BACON LOVERS BURGER WITH GARLIC RED PEPPER MAYONNAISE, SHOESTRING ONIONS, BABY SPINACH, and GRUYERE CHEESE

Bacon in the burger and pancetta on top covers all the bacon treats.My burger was made for the Lovers of bacon. Everything taste better with bacon. Bacon taste in every bite.

Ingredients:

Ingredients:

2 large Red Peppers, roasted, peeled, seeded and chopped

Garlic Red Pepper Mayonnaise:

1 1/4 cups Mayonnaise
Add all the chopped roasted Red Pepper (from above)
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons sour cream
2 garlic clove, minced
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 Tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Patties

2 1/4 pounds ground chuck (80/20)
1/2 pound ground smoked bacon
1/4 cup Sutter Home Zinfandel
1/3 cup shallots, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

6 slices pancetta, thin slices

Shoestring Onions:
1 large Vidalia, or sweet onion, peeled, sliced 1/4 inch slices
3 cups Pancake mix, such as Krusteaz Buttermilk Pancake mix
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 cups buttermilk
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Peanut oil for frying about 4 cups

Colavita Extra Virgin Olive oil, for brushing the grill rack and buns.

6 slices of Gruyere Cheese, each 1/4 inch thick

6 Brioche buns, split

2 cups of Baby Spinach, divided equal
1 large ripe California Haas avocados, halved, pitted, peeled and sliced

Instructions:

Directions:

Prepare a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill with a cover, or preheat a gas grill to medium-high.

To prepare the Roasted Red Peppers, brush the grill rack with olive oil and place the Red peppers directly on the grill. Cover and grill until the skins are blackened about 10 to 15 minutes, turn occasionally. Place the blackened peppers in a large plastic zip lock bag and cool to room temperature. Remove the peppers from the bag and remove and discard the burnt skins, and seeds. Chop the peppers. Set aside.

Place large iron skillet on the rack to preheat for the pancetta.

To make the Garlic Red Pepper Mayonnaise, in a food processor, add the mayonnaise, red pepper, heavy cream, sour cream, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, honey, cayenne, salt and ground pepper. Process until almost smooth. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl. Set aside in a refrigerator.

To cook the pancetta, Place the pancetta in the preheated iron skillet. Cook the pancetta until crisp about 5 to 7 minutes a side. Remove the pancetta and drain on a paper towels. Cover the pancetta with aluminum foil and keep warm. Remove the skillet from the grill.

To prepare the patties, In a large bowl, place the beef, ground bacon, Zinfandel, shallots, cumin, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Handling the meat as little as possible to avoid compacting it. Gently mix together using a large spoon. Form into 6 patties with a thumb dimple in the center of each patty and refrigerate until ready to grill.

To make the Shoestring Onions, place a large iron skillet on the grill and add peanut oil. Heat to 375 degree F. Slice the onion 1/4 inch slices and then quarter the slices of whole onion so the pieces are about two inches long. In a large bowl combine the pancake mix, garlic powder, salt, fresh ground pepper and cayenne pepper. Split the pancake dry mix evenly between 2 large baking dishes. Next in a new large baking dish whisk together the buttermilk, salt, fresh ground pepper and cayenne pepper. Working in small batches, dredge the onions in one of the dishes of the dry pancake mix and tap off the excess. Dip the onions in the buttermilk mix, remove and allow the excess to drain off. Then dredge the onions in the second dish of pancake dry mix. Tap off the excess and drop the onions into 375 degree oil. Fry the onions until golden brown, about 4 to 6 minutes. Remove the onions and place on paper towels. Repeat the process until all the onions have been fried. Set aside.

Brush the grill rack with olive oil. Place the patties on the grill, cover and cook for 5
minutes. Turn the patties, cover and continue cooking for another 5 minutes. During the last 2 to 3 minutes of grilling the patties, add slice of pancetta and a slice of Gruyere cheeses on top of each patty in that order. During the same time, brush the buns with olive oil and place the buns, cut side down, on the outer edges of the rack and toast lightly to golden brown.

To assemble the burger, slather the bottom toasted side of the buns with some of the Garlic Red Pepper Mayonnaise. Place the equally divided baby spinach on each bottom bun and add the patty. On top of each patty place 2 slices of avocados, a little pile of the Shoestring Onions and a large dollop of the Garlic Red Pepper Mayonnaise in that order. Add the toasted bun top with wooden skewers and serve immediately.

Makes 6 burgers