By Sheri
THE FLAVOR OF CAESAR SALAD IN A BURGER!
For a change from plain burgers, Caesar ground beef patties can be awesome. If you’re really intensely craving the taste, you can even serve a Caesar salad along with these similarly flavored burgers. I like to think of these as a little change of pace to kind of celebrate the near-end of the summer barbecue season.
I’m not a fan of anchovies, but if you are I’ve include them in the recipe since a true Caesar salad is supposed to have them. I’d rather just have lots of garlic and Parmesan cheese instead. Remember to cook burgers with no pink in the meat or juices. The meat should be brown all the way through and the juice should run clear.
END OF SUMMER CAESAR BURGERS
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic – minced
1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 ½ tsp finely-grated lemon rind (zest)
1 ½ cups mayonnaise
2 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
(2 tsp anchovy paste – optional)
1 ½ cups soft bread crumbs – cubed from fresh bread
3 lbs lean ground beef
12 hamburger rolls
12 slices bacon – cooked crispy
Romaine lettuce leaves
1. Combine the Parmesan cheese, garlic, lemon juice, lemon rind, mayonnaise, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and anchovy paste, if using, in a bowl. Take ½ cup of the mixture out and reserve it in the fridge to top the romaine lettuce leaves with in the cooked burgers.
2. Add the rest of the Parmesan cheese mixture to the ground beef in a large bowl. Also toss in the bread crumbs. Mix well and form into 12 burger patties. Refrigerate the patties for about 40 minutes to marinate them.
3. On a preheated grill at medium heat, cook the burger patties about 8-10 minutes or until they are cooked through and no pink remains in the meat or its juice. A meat thermometer inserted into the centers of the patties should read 160F.
4. Lightly grill the roll halves if desired, Spread mustard onto the halves if you like. Top each bottom roll half with a cooked burger. Add the cooked bacon and romaine lettuce leaves to each patty. Spoon dressing on top. Place the upper roll half onto the burgers and serve.