Tortilla Wrapped Burgers and My Weird Dog

Tortilla Wrapped Burgers. Is that a good name? I don’t know. I actually sat at my desk for a while, staring at the blank “title” field in Live Writer. It doesn’t help that I have a headache. That tends to make me stare off into space instead of concentrating. They’re burgers, shaped more like a sausage so they roll up well in the tortillas. I added fresh guacamole, sliced tomato, queso blanco, sliced shallots and cilantro to top off the taco seasoned burger/sausage-type patties. We had these over the Memorial Day weekend. Still making our way through a delicious stack of Tortilla Land tortillas in the fridge, these are a fun twist on burgers with buns.

We also watched The Hunt for Red October over the weekend. Come on, it’s a classic! When my husband and I were dating, he dragged me, kicking and screaming, to see this movie. I didn’t want to see it. I thought a root canal sounded more entertaining. But I went. Playing the sweet girlfriend role. Because that’s how you get things in return. Like cameras and shoes and shiny things. It’s all give and take.

And then I sat on the edge of my freaking seat! The cat and mouse games. The stealthy hunter, stalking it’s prey. When that sub came out of the water? Whoa. They can DO that? The good looking guys in uniforms probably helped, too.

I loved it!

Still do.

Where am I going with this? I do have a point, I promise. One of our Corgis, Hamilton, has been doing something odd lately. It’s only at night, when they go out for the last time before bed. The dogs will do their thing, and then wait on the deck to come back in. They all come right in, except Hammy. He waits to be asked back in.

Hello?! I know! Quite often, he’ll just sit there and look at us like we’re crazy. My husband started giving him titles, like “Come in, Dr. Hamilton.”

“Sir Hamilton.”

“Lord Hamilton.”

“Your Highness Hamilton.”

“General Hamilton.”

“Colonel Hamilton.”

“Admiral Hamilton.” <--He especially likes that one. Why? I have no idea. But it does have a certain ring to it, yes?

When he hears one he likes, he’ll come in. What a goof! Sooo…while we were watching Red October, we get to the scene where Ramius is addressing the crew for the first time on the voyage. Hear that whistle right at the beginning? Hammy was asleep on the floor and as soon as that whistle sounded, he was on all four paws, straight at attention. Billy looked down and said “Oh, sorry for startling you, Admiral Hamilton!”

Totally cracked us up! Was Hammy an admiral in another life? Does he watch too much TV when we’re not home? Does he just have a damn good imagination for a dog?

Not a clue. He is entertaining, though. And although he looks sort of admiral-ish in that photo, he’s not. He’s a huge, snuggly, hairy bozo. With a personality complex.

Tortilla Wrapped Burgers

These are great for those of you that don’t want to fill up on a big burger bun because you’ve been snacking on all the other goodies at your cookout. This isn't so much of a recipe, as it is a guideline. Use your own amounts and toppings according to what you like. I was going to use red onion, but it had decided to turn green, so shallot was the lucky choice for the day.

-ground beef, about a pound or so
-taco seasoning or your favorite burger seasoning
-guacamole 
-sliced tomatoes
-queso blanco, shredded, or your favorite cheese
-thinly sliced shallots (or red onion)
-fresh cilantro
-tortillas
-hot sauce

Add the taco seasoning to the ground beef and  mix well. Shape into sausage type shapes. And yes, I'm well aware of what they look like. Ha! Shhh. Quit it. Grill until they're done to your liking. Remove from the grill and set aside.

Heat the tortillas on the grill until they're warm and you get nice grill marks and delicious char marks on them. Spread each tortilla with some guacamole, add your burger next...and speaking of the burgers, we cut them in half down the middle so they didn't look like, well, you know.

So add the burger, cheese, tomatoes and all of the other goodies. Roll up and serve with something ice cold, and some crunchy corn chips. Oh, some extra guacamole on the side would be awesome, too. For the chips!

Cheeseburger and Fries Mac and Cheese

Cheeseburgers. Cheese fries. Macaroni and cheese. Good old all-American foods. Craving all three? I’ve got you covered! This mac and cheese incorporates all of the elements of a cheeseburger and fries, or cheeseburger and cheese fries, if you prefer. I’ve not only included the fries and the burgers, but also the traditional cheeseburger goodies--ketchup, mustard, and pickles! And you know what? It’s so. damn. good. Not for every day, mind you--but for a treat? Kid’s birthday? Potluck? Hell yeah!

