Stuffed Burgers

Stuffed Burgers. This is one of the ways I like to dress up an everyday burger. The "stuffing" can be whatever ingredients you like. For today's dinner, I made two types: Provolone Cheese, Fresh Basil & Mushroom with smoked sea salt AND Provolone & Pepperoni with fresh basil.

I have an herb garden that has tons of fresh basil so I like to use fresh basil whenever I get a chance. You can also substitute ground chicken, ground turkey or ground pork, or ground game meat in place of hamburger. I will eat any of the ground meat but I personally prefer beef. You can also make these patties ahead of time and freeze them with wax paper between the layers so they separate well when you take them out of the freezer.

Stuffed Burger Recipe: (Makes 4 burgers)

My Basil

• 1 1/2 pounds of ground lean hamburger (I use 90-93% lean)
• 1 small can of sliced mushrooms, drained 
• 4 slices of your favorite cheese (I used Provolone today because that is what I had in my refrigerator but I have used just about any type of cheese), you can use shredded too.
• fresh basil, sliced thin, optional
• sea salt or your favorite seasoning
• Pepperoni or crumbled cooked bacon, optional

Mix sea salt or seasoning into hamburger (or whatever type of ground meat you are using). I use wax paper and press into 8 very thin patties, try to get them as equal as you can in proportions. Take 1 slice of cheese (I fold mine so it doesn't hang over the edge of the patty) and put in the middle of 4 of the uncooked patties (the other 4 patties you don't put ingredients on because they will be placed on top to cover the ingredients). Top the cheese with basil, mushrooms or pepperoni if you are using them but try not to get too close to edges or else all the stuff with run out when the burgers are cooked). Top with remaining uncooked burgers and pinch edges to seal & then very gently push the burger so it doesn't have a huge hump in center. This will gently push some of the cheese & other ingredients closer to the edge but not causing it to leak out of the edges. (Should make a total of 4 stuffed burgers). Grill or cook in cast iron skillet (medium heat) or broiler until meat is cooked to your liking and cheese is melted. (If you are finding that your burgers aren't cooking fast enough in the middle, you can put them in the microwave for 60-90 seconds to finish the cooking without drying up the meat). Be careful with young children since the cheese filling can be hot!

I have also used green chiles (or salsa) and cheese as a filling which is also delicious if you like spicy. Basically anything shoved inside a burger with melted cheese is going to be delicious, right? Be creative.

My Basil-Mushroom-Cheese Stuffed Burger (No bun)

My son Andrew's Pepperoni-Cheese-Basil Burger  (on a gluten free bun)

My Basil in my herb garden