Among my favorite pantry staples are tapanades. These olive blends are wonderful time savers, adding a salty Mediterranean flavor to pasta dishes, soups, raw vegetable dips, crostini and dressings. In this recipe, I combine it with ground turkey.

You can certainly make your own from scratch, always preferred. But if time doesn't allow, most groceries carries a bottled version. The one I used in this recipe was purchased from Trader Joe's.

The flavor profile of bottled tapanades varies. They are universally salty, because of the olives. But that sodium content is variable. In this recipe, add the tapanade before adding salt and additional seasonings. You may find the tapanade adds all the additional flavor you need.

Yield: 4 to 6 burgers with salad
Time: 35 minutes
Cost: Approx. $14

Ingredients

1 large egg

1 cup panko or bread crumbs

3 tablespoons prepared tapanade, or chopped pitted kalamata olives
1/2 cup packed fresh basil, chopped or torn
1-1 1/4 pounds lean ground turkey breast
2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic (omit if garlic included in the tapanade)
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese or feta

1/2-2 teaspoons kosher salt, optional
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons walnut or olive oil
2 teaspoons sherry wine vinegar, lemon juice or balsamic vinegar

8 cups arugula
Chopped tomatoes, optional garnish

Directions

1. Place egg in large bowl. Beat; stir in tapanade and panko or bread crumbs.
2. Add basil, ground turkey, garlic, goat cheese or feta, 1/2 teaspoon salt, if using, and pepper. Thoroughly combine then fry or microwave a bit of meat. Taste and add additional salt, if needed.
3. Preheat oven to 375Ëš or preheat gas or charcoal grill to medium heat. If grilling, oil grill grates. If baking, place foil over baking sheet and lightly oil.
4. Shape ground turkey mixture into 4 burgers (or 6 smaller, thin burgers). Place burgers on grill grates and cover. For thinner burgers, grill 4-6 minutes per side, for thicker burgers grill 10-12 minutes per side or until. If baking, bake 20-30 minutes or just until their are no traces of pink meat.
5. Whisk together oil and vinegar or lemon juice. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Toss arugula with vinaigrette.
6. Arrange salad on individual plates, top with turkey patty and garnish with tomatoes, if using.