New England Burger w/ Maple BBQ Sauce and Sweet ‘n’ Spicy Relish

Pairs well with:

Merlot

Get cozy and get pouring. Our Merlot is the wine for long weekends and lengthy chats.

The purpose of this burger was to capture the essence of New England, a region of America rich in history and tradition. By combining ingredients that build upon and enhance each other I tried to make a burger that was both traditional and representative. Hot, spicy food is not a big draw in New England and so any heat that is added must be balanced out with sweet. The most traditional hot spice is horseradish and maple syrup is the local sweetener of choice, these two are our main sweet and spicy. Paprika and chipotle are added for a smokey heat (this gives a more BBQ flavor when using gas); and green apples for a tangy sweet.

Ingredients:

Patties:
2 eggs
1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tablespoon Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar
1 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoons chipotle chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 chopped green apple
1/4 lbs. ground pork
1 lbs. cubed boneless beef chuck
1 lbs. cubed beef tenderloin tips
1 teaspoon sea salt, for seasoning patties when they are formed
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, for seasoning patties when they are formed

Sweet ‘n’ Spicy Relish
1 cup Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar
3/4 cup real maple syrup
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 cloves pressed garlic
1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1 onion, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 jalapeño pepper, sliced

Maple BBQ Sauce
1 cup Sweet ‘n’ Spicy Marinade
1/2 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tablespoon French’s Horseradish Mustard
1/2 Teaspoon Chipotle chili powder
1/2 Teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 Cup of Heinz Ketchup

1/2 Cup Vegetable oil, for cleaning the grill and ensure the patties don’t stick.
6 ounces of sharp cheddar cheese, sliced
6 Kaiser rolls, split
6 Slices of bacon cut in half
6 slices of tomato
6 pieces of iceberg lettuce

Instructions:

Prepare a charcoal fire or preheat a gas grill to medium-high.

To make the relish marinade and sauce base you need to combine Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar, maple syrup, brown sugar, garlic, and chipotle chili powder in a bowl and mix together. Remove a cup of the marinade and place into a small sauce pan before adding the sliced onions, red and green bell peppers and the jalapeños let sit for 15 minutes.

To prepare the sauce add Worcestershire sauce, French’s Horseradish mustard, chipotle chili powder, smoked paprika and Heinz ketchup to the Sweet ‘n’ Spicy Relish marinade in a the small sauce pan.

To prepare the patties first combine eggs, Worcestershire sauce, Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar, smoked paprika, chipotle chili powder, garlic powder, sea salt and black pepper in a bowl. Next add green apple, ground pork, beef chuck and tenderloin tips in a food processor with blade attachment. Turn on and add wet ingredients, process for about thirty seconds or until it has the consistency you desire. Form into six equal sized patties. Season each patty with salt and pepper, cover loosely and set aside.

Place the marinated vegetables into a grilling basket, save the extra marinade in the bottom of the bowl, grill for about 25-30 minutes stir occasionally. Let rest for 10 minutes, put vegetables and remaining marinade into a small food processor or blender and chop until it had the consistency of relish.

Put the small sauce pan with the Maple BBQ Sauce on the grill, put it directly over the fire or burner until it comes to a boil, then remove it from the fire or reduce the burner to low and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.

Once the sauce is ready you can added the burgers, before you add the patties oil the grill with vegetable oil.

Sauce one side of the burger patty and place sauce side down, sauce the other side while on the grill. After all the patties are on the grill add the bacon. Cook each burger for about 4 minutes on the first side. Flip, apply more sauce, cook until done. Just prior to removing patties add sharp cheddar cheese and place the rolls sliced side down on the grill then close the grill to melt the cheese and toast the rolls. For burgers that are well done more flipping will be required to avoid excessive charring. Flip bacon with burgers, watch for flare ups.

To assemble the burgers place patty directly onto the bottom of the split roll, top with relish, bacon, tomato, lettuce and the top of the roll. Guide towards mouth.