Chicken Parmesan Burgers

Chicken Parmesan Burgers (makes 4 burgers; mine were about 1/3 pound each)
As adapted from Giada’s rosemary burgers and Epicurious’ “chicken Parmesan burgers”

Basil mayonnaise:
    1 cup mayonnaise
    ½ cup chopped fresh basil leaves
    2 cloves garlic, minced
    ½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Burgers:
    1 pound ground chicken (I ground mine from boneless, skinless breasts)
    ½ teaspoon kosher salt
    ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Accompaniments:
    1 large loaf of ciabatta or other Italian bread, sliced in half and then into four bun-sized pieces
    ½ cup of prepared pesto
    1 cup of prepared marinara sauce
    4 thick slices (each) of good quality mozzarella and provolone cheeses

Directions:
For the mayonnaise: In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise, garlic, basil, and cheese; set aside.
For the burgers: Preheat a gas or charcoal grill or place a grill pan over medium-high heat. In a large bowl, add the ground chicken, salt, and pepper and ½ of the mayonnaise mixture. Using clean hands, gently combine the ingredients and form the chicken mixture into 4 patties. They will be very moist. Place the burgers on the grill and cook for about 7 minutes on each side; turning carefully to avoid breakage and placing one piece of each cheese on top after flipping.  Transfer to paper towels and let rest for a few minutes.

Brush the cut side of each piece of bread with half of the pesto and during the last 1-2 minutes of cooking time for the chicken burgers, grill bread until slightly golden.

To assemble the burgers: Spread a dollop of the remaining mayonnaise mixture on the top of the toasted bread. (To save calories, I omitted this step.) Place the chicken burgers on the bottom half of the bread and top each with ¼ cup of sauce. Finish with the top half of the bun.