COUNTRY COWBOY BURGERS WITH BACON ONION ZIN JAM AND BLAZIN’ HOT SPREAD

Pairs well with:

Zinfandel

Bright and full-bodied, this Zinfandel wine is a curious contradiction in tastes.

These burgers are big, juicy, and packed with flavor!It’s comfort food at its finest without any fancy or exotic ingredients and not a lot of prep work. My husband is a “meat and potato” kind of guy so sometimes it can be challenging to get him out of his comfort zone when it comes to food. I took some inspiration from some his favorite steak restaurant dishes and combined them into an easy burger that a quick enough for a weekday dinner but also unique enough to serve to any guest!

Ingredients:

Blazin’ Hot Spread:

2/3 cup mayonnaise

3 tablespoons ketchup

1 tablespoon prepared creamy horseradish

1/2 teaspoon pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)

Onion Bacon Zin Jam:

12 thick-cut slices good quality bacon

3 large sweet onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup SUTTER HOME Zinfandel

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Smoky Country Cowboy Burger Patties:

2 pounds ground chuck

2 tablespoons SUTTER HOME Zinfandel

2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons liquid smoke

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Vegetable oil for brushing on grill rack

6 slices good quality hamburger buns, split

6 thick slices smoked cheddar cheese

2 cups shaved (chiffonade) crisp iceberg lettuce

12 large slices good quality tomatoes

Instructions:

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

Prepare spread by whisking together mayonnaise, ketchup, horseradish, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper sauce in small bowl. Cover and refrigerate or set aside until ready to assemble burgers.

Place the bacon in a large fireproof skillet and cook on the grill rack until bacon begins to become crisp, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer bacon to paper towels to drain; reserve 3 tablespoons bacon fat in pan and discard remaining fat. Once bacon is cool, coarsely chop, and set aside. Add onion, 2 garlic cloves, 1/2 cup wine, vinegar, brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper to pan over heat and stirring occasionally cook about 15-20 minutes or until thickened and liquid has evaporated. Stir in bacon, remove from heat, cover to keep warm, and set aside.

Meanwhile, combine ground chuck, 2 tablespoons wine, Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, 2 garlic cloves, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in large bowl until just combined being careful not to over-mix. Form into 6 patties. Brush grill rack with vegetable oil. Place patties on rack and cook about 4-6 minutes per sides or until desired doneness. During last few minutes of cooking, place rolls, cut side down on outer edges of rack to toast lightly and top each burger patty with a slice of cheddar cheese.

To assemble burgers, spread a generous amount of mayo spread on cut sides of rolls. Top bottom roll with lettuce, 2 slices of tomato, then patty, a generous amount of onion jam and top roll.

Makes 6 burgers.