Home On The Range – Bodacious Bison Burgers

Did you ever see the movie Jurassic Park? Do you remember the scene where the power in the park has just gone out, and the children are stuck out in the park in the jeep, its dark and rainy outside, and the young boy notices that the surface of a glass of water in the jeep keeps rippling every couple of seconds? It’s a great scene that foreshadows the arrival of a sharp toothed, hungry dinosaur with a bad attitude. Even before they could see the belligerent beast, the earth shook with each step announcing its arrival.

Well, the first time I ever saw a Bison (aka Buffalo) up close, I was sitting in the passenger seat in our car at Yellowstone National Park, and the surface of my beverage rippled just as the one in the movie had. Unlike the movie, however, it announced the arrival of a small herd of amazing bison who were preparing to cross the road. We sat in awe as the majestic, four-hoofed group of horned creatures passed right next to us. And I mean right. next. to. us. With each step they took, our little car shook and shivered as they made their way first next to and then in front of our car. And while I was, quite honestly, a tad intimidated by a) their massive size, and b) their close proximity to my personal space, I have to admit that I was mesmerized by these creatures that used to roam free in the millions. There’s something very special about American Bison, and I’ll always treasure my up close and personal moment.In my quest for healthy meals, I recently read about the nutritional value of buffalo meat. Low in fat and high in protein, buffalo meat is becoming less of an afterthought in meat food groups. After beefing up on preparation techniques, I thought I’d have a go at preparing a bodacious bison burger.Most of the recipes I read called for the addition of fat because the buffalo meat is so lean. However, the thought of mixing in a quantity of ground beef and even oil! didn’t appeal to me. Instead, for moisture, I mixed shredded mozzarella cheese right into the raw meat, and topped the cooked burgers with sautéed onions, mushrooms, and warm bbq sauce. A fresh, creamy coleslaw on the side rounded out the meal nicely.

1 lb ground buffalo
¾ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Montreal Steak Seasoning
1 onion – sautéed
2 cups sliced mushrooms – sautéed
Good quality bbq sauce
Toasted buns

Separate the buffalo and cheese into 5 equal sized portions, sprinkle with Montreal Steak Seasoning, and mix one portion of each and shape into a patty. Repeat with all portions. The mixture will look funny because there is so very little fat to hold it together. Unlike beef patties, your hands will feel wet not greasy after shaping the burgers. Don’t worry if the cheese sticks out all over the place like a porcupine; that’s a good thing.

Also, unlike beef burgers, you want to cook your buffalo burgers low and slow no matter if you grill them, pan fry them, or broil them. They take longer to cook, and there is virtually no fat left in the pan afterward. The cheese sticking out of the burgers ends up browning up so wonderfully and adds that lovely flavor that only crisped cheese can provide.

The bodacious bison burgers were really good! Why the descriptor word 'bodacious', you ask? Well, these babies hardly shrink at all. They pretty much retain both height and width when you cook them, so you don’t need as much meat as you do when preparing beef burgers. Take a good look at the interior of this burger.
You can see that they are not juicy by any means, but they aren’t dry either. My oldest daughter really liked hers, plain of course, and she’s not a big meat eater so that’s saying something. The onions and mushrooms served as a great compliment.These burgers made themselves right at home on my range. Have you ever cooked buffalo? What did you think? I’d love to try this lean meat again. Do you have any recipes to share?

Hometown Patty Melts

Do you live in your hometown? By that, I mean the town of your birth? Small town? Big city? Open countryside? I spent the first 24 years of my life in the same town, my hometown, the town of my birth. After we graduated from college, hubbyman and I headed out to the Pacific Northwest eager to create a good life for ourselves all by ourselves. We were young, in love, and full of modern day pioneer spirit.

That was 22 years ago, and I’d say that we succeeded in our plans. We’ve lived 20 of those years in this house and this is the only home my children know. It is located in their hometown; the town of their births. It’s a big town, but a good one. Over the years, we’ve talked about moving – to a different house or a different state. My hubbyman is always the one to bring it up and he always brings up the same location ... southern Utah. He craves wide open spaces; however, we don’t want to uproot our children unless the advantages of moving far outweigh anything we’ve already got. We have always remained here, in our house, and have created many wonderful memories herein. Utah remains one of our favorite vacation spots, so he gets his outdoors Utah fix that way.

