Wine and Cheeseplate Sliders

Ingredients

For toppings:
3 tbs. olive oil
1 green apple – cored and sliced
1 onion – thinly sliced
1/4 cup apple juice
2 tbs. sutter home chardonnay
5 calamyrna figs – diced
1/2 cup port
1/3 cup strawberry jam
4 tbs. balsamic vinegar
4 fresh strawberries, mashed
For burgers:
2 lbs. chop meat
2 eggs
salt/pepper to taste
*18 mini buns
For fillings:
1 1/2 cups Stilton or a strong tangy blue (Roquefort may be substituted)
1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups goat cheese (put in a freezer to keep hard prior to grilling)

Instructions

Preheat gas grill to medium high heat. To make the toppings, place the diced figs and the port in a small bowl and allow the figs to soak up the port. Meanwhile, place a sauté pan on the grill rack and add olive oil. Add the apple to the heated oil for a few minutes and then the onion. Saute for 3- 4 minutes or until the onion turns opaque. Add the apple juice and the wine and reduce until most of the liquid evaporates. Remove from heat and set aside. Place a saucepan on the grill rack and heat the port-soaked figs and the port in the pan until the port caramelizes into a glaze (2-3 minutes). Remove from heat and set aside. In a small bowl, combine the jam, vinegar and strawberries and set aside. To make the patties, combine the chop meat, eggs and salt and pepper in a large bowl, handling the meat as little as possible to avoid compacting it. Using a small ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, make uniform meatballs (golf ball size) and reserve about 1/4 cup the meat for any potential patches that may need fixing due to overstuffing. Using your thumb, press into each center of each ball to create a well and fill 6 with blue cheese, 6 with the cheddar cheese and 6 with the goat cheese (MAKE SURE TO KEEP TRACK OF WHICH BURGER IS FILLED WITH WHICH CHEESE). Pinch the sides until the cheese is fully covered with meat (use reserved meat if needed and be sure the cheese is securely in the burger, otherwise it will ooze out all over the grill when they are cooking). Place all the blue cheese filled burgers on the grill rack, cover and cook, turning once, for 3-4 minutes on each side. Repeat with goat cheese and cheddar burgers. Remove all the burgers onto each respective, identifiable platter. Place each mini roll, cut side down on the grill to toast lightly. Remove all of the mini-buns. To assemble the blue cheese burgers, place all the blue cheese burgers on a bottom roll and top with figs and a burger top. To assemble the goat cheese burgers, top each roll bottom with a goat cheese burger, mound the jam vinegar compote onto the burger and cover with a roll top. To assemble the cheddar burgers, top each bottom roll with a cheddar burger, place the onion apple mixture atop the burger and cover with a top roll. To serve, place one of each burger on a plate and accompany each with the following appropriate wine flight – the blue cheese burger is paired with a Sutter Home Merlot – the goat chees burger is paired with a Sutter Home Sauvignon Blanc and the cheddar burger is paired with a Sutter Home Chardonnay.