Vegetarian Grilled Corn, Roasted Red Pepper and 5 bean Chilli...on burgers!

As food jokes go, this one is pretty lame, I have to admit...but since we did have some of this delicious vegetarian chilli on hand to serve a couple of our herbivorous friends and I was in the mood for a big juicy burger, as often we do here, we combined the two. 

One of the ways we serve up our vegetarian chilli is spooned into large tempura battered red onion rings. It really is delicious this way and can serve as an appetizer or as a vegetarian main course. On a burger, the large onion ring serves as a vessel to contain the spicy chilli on top. It may have been a collision of herbivores and carnivores at our table but it sure was delicious!

Chilli

Soak 1 to 1 ½ cups dry 5 bean mix beans overnight, depending on the amount of beans you prefer in your chilli. You may use canned beans if you prefer.

In a large pot heat 3 tbsp olive oil.

Add
6 cloves minced garlic
2 medium red onions

Cook until the onions begin to soften.

Add

1 ½ cups tomato sauce
4 cups crushed tomatoes
2 roasted red peppers chopped
3 ears of grilled corn, removed from cob
1 minced jalapeño pepper( optional)
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
4 heaping tbsp chili powder

3 tablespoons molasses
Salt and pepper to season

4 tbsp chopped cilatro

pre-soaked r canned  beans

Simmer very gently over low heat for 1 ½ to 2 hours stirring occasionally. Serve alone or with tortilla chips and garnishes of grated cheddar cheese, sour cream and lime guacamole.

Tempura Red Onion Rings

Heat canola oil in a deep fryer to 350 degrees F or shallow fry in an inch of oil in a deep cast iron frying pan using a thermometer to keep a careful eye on the heat level.

Mix together

1 egg + enough whole milk to make 1 cup

Whisk in

1 cup flour

Some lumps in this simple batter is just fine. Let batter stand for 10 minutes before dipping

1  inch rings of red onion

into the tempura batter and then dropping them into the deep fryer. Cook for only a few minutes until light golden brown.

Jalapeno and Queso Fresco Stuffed Burgers

The great grilling continues with another winning combination in a stuffed burger. This time some locally made queso  fresco artisan cheese from Five Brothers Cheese gets layered with diced fresh jalopeno peppers and stuffed into extra lean ground beef flavored with garlic and even more jalopenos! This is a very flavorful burger with plenty of punch. Plenty of crisp bacon was the only thing my inner meat-a-tarian needed to complete this burger but next time I'm trying it with some fresh homemade salsa as a condiment.

Makes 4 burgers

Mix together:

2 lbs extra lean ground beef

1 or 2 finely diced jalapeño peppers

1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp kosher salt

2 tbsp smoked paprika

1 clove minced garlic
1/2 tsp ground cumin

4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Form into 8 individual burger patties. On four of the patties, place about 

2 ounces thinly sliced queso fresco cheese layered with a sprinkle of diced jalapeño peppers between the layers of cheese.

Place the remaining four patties over the cheese and pinch the edges together to seal.

Grill over medium high heat  for 4-5 minutes per side or longer if you prefer well-done. Serve on well toasted burger buns with plenty of crispy bacon.

Chipotle Jack Bacon Burgers

Chipotle Jack Bacon Burgers

With grilling season heating up, our family will probably be eating more than our fair share of juicy burgers and this is a great one. With cubes of Monterey Jack Cheese melting inside a thick ground beef patty which has been seasoned with spicy chipotle powder, these are some of the most flavorful burgers you will pull off the grill this season.

For each burger combine:

• 6 ounces lean ground beef
• 1 1/2 ounces monterey jack or pepper jack cheese, cut in 1 cm cubes
• pinch kosher salt 
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp chipotle powder
• 1 clove roasted garlic, mashed into a paste (or 1/2 clove finely minced garlic)
• 2 tbsp hot sauce or 1 tbsp minced fresh jalapeno pepper (optional)

 
Form into patties and cook in a hot, lightly oiled cast iron pan or on a preheated grill until well done (internal temperature with a meat thermometer should read 160 degrees F or higher. Serve on toasted crusty rolls with:

• oil packed, sundried tomatoes
• crisp cooked smoky bacon
• baby lettuce leaves

Blue Cheese Roasted Garlic and Tempura Red Onion Burgers

Blue Cheese Roasted Garlic and Tempura Red Onion Burgers

Roasted garlic? Onions? Blue cheese?

I know...pass the mouth wash, right? Maybe so, but all these pungent flavors combined are so delicious that it might just be worth it! Make one for your significant other too and there won't be any complaints. ;)

Makes 4 burgers

• 2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 beaten egg
• 4 cloves roasted garlic, mashed
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 tbsp hot sauce
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp cracked black pepper
• 4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled into large pieces
• 4 Kaiser rolls

Mix together all ingredients except the blue cheese. Gently mix in the blue cheese being careful not to break up the crumbled pieces too much; you want them to be as whole as possible. Form the meat mixture into 4 large patties and grill until well done. Serve on fresh toasted Kaiser rolls with your favorite condiments and top with Tempura Red Onions

Tempura Red Onions

Heat canola oil in a deep fryer to 350 degrees F

Mix together:

• 1 egg + enough whole milk to make 1 cup

Whisk in

• 1 cup flour

Some lumps in this simple batter is just fine. Let batter stand for 10 minutes before dipping

• ¼ inch rings of red onion

into the tempura batter and then dropping them into the deep fryer. Cook for only a few minutes until light golden brown.

Sundried Tomato Bacon Burgers

Sundried Tomato Bacon Burgers

Sometimes nothing beats a good burger. My burger cravings are never going to be satisfied by the lack luster offerings of all of the fast food chains. For the most part, I am a big burger purist, preferring to make my own very simple hamburgers. I'm not fond of homemade burgers with loads of fillers; I prefer an all beef burger to be enjoyed purely on the virtues of the flavour of the beef. Most often salt and pepper are the only additions to my hamburger patties.

My burger purist sensibilities are in no way offended by this recipe however. This sort of Italian version of a burger is absolutely delicious and the flavours of garlic, oregano, tomato and parmesan go very well with the flavour of the beef. I sometimes make these with a couple of ounces of mozzarella or cheddar tucked into the center of the burgers to make a sort of inside out cheeseburger. Mozza and marinara sauce also make very good additions to these great burgers.

Makes 4-6 burgers

2 ½ pounds extra lean ground beef

1 tsp oregano
¼ cup fresh grated parmesan
¼ cup finely chopped sundried tomatoes
1 clove finely minced garlic
½ tsp kosher salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients together thoroughly and form into 4-6 burger patties. Grill or pan fry as desired. Serve on large Kaiser buns with your favourite burger toppings.