The other day, to no surprise, hubbyman brings up moving again. I tend to simply smile and nod, having lived through this conversation before. Now before you start thinking that my man is miserable because we’ve never moved, just brush that thought aside. If he really wanted to, we'd have moved long ago. ANYWAY ... so he starts the conversation the same as he always has. However, this time, he totally catches me by surprise. He doesn’t mention Utah. He mentions moving HOME. That word – home – refers to Indiana, the home of our respective hometowns, with streets, sidewalks, parades and parks we walked upon with younger legs. The state I met, fell in love with, and married my hubbyman. Where my dad lives, near where my sister lives, and close to all of hubbyman’s relatives. HOME.

Oh, that word is a powerful one. Will we actually move? Probably not. After all, where we live now is home to my children. But, oh, the thought of it. I’ve spent the last couple of days reminiscing about home. Small towns. Hot, humid summers. Lightning bugs. Acre upon acre of corn. Family. Gallons of iced tea. White Christmas’ every year. And sun. Lots and lots of sun. For days now, I’ve enjoyed my mental trip down memory lane.

Another memory I associate with home is eating Patty Melts. When we were dating, my hubbyman and I would meet for lunch at a local restaurant, and we always ordered the same thing. I would get the French Dip, and hubbyman would get a Patty Melt.

What’s a patty melt? Well, it’s a wonderful hamburger sandwich. On bread, you layer a hamburger patty, Swiss cheese, cheddar cheese, and grilled onions. Oh, and the bread should be both buttered and slathered with mayo ... and then grilled itself before you start the layering process. Take a walk with me down memory lane as we make a Hometown Patty Melt.

Hamburger patty – cooked the way you like it.
Thick slices of bread – you need something hearty. I used a ciabatta roll. Texas toast would work great. Rye bread would be outstanding, too.
Butter
Mayo
¼ cup water
Additional 1/4 cup water
Swiss Cheese
Cheddar Cheese
One onion sliced in ½ rounds

Here’s how I made it. I opted to pan fry the burgers ... usually I grill them, but I wanted some fond in the fan for when I sauteed/pan fried the onions. These aren’t caramelized onions. You’ll see what I mean in just a minute.

Season your ground beef to your own taste. I used that wonder of wonders called Montreal Steak Seasoning. Form kind of thick patties. Heat a skillet over fairly high heat.Place the burger patties in the pan, but don’t crowd them. Immediately turn the heat down to medium. Cook for about 5 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side for about 5 more minutes. Add ¼ cup of water; it should steam up significantly. Place a lid on the skillet, and steam the burgers until cooked through; about 3-4 more minutes. Take the lid off the pan, and remove the burgers to a plate. Cover with foil to keep warm. Boil off any remaining liquid.Add the sliced onions to the pan, and stir fry for a minute or two. Add another ¼ cup of water, and scrape up any fond on the bottom of the pan. Cook until the water has evaporated ... just a minute or two. Push the onions to the side of the pan.Return the burgers to the pan, and place your cheeses on it. Cover for a minute or two until the cheese is melted and gooey. Take your bread, and spread both butter and mayo on one side of each slice.Place spread side down in the pan, and toast it in the pan as much as you want. I went for a light toasting.Now assemble your sandwich and really pile on the sautéed onions. This is a really flavorful, filling, and messy sandwich. Slice in half and serve with something light like fruit or a salad.Hello baby! Don’t fret if some of the onions slide on out. Just snatch the little guys right up and pop them in your waiting mouth! Take a bite. Make yummy noises. Sadly, this version is not gluten free. Although, if you want to eat it steak style, simply serve it without the bread.Ah, one bite of this transported me back home. For any of you who are homesick, or for those of you who still enjoy living in your hometown, whether it’s located in a big metropolis or off of a small country lane, here’s a link to a tune from another Hoosier boy that I listened to way back when I lived in my own small town. This always makes me smile. And dance. Yep, I was dancing in my kitchen and eatin’ my patty melt. Singing with the radio. John Cougar Mellencamp singing “Small Town” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eDkAG3R0h8

"Flatty Patty" Smothered Burgers

When most folks think of a burger patty, they picture biting into a thick, juicy, monster sized round of meat nestled within a hearty, sesame seed bun. Just picture it … great grill marks, beefy juices, charbroil aroma. Gigantic hunks of meat to satisfy the hunger pangs of a lumberjack, and also test the mettle of your arteries. Ahhh. Burrrr-gerrrrs.

