BONUS POST: Greatest Burger EVER

Normally, I wouldn't double up posts with two in one night, but a) this dinner was SO worthy of a bonus post and, b) my earlier post was a tad on the grumpy side

It all started with a craving for onion rings. I really, really wanted onion rings. And you can't really make onion rings for dinner without burgers, right?

So, while looking for a good onion ring recipe I decided to do a quick search for a burger recipe (in spite of JiTs wicked burger-seasoning skills).

I happened to be on the Food Network web site at the time and one of the first burgers to come up in the search was a recipe called "James Beard's Favorite Hamburger." If you have any inkling of who James Beard is you're seeing the appeal here.

The recipe was really simple but unexpected -- heavy cream in a burger? But I could see where we were heading...buttery, smooth deliciousness. I didn't follow the measurements exactly, instead going with the usual little of this/little of that method, but the basic idea was the same. I adapted as follows:

1/2 lb of ground sirloin
1/2 of a vidalia onion, grated with a cheese shredder
1 Tbs heavy cream
A few grinds of fresh ground salt and pepper

Mix the onion, cream and spices evenly into the meat and form into patties (I got three 1/2-pounders). Once the burgers were seasoned, JiT cooked them up on our cast-iron, stovetop grill pan over medium-high heat (no oil or butter needed)....4 minutes one side, 3 minutes on the other for medium-rare.

We threw them on toasted brioche/onion buns, added toppings and each took a bite: WOW!
The beef is incredibly rich in flavor, with the onion the perfect compliment and the cream....oh the cream. The burger literally melts in your mouth.

Normally I would fear talking this up too much, but I don't think thats possible. If I were considering opening a restaurant, I think I could probably build an entire concept on tonight's dinner. The onion rings were also fabulous (season-salted, floured, battered and breaded before frying) and the sweet corn we added will be worthy of its own post (easiest oven-roasted corn recipe EVER and topped with chili-lime sour cream).

I will note that the kitchen is a total disaster right now, the house is a bit smoky due to the cast-iron frying method and I managed to burn my hand while making the onion rings but this burger was worth the pain and suffering. And boy does it taste good with a beer.