It's officially grilling season and I thought I'd offer up two great burgers that you can enjoy at your next outdoor party. The first uses my beef grilling spice mix and you'll find the recipe below. This mix is great on steaks and beef ribs, too. The second burger came from my friend Joey Chiappetta and it infuses pesto into the ground sirloin and ground chuck mix and is topped with buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and fresh basil. Both burgers are crowd pleasers. So, make them both and give your guests a little variety!
Wayne's Texas Burger
makes three 1/3 lb burgers
Ingredients
1 sm Sweet Onion
1 tbl Butter
1/4 cu Flat Leaf Parsley
1/2 lb Ground Sirloin
1/2 lb Ground Chuck
1 Avocado, peeled and sliced
3 tsp Grilling Spice Mix (recipe below)
3 slices Colby/Jack Cheese
Green Leaf Lettuce
Method
Preheat your grill. Peel and slice the onion into thin slices. Reassemble the onion and place it in the center of a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil. Place butter on top and bring up the sides of the aluminum to seal the contents inside. Place packet on the grill for 20-25 minutes. Meanwhile, combine parsley, sirloin, chuck and grilling spice mix in a bowl. Mix thoroughly and shape into 3 patties, about 5" in diameter each. Grill burgers until desired doneness. Avoid pressing the burgers with a spatula as it tends to remove the juices from the burger. Remove onion packet and burgers from grill.
To assemble, place green leaf lettuce on a bottom slice of bun. Top with roasted onions and then the burger. Top the burger with a slice of cheese and then top cheese with slices of avocado. Serve warm. Burgers hot off the grill tend to be tender and juicy and with these ingredients, they don't need additional condiments. But feel free to offer your guests the standard (mustarded, mayo, ketchup, pickles) if you like.
Italian Burger
makes three 1/3 lb burgers
courtesy Joey Chiappetta
Ingredients
1/2 lb Ground Sirloin
1/2 lb Ground Chuck
1/4 cu Pesto
3 slices Mozzarella, room temperature
3 slices Tomato
3 Hamburger Buns
Fresh Basil Leaves
Pesto Mayo (optional)
Preheat your grill. Combine sirloin, chuck, and pesto in a bowl. Mix thoroughly and shape into 3 patties, about 5" in diameter each. Grill burgers until desired doneness. Avoid pressing the burgers with a spatula as it tends to remove the juices from the burger. Remove burgers from grill.
To assemble, place a burger on a bottom slice of bun. Top it with a slice of mozzarella. Add a slice of tomato and a few basil leaves. If you'd like to add a flavored condiment, try mixing 1 teaspoon of pesto with 1/4 cup of mayonnaise and spread a bit on the top and bottom of the bun.
Cattle Drive
Beef Grilling Spice Mix
Ingredients
2 tsp Paprika
2 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
2 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Onion Powder
1 1/2 tsp Brown Sugar
2 tsp Sage
1 tsp Celery Seed
1 1/2 Chili Powder
2 tsp Rosemary
1 1/2 tsp Tarragon
2 tsp Parsley
Mix ingredients together and either grind in spice grinder or in a mortar and pestle. Store in an airtight container.
Thanks again to Joey Chiappetta for his contribution to this segment. If you have any comments or questions, please send me an email at wayne@waynesweekend.com or follow me on Facebook or Twitter.
