SteamPunked Bacon Burger MeisterBurger

Wednesday's are always my day to blog on the AntiCraft, where I'm a tech editor. We're still in the middle of the "Beltane" issue, also known as "Unclean (It's Sacrelicious!)", though most people just call it The Bacon Ish.

I think we seriously underestimated how much fun could be had with bacon. BACON. Really. Who'd'a'thunk it? But Carin ended up on NPR on Monday morning. Baconhenge has been picked up by so many different food blogs, and my felted bacon bracelet has piggy-backed (ha! porcine pun!!) its way along on at least one (Slashfood, if anyone's wondering, and I think it's cool.)

Today, at Zabet's suggestion, I put my Steampunked Bacon Burgers on the AC blog, but I can never figure out how to post photos there. Redundancy is the answer!! I'll post it here, as well, with pics here and link the two.

Problem solved. Bon apetit!!

(By the way, if you're curious about the format, it's how all projects are formatted when they're published on The AntiCraft. This was one such submitted project for the current issue, but it's not really fair for a tech editor to have more than 2 projects in a given issue.)

STEAMPUNKED BACON BURGER MEISTERBURGER

It felt like they were breathing down the back of her neck, but they were in fact at least twenty-five, maybe thirty miles behind.

Still: too close for comfort.

But it wouldn’t do to skip meals. That trophy could never happen on an empty stomach. This strip of road? No double arches, no giant cowboy hats. Not here! Gonna have to do it herself.

She pulled to the side. A glance in the cooler, some rapid mixing, deft application of aluminum foil. A pop of the hood and the metallic packet nestled securely on the manifold.

As she drove the next 230 miles the aroma of cooking meat tantalized her, speeding her across the continent.

Victory smells like a juicy bacon burger.

Suggested Watching
The Great Race (1965, rated “Approved”)
Wacky Races (1968, rated G)

Difficulty Level
Rrrrgh….Brains….

Finished Measurements
# of burgers = 8-12, depending on the size of the patty

Tools/Ingredients
2# ground beef
2 packages onion soup mix
2 eggs
1 1/4 C (151g) dried bread crumbs
1 medium onion, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
3 T (29g) minced garlic
2 t (5.7g) fresh ground black pepper (or to taste)
1 t (2.45 g) cayenne pepper (or to taste -- I prefer more!)
1/4 C (20g) dried parsley
Hickory smoked bacon (1 pkg.)

Mixing bowl
Knife
Chopping board
Grill, grill pan, or griddle
Metal spatula, large


Chef's Notes
One very effective way of forming the hamburger patties is to make a very large ball of ground beef, wrap the bacon strips around the ball so they intersect twice (once above, once below), then flatten the patty on the bacon intersection points. Your burgers will keep their shape, and the bacon will not shrink or squeeze the meat out between the strips.


Directions
Preheat your grill, if you plan to use one. You want a warm grill, not hot -- this burger needs to cook a bit slowly, due to the bacon. If you’re “grilling” this burger on the stove, use a medium-low flame/comparable electric setting.

Mix all ingredients together except the bacon. Form into patties. Wrap the bacon around the patties in the form of Xs (see Chef's Notes). Make sure there is an X on both sides of each patty. Press gently to embed the bacon in the surface of the patty.


Place the burger patties on the cooking surface. Let them cook at least 5-8 minutes without pressing or lifting it! (Seriously -- walk away if you have to! I know the temptation is unbearable for some.) Cook these burgers sloooooowly. Flip after 15 minutes. Flip again, watch and make sure the bacon doesn't cook too fast for the burgers; cook until the burgers are done to your satisfaction.

The fresh vegetables in the meat actually steams the burger from the inside while it grills. It will be VERY juicy.


Serve on toasted sesame buns with onion and tomato slices, with a little barbecue sauce and horseradish. Or don't bother with the condiments. These burgers are loaded with their own flavor.