My 15 year old daughter loves macaroni and cheese. A lot. She…puts ketchup in it. (I know, right?) Which always grossed me out. Without fail. One day, not too long ago, she was squirting ketchup into her mac and cheese, and I got brave and asked for a bite. I had to see what all the fuss was about. Surprise--it was pretty good! She could have asked me for anything in that moment, and out of shock, I’d have probably said yes. Good thing she didn’t, right?

So that got me thinking about cheese and ketchup, and that led to cheeseburgers, which brought me to cheeseburgers and fries. The mac and cheese was right in front of my face, too. It was all a natural progression, you see.

The fries are actually cubed roasted potatoes. I even made teeny hamburger patties! Side note--the tiny patties with a squirt of ketchup and a piece of diced pickle? Addictive, I’ve got to say. All that was missing were tiny squares of sliced cheese.

Cheeseburger and Fries Macaroni and Cheese
makes one 9x13 pan

1 russet potato
olive oil
salt and pepper
onion powder
garlic powder
1 pound ground beef
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp burger seasoning, plus a little more for sprinkling over (I used Weber's Gourmet Burger Seasoning)
1-16 oz box elbow noodles
1/2 cup butter
1/2-1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup flour
3 1/2 cups milk
1 pound of grated (or small cubed) cheese, PLUS about 1/2 cup more for sprinkling over the top (I used and American/Cheddar blend)
3 tbsp ketchup
1 tsp yellow mustard
1/4 cup diced dill pickle
panko bread crumbs
one 9x13 metal pan (no glass if you want to use the broiler to brown the top)

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Scrub the potato and cut it into 3/4-1 inch cubes. Toss the cubes on a rimmed baking sheet with some olive oil, salt, pepper, and a sprinkling of the onion and garlic powders (about a quarter teaspoon or so of each). Roast for 30-40 minutes, tossing the potatoes around a couple of times with a spatula. Remove from oven and set aside. Turn the oven temperature down to 350 degrees.

While the potatoes are in the oven roasting, place the ground beef in a bowl. Add the Worcestershire sauce and burger seasoning. Mix well, then form into small meatballs, using about 2 tsp of meat at a time. Flatten each meatball into a small burger patty. When you're done making them, sprinkle them with a bit more burger seasoning. Heat up a large skillet, and cook the patties for about 2-3 minutes per side, or until done. Set aside.

Get a pot of water going to cook the noodles in. When you start the noodles, make the cheese sauce. (Boil the noodles until they're al dente, and set aside.) Heat a large sauce pan over medium heat, and add the butter, salt, pepper and flour. Stir until smooth. Remove from the heat and add the milk. Return the pan to the heat and bring to a boil, watching it carefully. Boil for one minute while whisking. Remove from the heat and stir in the one pound of cheese, and continue to stir until melted.

Transfer the cheese sauce to a large mixing bowl. Add 6 cups of the cooked noodles. (Honestly, I could have added the whole amount of cooked noodles, but my taste-testing daughter said there was enough. You decide here.) Next add the cooked potato cubes and about 1 1/2 cups of the patties. You could add all of them, but I eyeballed it and thought that was plenty. I also broke the patties in half for more even distribution-again, at the kid’s request. Finally, add the ketchup, mustard, and diced pickles.

Fold all of this together with a large spoon or rubber spatula, and taste. Add more ketchup or mustard if you feel you'd like to. Pour the mixture into a lightly greased 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle with the extra grated cheese and some panko bread crumbs. Bake for 35-40 minutes, then turn the broiler on for 2-3 minutes to lightly brown the top.

• You could do this recipe in steps, like I did. I roasted the potatoes on Sunday morning, and made the patties on Monday (but could have easily done them on Sunday, too), early in the day. I put the rest together late in the afternoon, and had it in the oven for dinner. 
• We absolutely loved this! It’s packed with classic American comfort food. It sure is fun to say you’re having your cheeseburger and fries in mac and cheese!
• I think this will be my last mac and cheese post for a while. I’m getting mac and cheesed out. Ha!

Vegan Bean Burgers--We’ve Bean Enjoying You

So--this was my first attempt at making vegan burgers.  We really enjoy the vegan burgers that we get at the grocery store, but I’ve “bean” thinking of making some.  (Totally cheap pun, I know.)

