French Bistro Burgers

Who doesn't love a perfect burger?  I believe that the most important part of a burger is the bun and I'm constantly on the search for the perfect hamburger bun.  Honestly, I've thought of baking them myself but let's not kid ourselves....I might be getting a little better in the baking department but when it comes to baking bread...that is a completely different beast.  No.  So on I went looking for an airy bun that is burger-worthy. The grocery stores  just don't have the good stuff....I was about to start checking small bakeries when I hit the jackpot.  My husband and I were eating lunch at Fuddruckers' and I looked up and realized, "OMG, they sell their buns!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  So there you have it.  Perfect burger buns for your home grilling!  And at 3 bucks for a half-dozen, you're getting a better deal than most grocery stores!  I am one happy girl!  

The next step in a great burger is to use a grill press like this one.  And I know the comments will flow out like, "oh, these press all those delicious juices out of the burger and you end up with a dried out hockey puck". Not so.  We used our grill press last night and trust me on this -- we still had juicy burgers and we also had burgers that fit on our buns and didn't shrink up on the grill -- I hate that!

Ok so here's the deal with this burger -- it's pretty much the best burger we've ever made in this house -- and we've made a lot of burgers.  I actually attribute most of its deliciousness to the bun but hey I'll throw myself a bone on the toppings as they were amazing.  If you're not a fan of brie then go ahead and use any cheese you prefer -- but the burger will no longer be "French". Sorry.   Bon Appetit!

French Bistro Burgers (makes 4)

4 hamburger buns, split
4 tbsp butter
1 1/2 lbs ground sirloin
1 large onion thinly sliced
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
8 slices bacon, cooked
1 small wheel of brie, sliced 
4 lettuce leaves

1.  Form patties by seasoning sirloin with salt and pepper and dividing the beef into 4 patties.  Set aside until ready to grill.
2.  Caramelize onions:  In a large pan over low heat, add a drizzle of olive oil and add onions, salt and pepper to taste.  Cook onions over low heat for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onions are cooked through and caramelized.  Set aside.
3.  Grill burgers until desired done-ness (medium-well is preferred).  Butter each hamburger bun and place on grill until toasted.
4.  Assemble burgers:  place lettuce leaf on bottom half of bun.  Top with burger, sliced brie, bacon and onions.  Top with bun and take it to the mouth!

An Elegant Halloween Party -- Part 1

Halloween is my absolute most favorite holiday of the year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I start decorating my house in August {actually I begin by mentally decorating my house somewhere in July...}.  I plan Halloween costumes the year before and lately I’ve been DIY-ing them which is super fun and keeps me in the Halloween spirit.  

The one thing that disappoints me about Halloween is that it’s not a holiday known for it’s food.  When I google “halloween food” I’m let down when I see peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut into the shape of a ghost or hot dogs wrapped in dough to look like mummies.  Let’s get a little creative!  For this Elegant Halloween Cocktail Party I decided to disguise “normal” food as creepy food, choosing appetizers that fit the Halloween holiday but were sophisticated enough to work in with the “elegant” part {example: Bacon Wrapped Roaches = Bacon Wrapped Blue Cheese Stuffed Dates}.  Half of the recipes and decor will be in this post and the other half will be up on Monday!  

As far as decor tips go, the first thing I do when decorating is walk through my house with an open mind and try to use things I already have in a different way.  I have some fantastic candle holders in silver and black that I put white pumpkins on instead of candles.

To keep the price down, I hit up the dollar store and scored some pretty hideous plastic skeletons.  Nothing a little spray paint won’t fix right up!  By using a high gloss spray paint, I was able to make dingy skeletons look amazing and trendy.  

While sifting through the dollar store, I picked up some cheap wooden picture frames and went ahead and used that same high gloss black spray paint...  it completely transformed them into something fabulous!

In keeping with my “silver, black and white” color scheme, I decided to spray paint some mini pumpkins black, cut out the stems and add a tea light for a unique little candle action.

Now on to the food!

Toe Jam and Scab Pizza

{Pimento Cheese Pizza with Crispy Bacon}

1 ball pizza dough or store bought crust

1 recipe Pimento Cheese

5 slices good quality bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled

1. Preheat oven to 450.  If using raw dough, place pizza stone in oven to heat up for 10 minutes.  Stretch dough out to fit pizza stone and bake dough for 7 to 10 minutes.  Do not let the crust start to brown.  Remove from oven.  If using a store bought pre-baked crust, place crust on pizza stone and proceed to step 2.
2. Smear the crust with a thick layer of pimento cheese and top with crumbled bacon.
3. Bake pizza for 10-12 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and crust begins to brown.

Shrunken Head Sliders

{Tapas-Style Meatball Sliders with Sriracha Mayo and Sprouts}

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/4 c. ketchup

1 small onion, finely chopped

1/2 c. soft bread crumbs

1/4 c. minced fresh parsley

3 tsp paprika

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp each salt and pepper

1 lb. lean ground beef (90% lean)

2 1/2 oz feta cheese, crumbled

1 container sprouts

slider buns

Glaze:

1 jar orange marmalade

1/4 c. orange juice

3 green onions, chopped

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

Sriracha Mayo:

1/2 c. light mayo

juice of 1/2 lemon

3 tbsp sriracha sauce, or to taste

1. Combine first 10 ingredients, and mix well.  Divide into 8 portions, rolling into tight meatballs.
2. Place meatballs on a greased rack in a shallow baking pan.  Bake, uncovered at 400 for 20 to 25 minutes or until no longer pink.  In a small saucepan, heat the marmalade, orange juice, green onions and jalapeno.
3. Pour glaze over top of meatballs and stir to coat.
4. Combine all ingredients for sriracha mayo and spread one side of each slider bun with the mixture.  Place one meatball on each slider bun and top with sprouts then top of bun.  Serve.

Blood and Puss Puffs

{Brie and Raspberry Puffs}

3 tbsp raspberry jam

2 tbsp dried cranberries, finely chopped

1 package frozen puff pastry, thawed

1 large egg, beaten with 1 tsp water

3 tbsp whole grain mustard

1 (6oz) wedge brie, cut into 3/4 inch cubes

1. Preheat oven to 375.  Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment.  In a small bowl, combine jam, cranberries and mustard.
2. On a floured surface and with a floured rolling pin, roll pastry dough into 16 x 16 inches.  Cut into four 8 inch squares.  Lightly brush squared with egg wash.  Cut each square into 2 rectangles.  Place 1 cube of cheese on one side of rectangle and top with 1/2 tsp of cranberry mixture.  Wrap dough on top and seal edges by pressing with a fork.  Bake for 10 minutes or until golden.

Halloween Snack Mix

{It is what it is}

8oz white chocolate baking bars, chopped

4 c. corn or rice chex cereal

2 c. bite sized pretzels

1/2 c. raisins

1/2 c. salted peanuts

1 c. candy corn

1/4 c. halloween candy decorations

1. Microwave chocolate until melted and smooth.
2. Gently stir in cereal, pretzels and raisins until coated.  Stir in candy corn and halloween decorations
3. Spread on waxed paper to harden.