Grilled Santa Fe Burgers

They say we're going through a "cool down" here in LA.  Considering it was 108 on Sunday and 104 yesterday, I'm not quite sure what "cool down" means. 

When I hear the phrase I think of a nice breezy 76, maybe hitting 80...but certainly not a 4 degree drop! 

But that weather man keeps telling me everyday that the "cool down" continues.  Well, we'll see.  I keep hoping....it's BLAZING outside! 

So Sunday MGG and I decided to do a little maintenance on my car's headlights.  Scrubbing, scraping, buffing, sanding, polishing....and YES in the 108 degree heat!  Crazy huh??

Well this took quite a bit longer than I had planned....3 1/2 hours to be exact...until we accomplished this tedious task! 

Needless to say we were hot, tired, and HUNGRY.  So after a dip in the pool, a cold beer, and some chips and my excellent sweet onion salsa, we decided to grill BURGERS!

So as I often do, I theme my meals.  Today we were going to Santa Fe, New Mexico.  All the wonderful Southwestern flavors we love brought into my menu.  Here's it is.

Menu:

Grilled Santa Fe Burgers

Chili seasoned oven fries

Bush's Grillin Beans - Black Bean Fiesta

I found this great recipe for Grilled Santa Fe Burgers over at Sargento.com.  It sounded perfect, I had all the ingredients on hand....it's a winner!!!  I often use Sargento's cheese because I like the quality and flavor of their products.  They have a great variety to try in the stores!

UPDATE:  Oh, the local news station just said that while we continue to have a "cool down" we are going to have a "warm up" by the end of the week!  Geez! LOL!

So let's make burgers.

This is one of those burgers that has almost everything mixed into the meat.  The secret with doing this is to mix the meat gently and quickly to incorporate all the ingredients.  You don't want to handle the meat too much....you'll end up with tough hockey pucks!  And no one wants to eat a hockey puck!!

So in a medium bowl take your ground beef (I use ground sirloin for flavor, and lower fat content), add in Sargento's Fancy Shredded 4 Cheese Mexican, salsa (my sweet onion salsa works great here!), crushed tortilla chips, onion powder, cumin, garlic powder, plus salt & pepper.

Mix quickly but thoroughly.

Shape in to patties.  Cook them on an indoor or outdoor grill, preheated to medium high heat.  Cook for about 5 - 6 minutes on each side, or until done. 

Add some more Sargento cheese to the top to melt right before they are finished.  Toast your hamburger buns!  (I made homemade hamburger buns as well.  They were fabulous!  I'll give you the recipe tomorrow...promise).  Update:  Here's the link to the Homemade Hamburger Buns!

To serve you can top with some salsa.  MGG wanted cut tomatoes on his.  See how purty???

These were excellent!  Thanks Sargento for a great recipe!!

(Note: Sargento did not sponsor this...all opinions were my own.  I just loved the recipe and their products and wanted to share!)

Grilled Santa Fe Burgers

Adapted from Sargento.com

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef
1 cups shredded Sargento’s Fancy Shredded 4 Cheese Mexican
1/4 cup salsa  (I used my Sweet Onion Salsa)
1/4 cup crushed tortilla chips
1 ½ t onion powder

1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Salt & pepper
4 hamburger buns  ( I used my Homemade hamburger buns)

Toppings:

Lettuce (optional)
4 tomato slices (optional)

Sargento’s Fancy Shredded 4 Cheese Mexican shredded cheese (melted on top) (optional)

Salsa (optional)

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine the beef, 1 cup of cheese, 1/4 cup salsa, tortilla chips, onion powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper (to taste). Lightly shape into 4 patties. Don’t overwork the meat or it will become tough.

 

Cook on the preheated grill over medium high heat for about 5-6 minutes per side.  If you are melting cheese on the burger, top with a good mound of cheese 1 minute before the end of the cooking time.  Close the lid on the grill to melt cheese.  Toast hamburger buns on the grill during the last 2 min of cooking.  To assemble burgers:  place hamburgers on the bottom bun.  Top with salsa, lettuce, and tomato if desired. 

Strawberry Banana Muffins

Sometimes things are just better with a partner.

Take Laurel & Hardy....Lewis & Clark...Batman & Robin...Donny & Marie...Adam & Eve...Abercrombie & Fitch...Peanut Butter & Jelly

...or

Strawberries and Banana 

A match made in Heaven!

While looking at one of my favorite sites, JoyofBaking.com I found this combo in a muffin.  You know how I LOVE muffins! 

I was in luck, I had 1 banana and a handful of strawberries...just enough to make a small batch of muffins for Sunday breakfast!

So I adapted the JoyofBaking.com recipe to fit a smaller crowd.  Making 6 muffins instead of 12, and I substituted Splenda brown sugar for the real stuff to cut down on the carbs.  The result?  Fabulous!

