J.A.’s Jonny Applewood Burgers

Pairs well with:

Zinfandel

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

Ingredients

1 Cup Applewood chips
1 Cup Cabernet Sauvignon
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil and Tin Foil for Grill Grate
1 lb Hardwood Smoked Bacon
2 Delicious Red Apples
3 Shallots
2 lbs Ground Beef (80/20 lean/fat)
1 lb Ground Pork
1/2 Tablespoon Salt
1/2 Tablespoon Ground Allspice
1/2 Tablespoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 Tablespoon Ground Cloves
1/2 Tablespoon Ground Nutmeg
6 Slices of Brie cheese (use wire cheese cutter to make super thin slice)
6 Super large buttery flaky croissants

 

Instructions

Place 1 Cup of Applewood Chips in 1 Cup of Cabernet. Clean grill grate with vegetable oil and aluminum foil. Heat Grill to Medium/High Heat.

Begin frying the bacon in iron skillet, until done. Do not overcook nor blacken. You want bacon to be cooked but remain in a “strip”. Place cooked bacon on paper towels and pour off all but one tablespoon of the bacon oil from the skillet.

While Bacon is cooking peel the apples, then dice into small cubes. Peel then mince the shallots. Place apples, shallots and 1/2 Tbsp of salt in a bowl. Mix evenly. Sweat apples and shallots in the bacon oil until apples begin to brown.

In large bowl, mix the ground beef, pork, sweated apples and shallots. Add the ground allspice, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg evenly. Re-mix thoroughly with beef, pork, apples and shallots. Form into 6 large patties.

Cook burgers until desired doneness. (approximately) 6 minutes per side over direct heat. Then finish with following steps. While burgers are cooking, wrap the soaked apple wood chips in tin foil and pierce with fork making several small holes. Carefully place foil with applewood chips under your grill grate over direct heat. Flip burgers and cook 2 minutes on first side, then 2 minutes on second side.

Slice the Brie into almost paper thin strips. After flipping burgers for the 3rd and final time, top burgers with one thin piece of sliced Brie, then 1 piece of bacon layered flat across Brie.

Slightly toast the croissants over indirect heat, right after last burger flip. Assemble burger.