My inspiration came from Eating Well…Living Thin.  Check it out--her photos are gorgeous!  The photos of her bean burgers completely drew me in.  I wanted them.  STAT.

Using that recipe as a base and method, I set to work.   I decided to totally change up the seasonings and use the flavors from these Argentine Style Burgers I’d made a while back.   We loved those!  The flavors all came together beautifully and the bean burgers were packed with flavor.  The only issue we had was getting them to feel “set” inside the center.

We originally added 2 TB quinoa flour and let it sit in the fridge, but after 20 minutes or so, the mixture was still pretty soft.  We decided to add 2 TB of vital wheat gluten--and this seemed to do the trick--they mixture set up nicely.  When it came time to cook them, though, we still couldn’t get them to completely set up on the inside.  The outsides got nice and crispy, but stayed a bit soft in the centers.   Also?  The original recipe from Eating Well…Living Thin uses one egg white.  Since we were aiming for vegan here, we used 1 tsp of tahini stirred into 1/4 cup of almond milk.  Maybe I’ll try another vegan egg substitute next time.

Maybe partially cooking them on the stovetop, then tossing them in the oven to finish would help?  I’m not entirely sure, but we will try this next time.  Also, I found this recipe at jugalbandi that uses oats in the recipe--this may do the trick, so we’ll also see if that helps.

Even though they were a little softer in the center than we’d have liked, they were absolutely delicious!  I can’t wait to make these again--and I’ll try the things I mentioned above, then report back here.  Don’t let the slightly soft centers stop you from trying these if you’re looking for a good vegan burger.  The flavors in these are wonderful together.

 

Topping off the burgers is this amazing Chimichurri from Zen Chef.   We love this recipe and make it often.  It’s great on so many things, so don’t feel limited to the rib eye steaks in that post.  Though, we made those, too, way back, and they’re outstanding!  Since then, we’ve used the chimichurri on so many things, from chicken to pork chops to burgers, and on smashed potatoes and sandwiches, etc.  It’s insanely easy to make, but it’s packed with flavor.  This time, my husband had a genius idea.  While we were making the sauce, he thought it would a great idea to add an avocado to it.  He was right!  It made the sauce nice and creamy--it was a perfect addition!

The  homemade buns are simply the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day Master Recipe, shaped into smallish buns and baked. 

Vegan Bean Burgers
(makes about 4-5 patties)

1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup finely diced onion
3 minced garlic cloves
1 small jalapeno, diced
2 TB flour (I used quinoa flour)
2 TB Vital Wheat Gluten, or more flour
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp adobo seasoning (I use Goya Adobo Light All
Purpose Seasoning)
1 tsp tahini, stirred into 1/4 cup almond milk (use the milk you like)
3 TB fresh cilantro, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Mash the beans (we pulsed them in the food processor), then add the pecans, set aside.
Heat a bit of oil in a small sauté pan.  Sauté the onion, garlic and jalapeno until soft, about 3 minutes or so.  This is so you don’t have harsh tasting crunchy raw bits in your burgers.
Add this mixture to the beans and pecans.
Add remaining ingredients, mix well, then chill in the fridge for about 15 minutes.
After the chill time, form into patties.  I found it easier with wet hands, and we got 5 patties total.
Heat some oil in a pan on medium high, and cook the patties for 3-4  minutes on one side, then 3-5 on the second side.
If you notice them getting too dark after you flip them, turn the heat down.

Top with your favorites--here we've used fresh spinach, sliced tomato and the avocado-chimichurri sauce.

Pesto Parmesan Turkey Burgers and Some New England Sights

Where to start?  I guess, with the food, since this is a food blog, right?

This is a quickie recipe that I whipped up a few weeks ago.  We had some ground turkey hanging out in the freezer, like it does, and I wanted something different.  Burgers are always welcome, but a little variety is nice.  A look in the pantry turned up a jar of Trader Joe’s pesto.  Bingo!  One easy recipe, coming up!

Note: We had two 3/4 pound packages of farm fresh ground turkey (one white, and one dark meat) that we combined to make these.  The farm fresh meat is very moist, so we added bread crumbs.  If your ground turkey doesn’t seem extra moist, you can skip the bread crumbs.  Bottom line--the patties should hold together, so you be the judge.

