Double Bacon, Swiss & Spinach Quiche Burgers

It's burger night and the weather is crappy out there. The deck is a mess of wind, rain, sleet and hail...kind of a perfectly miserable storm of horror to the U. S. Postal Service and a nightmare for the grilling aficionado. The postman might deliver in weather like this, but do WE really have to bundle up and suck it up to deliver a burger to the dinner table? No.

Sometimes an indoor burger is exactly right for the occasion. Any time I'm making a burger with chicken or turkey, I want to cook it ALL the way through. Not only that, but without the higher fat content beef has, poultry burgers don't hold together as well on the grill. Pan frying or broiling is definitely the way to go. Especially on a night like this.

The flavors of a classic Quiche Lorraine have been haunting my brain lately. Burger night...quiche...why not a burger that echoes that brunch fave? Crisp cooked bacon, red onion, fresh spinach and Swiss cheese would make one really good burger! Using ground chicken instead of beef, allows the quiche-iness come through more clearly.

If quiche is good, then quiche TWICE would be even better. So I doubled down the spinach, smoky bacon and melted Swiss on top of the grilled burger. The result? Real men DO eat Double Bacon Swiss & Spinach Quiche Burgers! Mark loved them! 

Double Bacon, Swiss & Spinach Quiche Burgers

• 1 pound ground chicken
• 1/2 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons red onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh spinach, finely chopped
• 3 slices crisp, cooked bacon, finely diced
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, or more to taste
• salt and pepper, to taste

• 8 slices crisp, cooked bacon
• 4 slices Swiss cheese
• red onion, thinly sliced
• fresh spinach
• 4 hamburger buns - gluten-free buns to make these GF

In a mixing bowl, lightly mix the ground chicken, shredded Swiss, chopped onions, chopped spinach, diced bacon, nutmeg and salt & pepper. Form into 4 patties.
 
Heat a heavy skillet and add a tablespoon or so of oil.  When the skillet is hot, add the burgers. Cook all the way through, but don't overcook them - keep them juicy!
 
Top the burgers with Swiss cheese and let it melt before building the burgers on buns with sliced onion, fresh spinach leaves and crisp bacon.

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