I’ve been about ready to BUST keeping this a secret! BOY do I have a fun post for you all!! May is #NationalBurgerMonth, and I’ve had the most wonderful time of all of the events that I’ve ever been invited to! I joined up with Kita, the organizer of this event and owner of the blogs Girl Carnivore and Pass the Sushi, along with 40+ other amazing bloggers, for Kita’s annual #BurgerMonth bash!

 

 

OH, yea. You all KNOW how much I love to grill! So this party was right up my alley! And what a PARTY going on!! Not only will you be receiving a super fun, jurassic-sized burger creation to make from me, but about 40 MORE outstanding burger recipes from the rest of the group as well!!

~ Think of this post as your Sizzling Summer Go-To Burger Cookbook!  ~

~ So much cool stuff going on!! ~

Not only are there all these mouthwatering burgers to try, but prizes you could win, too! Yep! Check out the amazing grill swag, kitchen accessories, cheeses, and meats you could possibly win, generously donated by these super cool sponsors!! (*Note that just a couple have ended, so be sure to subscribe to my blog, and follow me on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter so that you don’t miss out next time! 😉  ) But don’t worry! There are still plenty of prizes to be had! 😉 Check it out and enter!

~ ♦ ~

Certified Angus Beef®brand – (4) CAB prize grilling accessory kit, $50 VISA card, and a George Motz Hamburger America cookbook.

Cabot Cheese – (4) Cabot Cheese Legacy Gift Box – 2 each Farmhouse Reserve, White Oak & Alpine Cheddar – 1 each New York Vintage & Seriously Sharp & 1 Wine Bottle Opener

Kitchen IQ -(To be given away during Week #1) – V-etched Container Grater

DreamFarm – (To be given away during Week #2) – Big Vebo

Cuttingboard.com – (4) Olive Wood Carver Board

Charbroil – (4) Char-Broil Performance 780 Charcoal Grill

American Lamb Board – (4) ALB prize boxes 5 lbs of ground lamb, an apron and a meat thermometer

Cassabella – (To be given away during Week #3) – 1 Chop ‘N Prep™ Cutting Board with 4 Cutting Mats

Grill Master Club Subscription Grilling Box – (4) curated grill sample boxes

Swissmar – (To be given away during Week #4) – Glow 7PC Fondue Set

Cowboy Charcoal – (4) Hardwood Lump Charcoal, a variety of wood chips and some of Cowboy’s new BBQ sauces.

*Scroll down to enter!!

~ ♦ ~

So, I guess I should tell you a little bit about my own burger creation about now, huh?! 😉 I admit it, I have some pretty crazy burgers on my blog, but always trying to one–up my own self, I really went over the top on this one! 😉

Rule one: Always start with great beef first! I used Certified Angus Beef®brand , and it worked extremely well! VERY good flavor and almost no shrinkage! I also went against what I’ve always done in the past, and what most burger aficionados would pitch a fit over and say NO to….I went with leaner ground beef! YEP! But wait! Before you shoot me, there’s a trick. 😉 You should never make a burger that’s made with more than 80%/20% beef to fat, right? Normally, I’d say, that’s what I always go for, too. But beef fat isn’t your only option. 😉 I went with 85% lean, and replaced some of the missing fat with real butter! OH yea. Butter makes everything better! 😉 And please use good, real butter! I used Cabot’s® Natural Creamery Butter with wonderful results! Just freeze a knob, and grate it right in! 😉 See now? That didn’t hurt, did it? 🙂

I also snuck in a tablespoon of beer. I had one open….so what the heck. In it went. 😉 Only a tablespoon, though. That’s all I was willing to share. 😉

 

 

Rule two: Good cheese!! I filled the patties with not one, but THREE cheeses, and the cheese train doesn’t even stop there. Oh, no. You all know me better than that, and how much I love cheese, glorious cheese! 😉 (Like three cheeses was going to be enough? *giggle snort*!) There are SIX cheeses total in this baby. 😉 Cabot’s® White Cheddar Horseradish (awesome stuff!!), Sartori’s Asiago with Olive Oil and Rosemary, Blue Cheese Crumbles, Creamy Havarti, Fontina and cream cheese!

 

 

And like Kita, I’m a total carnivore! So the meat doesn’t stop at the beef. I mean, seriously. Just one meat? Pfffft. I’ve got three going on here. Bacon, just cuz I can. 😉 (What would a great burger be without some crispy fried bacon, right?) But here’s a little surprise…there’s a nice pile of thinly sliced pastrami on this puppy, too! I almost added proscuitto, but to me, that was an “expected”. And it was just too expensive. Let’s be real.

