A couple of months ago I was invited to a tasting at Burgh’ers Lawrenceville to try their new Blended Burger entry for the James Beard Foundation Blended Burger Project. For those that do not know, a blended burger is made with at least 25% mushrooms blended into the meat. At Burgh’ers, chef Fiore Moletz won the James Beard Blended Burger competition in 2018 and was ready to compete again for the title in 2019. This year, his burger was a little more Pittsburgh inspired. It tasted great and definitely a worthy entry for this year’s competition.
After visiting Burgh’ers, I started seeing lots of ads for the James Beard and Bon Appetit Blended Burger Contest. They were encouraging amateur chefs to create their own burger recipe at home using at least 25% mushrooms in the burger blend. I was inspired. I knew this was something I could do too. I have eaten enough crazy burgers I could make my own combination of flavors while also mixing in mushrooms. I went for a Smokey and Savory flavor combination. I think it worked. Although I did not win the grand prize and assumed I completely lost, I just received in the mail a Blended Burger apron to wear in the kitchen. I was pretty excited by this and felt it was time to finally post this recipe I created.
Ingredients
Burger:
6 oz ground beef
2 oz cremini mushrooms
1 oz sliced prosciutto
1 oz sliced or shaved smoked gouda
1 slice red onion
½ red bell pepper
Olive Oil for cooking
Salt and pepper for seasoning
Butter
1 Sandwich roll
Aioli:
1 clove of garlic
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
¼ teaspoon lemon juice
¼ teaspoon Olive oil
Directions:
Preheat grill to medium heat or until the closed temperature is 425℉. Cut the red bell pepper in half. Slice one half into strips. Save the other half for another recipe. Slice the red onion so there is a ¼ to ½ inch thick slice based on desired thickness and level of onion flavor. Coat vegetables in olive oil and lightly season with salt and pepper. Slice or shave the smoked gouda for topping the burger. Set all aside until ready to cook.
Chop mushrooms into small pieces. Combine mushrooms and ground beef until fully mixed. Form into a patty. If patty does not hold together, continue mixing ground beef. Lightly season with salt and pepper. When the grill is ready, place the patty on the grill along with the peppers and onions.
While cooking, prepare the roll and aioli. Finely chop the garlic and place in a small mixing bowl. Add mayonnaise, lemon juice, and olive oil and stir. Slice the roll in half and butter the roll. Lightly toast the roll on the grill. Apply aioli to the roll after toasted.
Flip burger and vegetables on the grill. Add smoked gouda to the top of the burger. Place slices of prosciutto on the grill to cook lightly. When the burger is cooked, assemble all items on the roll with the onions and peppers below the burger patty and the prosciutto above the patty. Enjoy!