Pesto Parmesan Turkey Burgers

1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
1 1/4 cups grated fresh parmesan
1/2 cup prepared pesto
1 1/2 tsp garlic pepper rub
1/2 cup bread crumbs

Pesto Mayo

Your favorite mayo (we like Hellman's!)
prepared pesto

Mix all of the burger ingredients (except the things for the pesto mayo) in a medium bowl and form into patties.  (We got 8 for this amount)
Cook in a hot pan with a little heated olive oil, or grill for about 4 minutes per side.
For the pesto mayo, just eyeball the amounts until you get it to your liking.
Add any additional toppings you like.

 

And now, some shots from around NH.  These are some taken at Odiorne Point State Park, in Rye, NH.  We love visiting here, and we’re out at the coast all the time, anyway.  The park has the Seacoast Science Center, which is full of exhibits featuring the local wildlife.  The building itself is built on and encompasses the home originally built on the land in the 1600’s.  Here is a bit of history about Odiorne Point from NhStateParks.com:

History
In the dense growth of shrubs and vines, covering much of the park's 330 acres, remnants of Odiorne's past silently remain. Reminders of other eras and stark contrasts; idyllic summer estates and gaunt reminders of coastal fortifications. In terms of man and his settlement of this coastal land, Odiorne Point remained a true wilderness until almost 400 years ago. During summer migrations Native Americans of Pennacook and Abnaki tribes visited the area which they called Pannaway. Permanent settlement began in the 1600s.

In 1623 an agent of England's Council for New England cameto fish and trade in the New World. David Thomson journeyed to New England on the ship Jonathan to establish the first New Hampshire settlement at what would become Odiorne Point. Many others followed, and the original settlement grew and spread along the coast and up the river.

John Odiorne joined the settlement in 1660. He acquired several acres of land from the shoreline west into the marshes beyond. Like the others, he farmed and fished. The Odiornes remained on the property for several generations, always a part of the continuing changes in the Odiorne Point community.

By the 1700s the settlement was well established, but the governing and trading activities had moved north into the deep harbor area of Strawberry Banke (now Portsmouth). The farms of Odiorne Point helped to feed the burgeoning port of Portsmouth for about 150 years.

After the Civil War farming gradually gave way to a colony of hotels and large summer homes. Generations of families spent their summers by the sea. In this era of large seaside resorts, a grand hotel called the Sagamore House was built on the property. Over the years smaller parcels of land were sold for summer homes and estates. Formal gardens and tree-lined drives ornamented the properties. By the late 1930s seventeen families lived on Odiorne Point, including an eighth generation descendent of John Odiorne and the last of the Odiornes to live on the ancestral homestead.

World War II (WWII) brought drastic changes to the landscape and to the lives of these people who loved their land by the sea. In 1942 the federal government purchased all the property from Little Harbor to the Sunken Forest, as well as the adjacent marshland. Within a month the Odiornes and their neighbors were gone.

Military structures were quickly built to house personnel, armaments and supplies. Massive concrete casements, often called bunkers, were constructed and camouflaged with thick vegetation. Because of their open aspect to the sea, many of the estates were demolished, and Route 1A was closed. Odiorne Point became known as Fort Dearborn, and for nearly twenty years, was part of the chain of coastal defenses that protected Portsmouth Harbor and the naval shipyard. In the late 1950s Fort Dearborn was declared surplus property. It was sold to the state of New Hampshire for $91,000 in 1961.

You can see a photo of the original house in the photo on this page.  The old  house is still there and now a part of the Science Center.   Sadly, the area was taken over during World War II and used as part of the coastal defense.  This photo from activerain.com shows one of the bunkers that is still there.

My dad grew up on the coast, and his father had the chance to buy a very large, very gorgeous home that is still there today, for $5,000.00.  Everyone back then thought the homes on the coast would be destroyed.  Thankfully, they weren’t.  But sadly, my grandfather didn’t buy the house! 

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And here are a few more photos from our trip up the the White Mountains yesterday.   There’s a couple of vista shots, and a few of only the second time in my life to see a moose up close.  We almost didn’t take the Kancamagus Highway to cut through the mountains, but I’m glad we did.  This “little” guy was hanging out on the side of the road!  I was able to get right in front of him, and then he crossed the road and went by just a few feet from us.  Being a city girl, this was very exciting!

