burger

Now that IS a “Proper Burger”…

~ Gary Bechard ~ Leave a comment

I interupt this blog post with a very important message. No, I do not believe you will see the emergency warning symbol on your television but I wanted to remind you of the meaning of this holiday, Memorial Day.

I have a certain thoughtfulness  every Memorial Day. Having been a soldier, both enlisted and officer, I have a soft spot in my heart for all of those that currently serve or have served and for all of the families that supported them in their endeavors.  I know, I know, I should be more upbeat as in my other posts, and I will get to that, but I believe that everyone should pause at least one moment to reflect on the freedoms we have today, the men and women currently serving, their families and those that have gone before us.  With that complete, fire up the grill, crack open a cold one and let’s get ready to eat!

As an aside, it is with a bit of sadness I  say that the rescue effort from the old blog site was only partially successful. Trapped in the ether are quite a few posts which I was not able to salvage from the oldest site but I was able to retrieve the more recent (or semi-recent) and will be able to post them here.  This post was another one from “Burger Week” and it is not quite the healthiest of recipes but sometimes you just have to “Throw Caution to the Wind” which by some coincidence is the title of the former post.

Throwing caution to the wind…

I would like to consider myself a pretty healthy eater (not in quantity but in quality) but today’s offering does not quite fit in the healthy eating category. This burger is more the decadent, throw caution to the wind, hope I do not have a cardiac arrest category. The ingredients are not really that bad but I use a fattier kind of beef more cheese and some bacon to round it out with a bread that has enough sugar to power a hundred toddlers for a couple of days. Why, you may ask, would I do this? Well, first, because I can and second, sometimes you just have to have something that just tastes really good without worrying about all that diet stuff. It’s okay once in a while, right? Just don’t tell your doctor and I will surely never tell. Your secret is safe with me because I am as trustworthy as the Bush bean dog. (wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more, say no more)

The recipe for this burger was first thought of on a drive home from work on a Friday, stuck behind a cattle truck, in the summer while the Highway patrol was clearing an accident knowing that I was going to have to feed some real “meat eaters” (you know Marines, English footballers and the like). I wanted something decadent (in the “meat eaters” sense) but something that would taste good. The idea for what to use as the bun kind of hit me as I was trying to figure out how I was going to balance out the savory flavors in the burger and voila the Hawaiian sweet bread hit me! Well the idea hit me not the actual sweet bread but you probably already knew that. The burger was named by Simon (the English footballer). It was after his first bite and he exclaimed, ”Now THAT is a proper burger!”

Here is the recipe:

A “Proper” Burger
(makes 4 – 5 servings)

1 1/2 lbs –Ground sirloin (I did 90/10)
1/3 – Medium sweet onion (medium diced)
½ tsp – Garlic powder
¼ tsp – Kosher salt (if you are into measuring things and if not a couple of good pinches)
1 tbsp – Coarse ground black pepper (or to taste)
1 tbsp – Worcestershire sauce (don’t be stingy with this and make sure it is a generous tablespoon)
1/ cup – Cabernet wine (make it a good one because I give you permission to have the rest)
10 slices – Crispy bacon (I used some apple smoked bacon)
Sliced Vermont white cheddar cheese
Sliced provolone cheese
Romaine lettuce leaves
Hearty tomato slices
Loaf of Hawaiian sweet bread (this will become the bun) cut into 1 1/2 inch slices

*Note – a loaf of Hawaiian sweet is kind of round and you may have to start in the center and work your way out with the slices but you want them to be about bun or regular loaf of bread sized.

In a large bowl combine beef, onion, garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, salt and your luscious Cabernet. Mix thoroughly making sure all ingredients are distributed evenly through the mixture. Take and make into 4 to 5 patties (depending on who you have eating) and refrigerate for about 15 to 20 minutes (you want the flavors to get to know each other). I made the patties pretty thick. Cook these on a low heat grill (300 to 350 degrees) to slow cook them to desired doneness. Also, don’t get all “flippy” on these burgers because you can let them sit on one side for about 5 – 7 minutes before flipping. Melt one slice of each type of cheese on each burger

Serve the burgers on grilled slices of the Hawaiian sweet bread topped with a couple slices of bacon, a slice of tomato and some lettuce.

