Grilled Portobello (Portabella) Mushroom Burgers

Grilled Portobello (Portabella) Mushroom Burgers

6 points

I made these a few nights ago during a visit to my parents' house. I don't have an outside grill of my own (I don't grill a lot and the small amount I do grill, I can do on my cast iron grill pan on the stove), but my parents do. My dad fired up his small grill for these absolutely DELISH burgers. The points from these come from the cheese (I think 3 points per slice) and the hamburger bun (also 3 points, if I remember correctly). We served these with yellow squash that was sliced and sauteed with a small amount of butter, olive oil, fresh onion slices and garlic powder.

These burgers were SO GOOD.

Ingredients:

• Portobello (portabella) mushrooms - one for each burger
• Newman's Own Light Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing* (I used about 1/4 cup for 2 mushrooms with a bit left over)
• 1 - 2 tsp dry thyme
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 - 2 tsp dried onion flakes
• Slices of cheese (I used muenster)
• hamburger buns
• hamburger condiments and garnishments, as desired (e.g., mustard, mayo, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles).

Directions:

• Prepare your grill for cooking.
• Clean mushrooms by wiping them lightly with a damp towel. You just want to get the dirt off without damaging the mushroom. Avoid using water because it could reduce the flavor of the mushroom. (See this reference: http://www.recipetips.com/glossary-term/t--33854/portobello-mushroom.asp).
• Mix the Balsamic vinaigrette dressing, thyme, garlic powder and onion flakes in a bowl.
• Brush the tops and bottoms of the mushrooms with the dressing mixture.
• Grill the mushrooms about 5 - 7 minutes on each side.
• Add the sliced cheese to each mushroom and cook until just melted (only about a minute or two).
• Place mushroom on hamburger bun and garnish as desired.
• Enjoy!

*If you don't have balsamic vinaigrette dressing, you can mix about 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar with about 2 tsp olive oil, the above spices and salt for the marinade.