Great flavor, moist, tender, and fruity!  Just like a smoothie in a muffin!  So for your next Sunday family breakfast, try a muffin...a Strawberry Banana muffin!  It's sure to be a hit with the whole family!!

So let's make muffins.

Take your butter and melt it in a saucepan on the stove or in a bowl in the microwave.  Let it cool.

In a medium bowl, mash your banana.

Add your egg and vanilla extract.  Mix well.

Add your melted butter (cooled so it won't curdle the egg!) and mix well.

In another large bowl, add your flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.  Mix to combine.

Chop your strawberries in to bite sized pieces.

Add your strawberries to the flour mixture.  Fold in to coat with flour.

Add your wet ingredients to the dry one.  Stir only enough to get everything moistened.

It should look like this.

Prepare a 6 cup muffin pan by spraying it with vegetable spray.

Fill muffin cups using an ice cream scoop, or 2 spoons.  I fill mine pretty full, cause I like em that way!

Bake in a preheated oven at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  Mine were done at 22 minutes.

Voila!  Look at these babies!!!!

Want some???

Strawberry Banana Muffins

Adapted from JoyofBaking.com

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

1 large ripe banana, mashed (about 1/2 cup)
1 egg
½ t pure vanilla extract
1/2 c fresh strawberries, diced into bite sized pieces
1 1/8 c all-purpose flour
1/3 c light brown sugar or equivalent in Splenda Brown sugar
¾ t baking powder
1/8 t baking soda
½ t cinnamon
1/4 t salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly spray a 6 cup muffin pan with a vegetable spray.

In a small saucepan or microwave oven, melt the butter. Let cool to room temperature.

In a medium sized bowl mash the banana.  Add egg and vanilla extract and whisk together. Add the melted butter and stir to combine.   

In another large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Gently fold in the berries, making sure they are coated with flour. (This helps to prevent the berries from sinking during baking.) Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir only until the ingredients are just combined. Do not over mix the batter or you will get tough muffins. 

Divide the batter evenly among the 6 muffin cups, using two spoons or an ice cream scoop. Place in the oven and bake until a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Muffins can be stored for a few days at room temperature.

Makes 6.   Preparation time: 20 minutes.

Product Review: Williams-Sonoma The Ultimate Burger Starter

Don't you just love trying new products in search of "GOLD"??

Found it!

With this product I hit the Motherload!

Seriously.

Back in June I was attending a technique class at the Williams-Sonoma store and spotted an item of interest way across the room.  I could hardly stand it not being able to pick it up and read the ingredients as the class was only half way through.  Classes are GREAT there, by the way.  I recommend taking one if have the ability to do so!

So when we finished I scurried right over and nabbed a jar of their "The Ultimate BURGER STARTER".

Click on this link to see the product on their site:  The ultimate burger starter
Here's what Williams - Sonoma says about it:

The world’s best burgers begin with our savory seasoning blend. Quick and easy to use, it’s the simple secret to juicy, succulent meat with incomparable flavor.

• Classic American recipe pairs sweet caramelized onions with a signature medley of herbs and spices.
• Dijon mustard, roasted garlic and aromatic Worcestershire sauce add depth and complexity.
• Perfect for grilling or panfrying ground beef, turkey or pork.
• Also great for meatballs.
• Quick and easy – just combine 2 tsp. Burger Starter per 1/4 lb. of ground beef or turkey and cook as desired.
• 10 oz.
• A Williams-Sonoma exclusive.

Ingredients: Sweet onions, natural roasted onion flavor, kosher salt, dehydrated roasted garlic, dijon mustard (distilled vinegar, mustard seed, salt, water, white wine, citric acid, tartaric acid, spices), extra-virgin olive oil, black pepper, brown sugar, italian flat-leaf parsley, garlic powder, worcestershire concentrate (vinegar, molasses, corn syrup, water, salt, caramel color, garlic powder, sugar, spices, tamarind, natural flavor), dehydrated onions, mustard powder, citric acid



Review:  I don't usually like to add stuff to my burgers.  Boy was I wrong...  Now I'm converted.  This product is the BOMB!  It's depth of flavor from the onion and Worcestershire sauce give it a great beefy flavor.  It just adds a zest to the burger, like a gourmet restaurant style meal.  You only need to use a very small amount per burger, so this will last a long time!  Good cost savings there.  The item prices at $10.00 for 10 oz. 

You can add it to your grilled burgers, or the ones you pan fry on the stove.  It would be excellent in meatloaf, or meatballs!  Try it with Salisbury steak too!

You HAVE to try this....I kid you not.  I'm stocking up on this baby!  I even bought one for my sister, Sue, and my mom in Tennessee.  This product is on my A list of items I use often.

Here's a pic of our 4th of July burgers where I used this.  MGG says MMMMGood!