By Kelly Bogard

Summer is coming up quickly and, in Texas, that means grilling season is upon us. During the summer, hamburgers become a regular on our grill. They’re fast, easy and everybody loves them. In addition to National Strawberry Month (check out last week’s recipe), May is also National Hamburger Month, so I thought I’d share my family’s recipe for burgers with a tasty twist.

A few years ago, my brother decided we needed to start stuffing the inside of our burgers with cheese. Together we devised a plan to take the flavoring of my ground beef and his melted cheese idea to build the ultimate burger. Our creation, simply named Stuffed Burgers, can be customized for your own taste.

You’ll need the following ingredients for this recipe:

1 package dry French onion soup mix
3 pounds 80/20 ground beef
2 cups grated or crumbled cheese
TexJoy seasoning to tasteingredients

First, combine your ground beef with a dry package of French onion soup mix. I mix it together just like I do when I prepare meatloaf. Dig in with both hands and mash and squeeze until it looks uniform throughout. Once you have the meat mixed, separate it into 12 equal portions. Pat each portion out into a good-sized patty and set aside.

cheesesOnce you have pressed out all of the patties, you need to pick your cheeses. This time I used bleu, pepper jack and sharp cheddar, but you really could use any cheese that can be crumbled or grated and melts well. Since you can use any cheese, it’s super easy to customize the patties to everyone’s individual tastes.

building burgerTake two patties, place a handful of cheese on one and cover it with the second. Press the edges of the patties together to seal the cheese inside. Repeat this five times for a meal for six.

 seasoned burgersNow that you have the patties assembled, cover them with your favorite seasoning. For burgers, I like to use TexJoy. Okay, who am I kidding? I use TexJoy for most everything. This blend of peppers and spices is just enough to wake up my tastebuds without overwhelming them with salt. It’s made in Baytown and comes in several different varieties. My favorite is Texas Steak Shake. In fact, I just ordered another six bottles.

Now you’re ready to throw them on the grill. Every grill is different, so be sure to cook them to a safe temperature* as they are thicker than your average burger. Once they are done, slap that big, juicy, cheesy burger between a bun and customize it to your liking. My perfect Stuffed Burger variety is bleu cheese with light mayo and thin, sweet onion slices.

I hope you enjoy the beautiful May weather outside with your family and friends. If you have any recipes or tips you would like to share, please be sure to email them to me at kbogard@txfb.org. We may even feature the recipe in an upcoming post. From all of us at Table Top, enjoy!

*Tip: The minimum temperature for cooked burgers is 160 degrees for medium doneness, according to the Texas Beef Council.

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Recipe: Stuffed Burgers

Summary: Hamburgers stuffed with cheese

Ingredients

  • 1 package dry French onion soup mix
  • 3 pounds 80/20 ground beef
  • 2 cups grated or crumbled cheese
  • TexJoy seasoning to taste
  • Instructions

  • Combine ground beef with a package of dry French onion soup mix.
  • Separate meat into 12 equal portions.
  • Press into patties.
  • Place approximately 1/3 cup of cheese in the center of one patty.
  • Cover with a second patty.
  • Press edges together to seal in the cheese.
  • Season to taste.
  • Grill or pan fry until internal meat temperature reaches at least 160 degrees.
  • Preparation time: 10 minute(s)

    Cooking time: 20 minute(s)

    Number of servings (yield): 6

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