Cheesy Turkey Melts with Caramelized Onions and Oven Fries

April 22, 2019:  Don’t get sick of my recent abundance of Chefs Plate meals yet because this dish was a really good one and so easy to make!  This was a Cheesy Turkey Melts with Caramelized Onions and Oven Fries.  Chefs Plate is a weekly subscription make-your-own meal at home delivery service (you can pause the plan at any time).  I’ve been using it on-and-off since 2015!  (This is the first time I’ve ordered from them two weeks back to back.)

Second week of cooking with Chefs Plate!

Nutrition facts for this meal

Everything you need to make the Cheesy Turkey Melts with Caramelized Onions and Oven Fries

Canadian minced turkey

This recipe had a difficulty level of “easy” — yes, so true — and a cooking time of 35 minutes.  This recipe was super simple and easy because it mostly required the use of the oven.  Thus, to start this meal, preheat your oven to 450° F.

Recipe card

Step by step instructions

Cut the potatoes into fries

You’ll be making the fries first, so after washing and drying the potatoes, cut them into 1/2-inch thick fries.  Season them with salt and pepper, toss a bit of oil in to coat the potatoes, and into the oven they go for 26 to 30 minutes, making sure to toss them halfway (so set the oven timer for 15 minutes only for the first round of baking).

During this first 15 minutes of baking time, prepare the remaining ingredients.  You’ll want to cut both the onions and tomatoes into 1/4-inch slices (the onions will be caramelized in a pan while the tomatoes will go straight into the burger at the end).

Cut up your veggies

Make the spiced mayo by combining the mayonnaise with the Mayo Spice Mix (garlic powder and smoked paprika).  This was super easy!

Mix mayonnaise with Mayo Spice Mix

At this time, make the caramelized onions.  Add the sliced onions into the hot oiled pan and stir occasionally for 10 to 12 minutes until they’re golden and softened.  After that, add in the vinegar, sugar, and water with salt and pepper to season it.

The sugar helps to speed up the caramelization of the onions

Mix the minced turkey with the Turkey Spice Mix and salt and pepper

In a large bowl, add the turkey, Turkey Spice Mix (Italian breadcrumbs, onion powder, mustard powder), and salt and pepper.  Mix it together to combine.

Use your hands to form two 5-inch wide patties and then put on to a baking sheet to bake in the oven (we used aluminum foil).  They will bake on the upper rack of the oven for 12-15 minutes.  (Again, I coincided the halfway point of the potatoes’ baking time, so that once it was time to flip the potatoes, it was also the exact time that I put the turkey patties into the oven.)

Mold the turkey into two patties (we used saran wrap to help us form the patties better)

Once the patties are cooked through, place them on a bun followed by the caramelized onions and Swiss cheese

After 28 minutes or so of baking time in total, arrange the buns on the same sheet.  Put the cooked patty, caramelized onions, and Swiss cheese on top of each bun and then back into the oven for about a minute or two so that the cheese melts.

After that, everything’s done!  Remove the fries out of the oven and plate them with your burger next to the spiced mayo.

I loved how this recipe timed so well and was so easy.  The fries were absolutely delicious and perfectly baked.  How is it that I can make such easy and delicious healthy fries at home, yet it’s sometimes a luck of the draw when it comes to getting good fries at restaurants?  Baked fries are actually so easy to make at home!

The spiced mayo was delicious as well.  After having made numerous recipes this past week of different aioli or mayo, I’ve learned how easy it really is to make such a tasty dip.

This makes two servings

Cheesy Turkey Melts with Caramelized Onions and Oven Fries

The Cheesy Turkey Melt was very healthy and tasty.  The turkey patty was cooked through nicely, juicy, and not too overpowering in flavour.  It was so satisfying to eat.  (However, I couldn’t taste too much of the Swiss cheese.  Perhaps cheddar cheese would be a more flavourful option?)

In any case, well done, Chefs Plate team!  This was such a great straight-forward dish!

The turkey patty was so juicy and moist!

And now for my self-promotion:  If you want to try Chefs Plate for the first time and cook some dishes at home with some fresh and pre-measured ingredients delivered to your door, you can click this link to receive four free plates.  The link will automatically deduct four plates of food when you check out.  Happy cooking!