 

 

All of this crazy goodness so far, is being paired with fresh, sliced, beer-battered and fried PEAR rings! (Did she say…pear rings??) Uhm, yea. PEAR rings. 😉 Crunchy on the outside – –  sweet, juicy and tender on the inside, pear rings! (I could eat a whole side of these all by themselves!!) But that’s not all that I couldn’t pass up to fry! Being a natural born fryer, some sweet red bell pepper rings and asparagus “fries” joined the party, too! 😉

 

 

If that’s STILL not enough…there’s a sprinkling of sweet red onion and fresh baby spinach leaves, too!

And tying everything together, are the two last elements. Whew. Yes. Two more to go! A killer good, creamy blue cheese slaw with toasted pecans, and a sweet ‘n spicy sage honey-sriracha drizzle to die for!

Rule three: All of this yummy stuff has to have a decent, hearty base for support! A wimpy, air-filled, “Great Grandma’s feather bed” bun isn’t going to work for this. Nothing worse than a bun that doesn’t hold up and becomes smashed, wet and soggy. Yuck. So thick-slice some bread such as a dense but soft sourdough, find some pretty, hard rolls (crusty-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside) from your local grocery or bakery for this. Though I was dreaming of some homemade rye rolls, or even brioche, we found some nice poppy and sesame seed ones right at the grocery store that came in handy when I ran out of time. (I try, but, I’m no “Wonder Woman”). I grilled them, spread them with a little whole grain mustard, and called them done! 😉

Even I needed a cheat sheet to refer to when assembling this monster, though! Didn’t want to be all done, and turn around only to see something sitting on the stove that didn’t get added! 😉

 

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And…..ta-daaaaaaaaaa!!! It didn’t even tip over!! Ha!

 

 

I had almost as much fun designing, cooking, and assembling this baby, as I did eating it!
(Which did end up taking me three sittings…oh, darn my luck. 😉 )

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I hope that I’ve sparked your own creativity, peaked your curiosity,
and that you do scroll down to see my,
(actually easy to make!), leaning tower of Pisa burger recipe,
“The Beer-Battered Farmer’s Market Burger”!

(Ok. The ENTIRE Farmer’s Market Burger! )

 

Thanks so much, Kita, of Girl Carnivore , for having me! I really had a blast!!
So many incredible burger combinations to try, that I don’t even know where to begin!!

My mile-high burger for #BurgerMonth 2016, though my own creation, was inspired by all of our generous sponsors! Many thanks to Certified Angus Beef® brand, Char-Broil®,
KitchenIQ, Cabot Cheese®, Grill Master Club,
American Lamb Board, Cowboy Charcoal,
CuttingBoard.com, DreamFarm, Cassabella, and Swissmar
for the kick butt grill prize packages!

~ ♦ ~

~ ♦ ~

I hope that everyone has enjoyed,
and that this gives us all many new recipes to try this summer!

Remember to check back each day for a new burger to try,
be sure to enter the raffle,
and Happy Grilling! 

~ ♦ ~

Click Here to Enter to Win!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*This year’s participants’ burgers! Be sure to check them ALL out! Each and every single one is quite amazing!! Here are the participants so far… (*links take you directly to their burger recipe)…. And if you’d like to see the thumbnails of all of the burgers with links, click {here}!! Or simply check out my #BurgerMonth Pinterest Board! Whichever road you want to take!

Girl Carnivore,  Cooking in Stilettos , The Heritage Cook, Recipe Runner, Culinary Adventures with Camilla, My Catholic Kitchen, Big Bear’s Wife, Souffle Bombay, From Away, Try Anything Once Culinary, The Suburban Soapbox, The Spiffy Cookie, Nomageddon, She’s Cookin’, Sumptuous Spoonfuls, Tampa Cake Girl, Moore or Less Cooking, Alexandra Whitney, Hey Grill, Hey, The Unorthodox Epicure, RavieNomNoms, Cooking On A Budget, The DIY Foodie,  Creative Culinary , CALL ME PMc , Pook’s Pantry , Bakeaholic Mama , Casa de Crews ,Bobbi’s Kozy Kitchen, Dinners, Dishes and Desserts , The Crumby Cupcake , Café Terra,  The Mom Chef: Taking On Magazines , Jenni Field’s Pastry Chef Online, Nutmeg Nanny , Culinary Concoctions by Peabody,  Fake Ginger,  Pineapple & Coconut, Running to the Kitchen, KIMCHI MOM,  I Am A Honey Bee , It’s Yummi, Magnolia Days, Dixie Chik Cooks , Seduction in the Kitchen, Chez Us,  In Good Taste , Nibble Me This, Recipes, Food & Cooking, Country Cleaver, and Comfortably Domestic !! I hope that I haven’t forgotten anyone!

 

Final last words…..