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Argentine "Style" Burgers

So what do you do with fluffy and delicious homemade pita breads? Anything you want! But my recipe of choice was Argentine Style Burgers from Fine Cooking. I'd had my eye on the recipe for a while, and when Sarah suggested we try pita breads for our first recipe together, I knew exactly what I'd use them for.

Not only are the burgers easy to make, but they are delicious! I love a good burger, and my choice of toppings on a regular old one are just ketchup, sliced tomatoes and lotsa black pepper. Yep, that's my favorite way to have them. I know! Boring, right? Geez, I've gotta get out more, hehe.

But sometimes I start jonesing for a different burger. When I saw this one, I knew I'd make them, it was just a question of when. And then, pita breads popped into my life (I love you, pita bread!), and that's how these burgers are served. Perfect!

The burgers themselves are flavored with onions, jalapeno (seeded or not, you decide) and garlic, that are quickly sauteed to take off the raw edge. I hate raw veggies in burgers. Not on, but in--they just don't belong there unless they're cooked first, right? They get mixed into the meat along with fresh cilantro, cumin and oregano. And speaking of the meat, I used ground turkey. I know what you're thinking...why turkey? Well, we like it. And I already had some. I like finding recipes that I have mostly everything on hand for already, and this was one of them. They're garnished with lettuce, sliced red onion, and chimichurri sauce, and if you read this blog regularly, you know how I L-O-V-E Zen's recipe for chimichurri sauce. I make it often and we use it on all kinds of things! From steaks, to pork chops also rubbed with the piri-piri blend in his post, to parm crusted chicken, and skillet smashed potatoes. It's fabulous on everything--even pizza! I didn't bother making the one from Fine Cooking, and though I'm sure it's delicious, I already have a favorite--so why mess with perfection?

Anyway, here's the recipe. And please excuse my photos, hehe. They look weird, but the taste of the burgers more than makes up for them! I had planned to make another one up from the leftovers, but as it turns out, we had other plans for them, which you can see at the bottom of this post...

Argentine Style Burgers
adapted from Fine Cooking (contributed by Bob Sloan)

2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup finely diced onion
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 small jalapeno, finely diced
kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey (if you use beef, use 85% lean)
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
4 - 6 inch pita breads (or really nice buns--heh!)

To garnish:
thinly sliced red onion
lettuce
Chimichurri sauce

In a small skillet, heat 1 tbsp of the oil over medium heat.
Saute the onion, garlic, jalapeno and 1/4 tsp of the salt for about 3 minutes, and stir occasionally.
Remove to a plate and set aside to cool for at least 10 minutes.
To a bowl, add the turkey, cumin, oregano, cilantro, 1 tsp salt, some pepper, and the onion-garlic-jalapeno mixture.
Get your hands in there and gently mix until thoroughly combined.
Gently shape the meat into four patties (I ended up with five).
You can either cook these on the stove top, which I did, or grill them.
For stove top, heat remaining 1 tbsp oil in a pan over medium high heat. Cook burgers for about 5 minutes on each side, turning only once. (If you're using beef, cook to your liking.)
Cut part of the top off of the pita breads, and serve the burgers in the pitas along with the onion, lettuce and some of the chimichurri sauce.

This is one of my new favorite recipes, and I know we'll be having it again soon. It's fresh and different, and the flavors all work so well together.

So what did we do with the leftovers? We made pizza! Saturday night was pizza night, and I was thinking that the burgers--sliced thinly, along with some of the chimichurri sauce and some cheese would be fabulous. I was right! The only thing I forgot was the thinly sliced red onion on the pizza. D'oh! It would have been perfect on it, but I'll have to try it next time.

I really hope you'll try these! They couldn't be simpler, but the taste is fresh and different. And if you haven't checked out Fine Cooking, you really should. Their recipes are easy and always fantastic. Those of you who gave up Cook's Illustrated because of their mind boggling and stupid behavior may want to spend your subscription money on Fine Cooking instead. :)

So tell me, what are your favorite ways to have burgers?

This feed contains copyrighted photos and text from Elle's New England Kitchen.
If you are not reading this material in a feeds aggregator, by e-mail subscription,
or through BlogBurst, the site you are viewing may be guilty of copyright infringement.
Please contact ellenekitchen (at) gmail (dot) com.