If you live anywhere near Chicago, you know what I’m talking about when I say I’m in the mood for a “slider”.  Sliders are small, steamed, oniony, burgers made at White Castle. They are not exactly healthy, and I’m not a big “fast food” fan, so I wanted to make a healthy version of these at home.  I got the idea when I saw these Pepperidge Farm Wheat Slider Rolls at the store. Ground turkey was also on sale, and heck, I had some onion soup mix at home… so… dinner was served!

I topped mine with the fat free cheese (as below), but I made my husband’s with jalapeno cheese, like the jalapeno cheeseburgers that they serve!

Turkey Sliders

Yields: 20 sliders
WW points: 3 per burger

1 lb lean ground turkey
1/3 c plain dried breadcrumbs
1 egg white
1 envelope onion soup mix
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
10 slices Kraft Fat Free American cheese slices, cut in half
20 Pepperidge Farm Wheat Sliders (rolls)
dill pickle slices and spicy mustard (optional)

In a large bowl combine ground beef, bread crumbs, water, pepper, egg and onion soup mix. Try not to over mix.

Roll mixture out 1/2-inch thick, to a 10-by-6-inch rectangle between 2 sheets of waxed paper. Turn out onto cookie sheet, removing paper from both sides. Using a straw, poke holes in meat.

Cover with foil. Bake in preheated 400-degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until turkey is cooked through. Remove from oven. Pour off any fat. Cut meat into 20 squares to fit rolls and top with a half of a cheese slice. Serve on rolls with (optional) dill pickle slices.

* Note: We love ours with spicy brown mustard

Now, on the side I thought I could make some baked fries, but I can eat a few more of these than I should so I wanted to make a light veggie instead. The other day I got my first tomato from the store that tasted like a tomato. You know, that first one of summer that doesn’t taste completely bland? So I bought a huge cucumber and made my Mom’s side salad.

Tomato and Cucumber Salad

3 medium tomatoes
1 large or 2 medium cucumbers
1 medium onion, diced
1/4 to 1/3 c light mayonnaise
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut tomatoes and cucumbers into similar size cubes, and place in a large bowl. Add diced onion. Salt and pepper liberally. Add mayonnaise and stir to mix well. Let sit in the refrigerator at least an hour. Adjust seasoning as needed and stir occasionally as it sits.

* Note: The concept here is that the salt will “sweat” the tomato and cucumber and that juice will mix with the mayonnaise and make a sort of dressing of its own. You might need to add salt as it goes through this process, and at the end for seasoning.

~M