So what screams BBQ more than burgers....I cannot think of a thing. So the 2nd night with the new grill was burger night. No this is not one of those veggie/low fat recipes. It's one of those you may as well just apply it to your thighs kind of recipes. It's good to indulge now and then. This was definitely a night of indulgence. I made burgers on a plank on the grill. Then my hubby helped out by working the fryer inside and cutting up potatoes for french fries. I try not to use my fryer more than once or twice a month. Not healthy for you on a regular basis. You just have to pull it out now and again though. You know you shouldn't but you do it anyway. Kind of like driving a bit too fast, or sneaking a grape out of your bag while you grocery shop. Not that I've done those things....that would be wrong.
So we totally enjoyed dinner. Well Kiana enjoyed half a dinner. She is not a hamburger fan so she just had the fries without a burger. I don't sweat the small stuff any more. If she's still hungry she can go make herself a sandwich. She is a really picky eater so now that she's older I just make what I make and she usually eats what we have but modifies it. Like if we have tacos she does meatless. If I make chicken she has sides but no chicken. She is not a huge meat eater which is sort of funny since when I was pregnant with her I had such a wicked aversion to all meat. I could not even go down the meat aisle at the store. I could not eat or even make it. My poor hubby and son had a rough 9 months without me preparing meat. I should have known she would be a challenge to feed. We've learned to adapt almost any meal into a meatless version. She does eat some meat. She eats steak and she likes some lunch meats. She will now eat meat in spaghetti. So we've come a long way. Which makes me very happy.
So here is dinner. Hope you try it out. This is a recipe I just winged and made it up as I went along. I've never made the burgers this way before. So worth the chance they'd suck though. They were very good. Enjoy!
Burgers a la Kim:
Ingredients:
1 and ½ pounds ground beef
1 small shallot, diced
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon BBQ sauce
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Garlic Powder to taste
Chili Powder to taste
Mozzarella cheese and/or American cheese if you like
Plank- make sure you soak it over night or for at the very minimum 4 hours prior to using
Directions:
(Soak your plank the night before. I put mine in a cookie sheet and cover it with water. I put a glass of water on top to hold it down. Then in the morning I flip it over and let it soak some more.)
Preheat your grill and get it warmed up. Then reduce to medium heat.
Combine all your ingredients in a large bowl and mix it up. I'm old-fashioned and like to use my hands to mix it up.
Shape your patties but don't overwork them. It will make them tough. I made 5 patties with this recipe. Another good tip is to press your thumb print in to them before cooking. This keeps the shape of them uniform as they cook.
I put mine on a plank that I had soaked over night and all day.
Place the plank on the grill in the middle to make use of the whole grill and get even cooking.
Cook for about 15 minutes on one side.
Flip them over and continue cooking for about 12ish minutes.
Then add some cheese to the ones you want to add it to. (for the guys I used a slice of each kind and it completely engulfed the burgers,lol)  Cook for about 3 more minutes.
Remove from plank and bring inside.
Leave them to rest for a few minutes so the juices redistribute.
Serve.
Here's a tip for you. This is a learn from Kim's mistake kind of deal. Determine what buns you are using before you shape your burgers. I thought we were using normal size burger buns. But at the last minute we decided to get the D'Italiano burger buns. They are over sized massively. So my burgers look mini on them. But in reality the bun is giant size. So always have a plan before you shape the burgers. Lesson learned.
Fries:
Ingredients:
5 or 6 russet potatoes
Oil- I used canola but peanut is the best. You could also use vegetable or corn oil.
Technique:
I used a deep fryer. If you don't have one you could do these in a pot. We've also used a wok in a pinch. Just be careful. Don't want my lovely readers getting hurt.
Directions:
Peel and slice up your potatoes while your oil gets hot.
Once oil is hot enough (test by dropping one of the fries in) you can submerge the fries.
Cook for 6-10 minutes depending on your method and your oil. Mine took about 8ish minutes. We did three batches. I pop them in the warming drawing while the next batch cooks.
Serve.
Hope you enjoy. We sure did. Toodles. xx
Photos missing due to a G+ incident. They will be replace soon.Â
Ann
Who doesn't love a burger!?
Kim Bee
my thoughts exactly! lol