*There are many delicious elements to this burger. And I don’t expect you to make them all like I did, but simply choose a few that you’d like to add to your burger, or even make a few parts as side dishes such as the veggies or slaw! Or, have your own party, and do a B.Y.O.B bar! As in, “Build Your Own Burger” bar! Set out all of the prepared elements, and let everyone have at ’em and build their own! Just have fun! As this is what it was intended to be. Just plain for fun! 😉

~ But they all sure did go AMAZINGLY WELL together!! BAZINGA!! 😉 ~

 

Yield: 2 monster burgers

The Beer-Battered Farmer's Market Burger

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Ingredients

For Burgers:

• 1 1/3 lbs. Certified Angus Ground Beef® brand 85% Lean
• 3 Tbl. real butter such as Cabot®, frozen then finely grated over beef
• 1 Tbl. beer
• fine or coarse ground black pepper, each side to taste
• garlic salt, each side to taste

Cheesy Burger Filling:

• 4 Tbl. softened cream cheese
• 1/3 cup grated Cabot® White Cheddar Horseradish Cheese
• 1/3 cup finely grated asiago cheese with rosemary and olive oil, I used Sartori brand, (can sub regular asiago and a 1/2 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary or 1/4 tsp. chopped dried)

Beer-Battered Veggies:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup beer
• 1 tsp. regular table salt
• 1/4 tsp. coarse ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced into 6 - 8 rings depending on size of pepper and preference
• 4 - 6 slices fresh pears, sliced crossways and cut out center with 1" biscuit cutter or just use a metal decorating tip
• 6 - 8 fresh asparagus spears, root ends snapped off where they want to break naturally
• (*pears and peppers were sliced approx. 1/3" thick)

Blue Cheese & Toasted Pecan Slaw:

• 2/3 cup Miracle Whip salad dressing
• 1 rounded Tbl. finely chopped red onion
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
• tiny pinch each of regular table salt and coarse ground black pepper
• 2 cups fine shred "slaw mix", (shredded cabbage and carrots as you like)
• 4 Tbl. blue cheese crumbles
• 2 Tbl. toasted pecans, chopped

Honey & Sriracha Drizzle:

• 2 Tbl. real honey (I used Sue Bee's Sage Honey)
• 1/4 tsp. sriracha sauce

Rest of Ingredients:

• whole grain mustard
• baby spinach leaves
• thinly sliced red onion
• 5 - 6 oz. thinly sliced deli pastrami
• slices of fontina cheese, as desired
• slices of havarti cheese, as desired
• 4 - 6 strips crisp-cooked bacon
• bun, roll or sturdy bread of choice, grilled or toasted

Instructions

Make Slaw First: In medium sized bowl, stir together all ingredients. Cover and chill.

Make Honey-Sriracha Second: In small bowl, stir honey and sriracha until mixed well, cover and set aside. Do not chill.

For Burgar Filling: Stir and mash ingredients in small bowl to combine. Cover. Set aside.

For Burgers: Break up beef into medium bowl. Grate butter over evenly, drizzle with beer, and lightly toss to mix. Divide beef into 4 patties, making two patties slightly larger. (Larger ones being 4 1/2 - 5" round, and smaller being 1/2" smaller around.) Top larger patties with cream cheese mixture to within an inch from edge. Place smaller patties on top of each, press edges to seal, then roll edges up and form into nice burgers. Season both sides liberally with garlic salt and pepper to taste.

Get grill nice and hot, place burgers onto grill, close lid, lower heat to medium (keeping at about 375º F, and grill side one for about 8 minutes. Turn and repeat. Place onto plate to rest. Grill insides of buns if desired. (Place buns into plastic bag when done to keep from drying out and stay warm).

For Battered Vegs & Pears: Heat 1 1/2" deep of oil in large, 3" deep frying pan over medium-high heat.

Add dry beer batter ingredients to a medium bowl, whisk to mix. Add beer, whisk until smooth.

Dip prepared veggies and pear rings into batter, a few pieces at a time coating well, and fry until light golden. Place onto brown paper lunch sack-lined cooling rack placed over a baking sheet.

Finish Burger and Pastrami: Heat broiler. Onto small baking sheet lined with foil and sprayed, place burgers and top with slices of havarti. Pile pastrami into two mounds and top each with slices of fontina. Run under broiler just until cheese has melted.

To Assemble Burger: Bottom buns spread lightly with whole grain mustard, top each with a small handful of baby spinach leaves, thinly sliced red onion, cheese burgers, asparagus "fries", pastrami with melted fontina (use a spatula to add), crisp bacon slices, sweet red pepper rings, blue cheese and pecan slaw, and pear rings. Drizzle each nicely with sage honey-sriracha sauce, spread inside top buns with more whole grain mustard, and place tops onto burgers. Dig in and enjoy!!

*Note: This is my own burger creation. I’m not being paid by any of the sponsors, and my opinions are my own.