Enjoy!

“The time has come,” the Walrus said, “To talk of many things: Of shoes–and ships–and sealing-wax– Of cabbages–and kings (Lewis Carroll, “The Walrus and the Carpenter”)

~ Gary Bechard ~ Leave a comment

I am not so sure about the shoes, ships and sealing wax and,  I am pretty sure I will not be talking about kings but cabbage, well, that is a different subject altogether. I have been eyeing a particular green bunch in the produce aisle for quite some time. I guess you could say that I was kind of stalking it? (no pun intended, really). Its deep green leafy leaves called to me, so, I bought some.  Over the years, I have worked with a wide variety of different cabbages from Bok Choy to Radicchio and have done them grilled, sauteed, stuffed and other assorted ways but this is a new one on me. The picture is of Tuscan Cabbage or sometimes referred to as Tuscan Kale or, if you prefer (to impress your friends),“cavolo nero” in Italian. The green has a flavor profile much like kale only without the slight bitter aftertaste and  seems like a sort of a cross between a Napa cabbage and Kale. I am not quite sure how I am going to approach this one but I have a couple of ideas rambling around in the old noggin. While I try to figure out a direction with this new ingredient, here is the third post from “Burger Week” off the old site. This recipe is the second of the turkey burgers and is quite tasty.

Gotta love a burger with a hula skirt…

Well maybe no hula skirt but it does have sort of a Hawaiian flair. Also, sorry, there are no alcoholic beverage ingredients in this recipe so you will have to fend for yourself and come up with a good excuse to buy extra at the grocery store like, “Honey, you never know when we will be in a beer emergency and since there are solar storms erupting we should be prepared.” There is also the ever popular, “I really thought the recipe called for lots of (insert name of favorite beverage here).” With the follow on, “Since we already have this stuff we might as well drink it because we would not want it to go to waste.” I am certain that even the least creative among you can come up with an excuse. You could even blame it on the dog, if you have one.

I am not sure if I can tell you the exact origins of this particular burger (it may have originated because I was bored and wanted something Asian’esque for the grill or perhaps because I had a fresh pineapple and was not jiggy grilling something in the pig family) but needless to say people liked it. I served this with a nice green salad (fresh baby greens with arugula to tie it to the burger) with a ginger dressing and crispy rice noodles on top for texture and squash sautéed with onions, sliced ginger and red bell peppers.

Here is the recipe:

T2 (Hawaiian) Burger
(makes 3 – 4 servings)

1lb – Ground turkey breast
4 tbsp – Teriyaki sauce
¼ cup – Vegetable stock
1 tbsp – Dried basil (you can substitute with fresh if you have it about 5 large leaves chopped fine)
1handful – Fresh chopped parsley
1 tbsp – Coarse Ground black pepper
¼ tsp – Ground ginger (you can also do fresh grated ginger but go easy because this is a strong spice)
4 slices – Fresh pineapple

In a large bowl combine turkey, teriyaki sauce, vegetable stock, basil, parsley, pepper, and ginger and mix thoroughly making sure that all ingredients are distributed evenly. Take and make into 3 to 4 patties (depending on who you have eating). Because turkey can have a tendency to dry out quickly, these should be grilled on a relatively low temperature (300 to 350 degrees) until done. At the same time grill the pineapple slices until they are warmed through and have those nifty looking grill marks on them.

Serve the burgers on a toasted bun with some spicy arugula.

Enjoy!

Who knows what lurks deep in the minds of moms?

~ Gary Bechard ~ Leave a comment

For me,  that it is probably unconditional love and support. First, Happy Mother’s Day to all! I wish I were going to be able to cook for my mom today but it might take me a while to get there (about 15 hours). However, I will be cooking but it is going to be spaghetti and meatballs with a nice smooth marinara, all fresh made of course.

