About as close to Hawaii as I'm gonna get this year!

How is it that everyone I know has been, is, or will be going to Hawaii this year? My own parents informed me last weekend that they are going in October! Unfortunately these burgers are about as close to Hawaii as I'm gonna this year.

My vacation disappointments aside, I'm pretty excited about these burgers!

Yesterday afternoon I was exhausted and lacking motivation to cook anything for dinner, so I decided we'd just have hamburgers. When I started getting the meat together, I couldn't help myself...I wanted to jazz things up a bit. Arnold has a good friend that always puts barbeque sauce and sliced pineapple on his burgers. Australians also put pineapple on their burgers...as well as beets, fried eggs and a myriad of other random items...but I digress. So at first I thought I'd just do the pineapple slice thing. But then I decided to create a whole new burger, with pineapple and barbeque sauce as my inspiration....

...and thus this recipe was born! We loved it! Even Reese gobbled up half a hamburger.

Arnold thought I should call them Monterey Jack Hawaiian Stacks, but I decided on Hawaiian Barbeque Burgers...Which name do you like better??

HAWAIIAN BARBEQUE BURGERS
(Mindi Original)

For the Burgers:
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 egg
1 C. Panko bread crumbs
1 C. pineapple tidbits
½ C. sliced green onions (about 6 including a good portion of the greens)
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 T. Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic; finely minced
1 t. salt
1 t. pepper

For the Barbeque Sauce:
½ C. ketchup
2 T. Dijon mustard
2 T. brown Sugar
2 t. white vinegar
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. garlic powder
Salt & pepper

6 slices Monterey Jack cheese
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Hamburger buns

1. In a mixing bowl dump all the ingredients for the burgers. With your hands mix the ingredients until well incorporated. (Try not to over-mix. If ground beef is over mixed it will become rubbery and tough, that’s why it’s important to mix everything at one time. You never want to add some ingredients, mix, then add more and mix again.)
2. Form the meat into 6 hamburger patties.
3. Combine all the ingredients for the barbeque sauce. Allow the sauce to sit for at least 30 minutes to ensure the sugar dissolves and the flavors come together.
4. Grill the patties, melting a slice of Monterey Jack cheese on top during the last few minutes of grilling.
5. Toast your hamburger bun of choice.
6. Assemble the burgers as follows:

Bun
Barbeque Sauce
Burger
Cheese
More Barbeque Sauce
Lettuce
Tomato
Top bun

*Makes 6 good size burgers

I grill in winter...

The weather was so beautiful today. We actually went outside to play with friends for the first time in way too long. Little "R" was in heaven. Splashing in puddles with her friend Brynn and running down the street with the boys. I know the nice weather will be short lived and we are bound for a snow storm very soon, but I'll take every little break mother nature is willing to pass my way.

I was a little tempted to grill tonight. I still like to grill in the winter, as long as the temperature isn't below freezing. These are one of my favorite hamburgers or "turkey-burgers". They can also be done inside on a grill pan or a George Forman. Yummy, refreshing, and a just a hint of springtime.



GREEK BURGERS
(Adapted from a Cusine at Home recipe)

For the sauce:
4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
4 oz. cream cheese
¼ C. sour cream
¼ C. pepperoncini peppers, sliced
2 T. scallions, sliced
½ t. lemon zest, minced
salt & pepper to taste.

For the burgers:
2 lb. ground turkey or beef
1 small red onion, diced
2 t. dried oregano
salt & pepper

Serve on and with:
6 -8 buns
Lettuce
Tomato
Thinly sliced cucumber

1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients for the sauce. Mix well and set aside.
2. Preheat the grill to medium-high.
3. Combine the ground turkey or beef with the red onion, oregano and salt & pepper. Shape the mixture into 6-8 burgers.
4. Grill for 4-6 minutes per side or until the burgers are done to your liking.
5. Remove and serve topped with the Feta sauce, cucumbers, tomato, and lettuce.

Thank you Food Network

I'm sure I'm not alone...I'm a Food Network junkie! Really, it's probably the one cable channel I couldn't...well...wouldn't live without.

One of my favorite shows, Food Network Challenge. I stole this idea from a recent "Best Burger" challenge. We love hamburgers around here, but I like to keep it interesting and try new things with our burgers. This recipe has become a favorite.

I serve them with a fresh pico and sour cream. Enjoy!


ADOBO QUESADILLA BURGERS
(Recipe adapted from Food Network Burger Challenge)

2 lbs. ground beef
¾ C. black beans
½ C. chopped cilantro
½ C. grated onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 T. adobo sauce*
1 T. ground cumin
2 t. seasoned salt
½ t. black pepper
12 tortilla shells**
12 slices of cheese (cheddar, mozzarella, or cheese of choice)
sour cream
fresh pico or salsa

1. Combine the beef, beans, cilantro, onion, garlic, adobo, cumin, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Mix to combine, handling as little as possible to avoid the meat from getting too tough.
2. Shape into hamburger patties. (As large or small as you would like.)
3. Cook patties on a grill pan, fry pan, or BBQ grill at medium high heat until cooked to your preference.
4. Remove burgers from the pan and set aside.
5. Lay out a flour tortilla and put a slice of cheese in the middle. Place burger on top of cheese. Fold in sides of the tortilla and roll like a burrito, securing with a toothpick if you need to. Repeat with all the burgers.
6. Place each tortilla wrapped burger back on the grill or pan until tortilla is golden brown and crispy.
7. Serve with sour cream and fresh pico sauce.

*Adobo sauce is the sauce found in the cans of “Chipotle Chilies in Adobo Sauce”. You only use the sauce, not the chilies. The sauce is not “hot” spicy, in fact it’s got a real smoky almost chili powder flavor. I have several recipes that call for chipotle chilies in adobo sauce. Some need the chilies, some need the sauce. I hate opening a can and wasting the rest, so I usually divide a can up and freeze it in 2 T. portions. If you don’t want to mess with this ingredient, you can replace it with 1 T. of chili powder, or 2 T. canned green chilies. I’ve also left it out all together and the burgers still tasted good.

**I manage to get 12 hamburgers out of this recipe, however, the original recipe said to make only 6. I guess I like my burgers a little smaller and my tortillas aren't that big. I will usually make a whole recipe and only cook half of it. I form the other half of the meat into burgers and freeze them for another time. I told you, I'm a big freezer!