California Burger

What's not to love about California? We have the sunshine, the mountains, the ocean, the wine valley, the death valley, the lucious green land to the desert... we truly have it all. So in tribute to our beautiful state we give to you the California Burger!

B and I bought "Bobby Flay's Burger, Fries, and Shakes" recipe book from Williams-Sonoma (on sale!). It has a large array of burgers beef, turkey or veggie as well as delicious fries and shakes. We took the recipe from his book and made a few changes, since B is a little picky about food :) Thank you Bobby Flay for the inspiration for this amazing recipe!!

Recipe:
1.25 lbs ground beef
Kosher salt
Black pepper
Garlic Powder
Hamburger Seasoning (optional)
6 slices crispy bacon
3 slices Monterey Jack Cheese
3 Hamburger buns, toasted if desired
Mixed greens
Sliced vine ripe tomato
Guacamole (see Carne Asada for recipe)

Start by putting the hamburger meat in a bowl and adding the seasoning, I usually just eyeball amounts, but if you are concerned its better to be conservative then to over do it. If you don't have any hamburger seasoning you can just use the salt, pepper and garlic.


Mix the seasoning in well and then form 3 equal patties. One of Bobby's tricks is to make a dent in the center of each with your thumb, then when the hamburgers cook they will come out more flat on top. Then give both sides a quick sprinkle of salt and pepper.

Place the patties on a hot grill and cook them to desired temperature. B won't eat anything pink and I am afraid of undercooked hamburger so we like ours well done which takes about 5 minutes on each side.
After the burger are almost done place the cheese on top. Bobby's tip for getting the cheese to melt perfectly is to put a dome or metal bowl over the burgers for about 1 min. It works great and get the cheese nice and evenly melted.

Oven Fries:
2 Large potatoes
2 TBS Vegetable or Olive oil
Kosher salt
Black Pepper

Wash the potatoes really well, then cut them lengthwise into 8 equal wedges. Place them in a bowl cover them with oil, and toss them to coat evenly. Then add a sprinkling of salt and pepper and toss again. You can get creative with the spices and add any flavor you like, or just keep it simple with a little S&P.

Preheat a baking sheet in a 400 degree oven for 10 min. Place the potato wedges in a single layer on the hot baking sheet, and bake for 35 min. Be sure to turn them every few minutes to keep them from burning or sticking to the pan.


Now to put it all together! Place a hot patty on the bottom bun then add the bacon, lettuce, tomato and top it off with a heaping spoonful of guacamole. Throw some oven fries on the side and you have a delicious California style burger that can't be beat!