Bleu Cheese Burgers

I decided to barbecue for Memorial Day, even though the weather is seasonably drab.  There were two ripe eggplants, but I had to come up with a better reason than that to light the grill.

Burgers are fine.  I like a good hamburger.  This weekend, I wanted more, and decided to try a bleu cheese-infused burger.  I found this recipe that mixed the cheese into the burger instead of trying to seal it within the meat.  That never ends well for me, like the dirty snowballs that erupted hot chocolate everywhere.

Then it took me three tries to get the grill lit.  I was very close to turning on the oven instead.  These melted into the grill a bit and there was cheese all over the coals.  I suspect that was a result of the fire not being hot enough.  It was fine by the time the burgers were done, and the eggplants cooked in the time allotted.

I was disappointed that these didn't taste more cheesy, but that may be due to how much dripped out.  The cheese did make them perfectly seasoned and tender.  If you were to add half a cup of bread crumbs, this would make an excellent meatloaf.

For serving, I wouldn't add much.  A little mayo if you need something creamy on your bun, maybe some lettuce and one veggie (I would have used tomato if the eggplants weren't ripe) would be enough.  I did toast extra bleu cheese onto the top bun after the first day to up the cheese factor.

1 lb 80/20 ground beef
2 oz (1/2 C) crumbled bleu cheese
1 egg
2 green onions, chopped
*1 Tb Dijon or grainy mustard
*2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tb water
1/2 tsp salt
*1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
Vegetable or peanut oil for the grill
for serving: buns, veggies, mayo

1.  In a bowl, combine all ingredients.  Let sit in the fridge for an hour for the flavors to meld.

2.  Oil the grill very well or things are going to stick.  When the coals are very hot, divide the meat into four portions and press into patties larger than the buns.  Put a dent in the middle.  This is a grilling trick, because the patties will shrink up and get higher in the middle.  The dent will disappear.

3.  Grill burgers until browned on bottom.  You can tell that because they come off the grill easily.  Flip and cook other side until burger tests 160º in the middle.  Serve immediately.

Difficulty rating  π