry or grill until no longer pink, about 5 minutes on each side. Melt feta cheese over top of burger. Serve on bun with lettuce, tomato, and Greek salad dressing. Makes 4 burgers.

Greek Dressing

1/2 c olive oil

3 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1/8 tsp garlic flakes

1/2 tsp onion flakes

Combine all ingredients. Let stand 5-10 minutes for flavors to blend before serving.

Giveaway

Frito-Lay is sending me a surprise package with some of their new Regional Flavor Chips, and they’re giving me the chance to host a fun giveaway. To enter, leave a comment below, letting me know which of the new Regional Flavors you’d most like to try. I will pick one lucky winner to get a variety pack of the new Frito-Lay Regional Flavors. Giveaway ends Friday, September 2nd at 11:59 PM. Winner will be drawn at random.