I neglected to show a picture of the “Spiralized” salad yesterday so that is the cover shot for today’s post and I wanted to continue to add to the “Burger Week” post I did a while back with what was the second installment for that week. This was the first of the beef burgers and was mighty tasty.  I hope you try this and as always, Enjoy!

Burger Week Part Deux…

Welcome back campers to the second installment of burger week. Today is the first of the beef burgers and was recently created because SOMEBODY had to use the fresh sage. It might as well be me, is what I say. I also (play taps please) sacrificed one bottle of one of the best beers on the planet (in my humble opinion) for the betterment of burgerkind. However, at least I had the remaining 5 to assuage my guilt and remorse about my hoppy friend. I am not sure how many of you will remember the band, “New Riders of the Purple Sage” but this burger’s name is a play on that.

Have fun with this recipe and let me know how it turned out.

The Well Fed Cyclist

New Riders of the Fresh Sage Burger
(makes 6 – 8 servings)

2 lbs – Very lean ground beef (I do 96/4 or 93/7)
8 to 10 leaves – Fresh sage (chopped fine)
3, 3 inch sprigs– of rosemary (strip leaves and fine chop)
¾ bottle (9 oz) – Fat Tire Ale (drink the last ¼ bottle you deserve it. You ARE cooking after all.)
1½ tsp – Kosher salt
1tbsp – Coarse ground black pepper

In a large bowl combine beef, sage, salt, pepper, rosemary and the Fat Tire Ale. Mix thoroughly making sure all ingredients are distributed evenly through the mixture. Take and make into 6 to 8 patties (depending on who you have eating). Cook these on a medium hot grill (400 to 450 degrees) until desired doneness.
Serve the burgers on a toasted bun with a robust cheddar (I like Vermont white or New York sharp) or perhaps some smoky Gouda and some Heirloom tomato (if you want to).

I know, I know! Sheesh! Enough already…

~ Gary Bechard ~ Leave a comment

I know that I promised, oh say, three weeks ago, that I would rescue my older posts from the other blog site (which will remain nameless) and post them here to give an historical perspective of from what this blog came. This being “the fruit of its loins” so to speak. Let me tell you, the rescue mission was a harrowing adventure fraught with danger and intrigue.  Well, maybe not so much, but it was difficult to find time to rescue the posts from an unforgiving venue.

The first posts I did were something called “Burger Week” where I wanted to showcase different types of burgers. This post was the first one from that time and is a burger that I thoroughly enjoy to this day. I am sorry I do not have a picture of this one but it was and is tasty and not beef, if you can believe it.

Burgermania and Burger week…

I promised to put some recipes out on the site this week and I will deliver. I have declared this “Burger Week” in the run up to the Fourth of July. The burgers will cover all except the vegetarian ones (I am still trying to perfect my black bean burger) and will feature stuff that swims, runs and flies (sort of flies domestic turkeys are not too good at it). Today’s offering is my “Thanksgiving in July” burger and was done a few years ago after my daughter decided that she could not handle red meat. I have tested it with several groups of skeptics (mostly my son’s red meat eating friends) and they declared it a winner. If you try this, I hope you enjoy it.

Thanksgiving in July Burger
(makes 3 – 4 servings)

1lb – Ground turkey breast
1 tsp – Poultry seasoning
1tsp – Dried sage (can also use 4 to 5 leave fresh sage chopped fine)
¾ tsp – Coarse ground sea salt
¾ tsp – Coarse ground black pepper
½ cup – “Craisins” (sundried sweet cranberries)
¼ cup – Extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup – Vegetable stock
Stove Top Stuffing (prepared according to the directions on the box)

In a large bowl combine turkey, poultry seasoning, sage, salt, pepper, olive oil and vegetable stock and mix thoroughly. After this is complete add the “Craisins” and mix until they are evenly distributed through the mixture. Take and make into 3 to 4 patties (depending on who you have eating). Because turkey can have a tendency to dry out quickly, these should be grilled on a relatively low temperature (300 to 350 degrees) until done.

Serve the burgers on a toasted bun with a thin layer of Stove Stop Stuffing on top.

Enjoy!

The Well Fed Cyclist