Well, ahem, toss those images right out of your mind. Go on, erase those thoughts. There will be no photos or write ups about a thick, monster sized burger here. Instead, tonight’s menu consisted of flatty patty burgers sans buns. This is gluten-free, all the way, baby!

When I was a kid, my beautiful Italian mother used to fry up these wafer thin little burger patties for me. I’d have them for lunch or dinner, either plain or with sliced garden tomatoes. Sometimes she’d even serve it at breakfast alongside buttery grits. Of course, back in Indiana, we used to buy our meat from the butcher shop ... beef raised on local farms. We used to get our milk from the dairy farm, too. In those heavy glass bottles with the paper cap. The cream used to float at the top of the bottle. Sunset Hill Farms was the name of the farm. Gooood stuff.

These flat beauties cook up super fast, and for tonight’s dinner, were smothered with sharp cheddar pub cheese, caramelized onions, and sautéed mushrooms. They were sooo good, and if you try this recipe, you’ll be thanking the good Lord for beef. My offspring ate theirs plain, and gobbled down every bit. Hey, that’s two nights in a row they loved their dinner. Will they have to forfeit their Picky Eaters Club Membership Cards? More thoughts on that later.

To enjoy Flatty Patties in your own home, you will need:

1-1/2 lbs ground beef (I used the 15% fat variety because I grilled them. If you fry them, use the less fatty stuff)
Plate or ceramic cutting board
Your favorite seasoning (Montreal Steak Seasoning, Season Salt, or good ole Sea Salt and pepper work just fine)
Pub Cheese – sharp cheddar

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 Onion – sliced in thin half rounds
2 cups sliced mushrooms

To make the burgers, wash your hands and leave them wet. Rub your wet hands on the plate surface. You will need to do this repeatedly as you form the patties. The flatty patties are so thin that they will stick to the surface of the plate unless it is wet.

With wet hands, take a small, egg sized portion of meat, and working quickly, compact it in your hands, and then flatten it on the plate. Really press down with either your fingers or the heel of your hand. Geez, I really need a manicure. But hey, this is what happens when you work in the garden, or yard, or laundry room, or some other chore like, say, typing on the keyboard. Hehe. . Ahem, let’s get back to the burgers.

See how flat they are? Don’t worry about making perfect rounds. The rough edges give the burgers character. No holes allowed in the burger, though. Work fast and keep the meat cool prior to cooking. The meat stays together better when cold.

The burgers will flatten out fairly large. They will shrink A LOT during cooking.

Place them on a preheated grill on high heat. Turn the heat down to med high, close the lid, and grill 3 minutes. Flip and grill another 3 minutes. Turn off grill. Remove flatty patties and keep warm. (I put mine on a baking sheet and put them back on the warm grill with the lid closed). And for those of you who, like my friend Marjie, don't like grill marks on your food, these flatty patties can be cooked in the broiler. My mom fried them on the stove! This photo is not the best representation of the grilled burgers. But my beasts were hungry and begging for their food … “Can you stop taking pictures so we can eat noooowww?”

I just love those rough edges. I want to break off and nibble on that one little piece sticking out right there. And juicy ... you bet. This is not cardboard folks. It's glorious beef.

Now prepare the onions. In a cast iron or other heavy skillet, heat the pan on mid high heat. Add the oil and butter, and as soon as the butter melts, add the onions. Season with season salt or Sea Salt. Turn heat to medium and sauté until the onions caramelize, about 10 minutes. (Yes, I know this is not the traditional way to caramelize, but hey it works.) Remove from pan and keep warm. Add mushrooms to the skillet, turn the heat back up to med high, and sauté until they give up their liquid and start to turn golden, about 5-6 minutes.

Almost time to assemble the burgers. Microwave about ½ cup of pub cheese in the microwave just to warm it up, about 30-45 seconds. Take a warm burger and spread about 1 heaping tablespoon of cheese on the patty.

Top with 1 tablespoon of onions and another scoop of mushrooms. Stand back and admire the flatty patty. Try not to drool. It’s ok if you do, though. I won’t tell.

You won’t miss the bun. I promise.

My kids ate theirs plain. Each kid had two patties. Comments included “Thank you, mom, for another scrumptious meal.” I responded, “You’re welcome.” Then with narrowed eyes, I said, “Now who are you and what have you done with my children?” They laughed. Hubby man loved his three (1 was enough for me), and let me just say that he was skeptical when he saw the wee beasties on the grill. Comments such as, “They’re going to be dry and tough” and “Are you sure about this?” were voiced. I'm surprised he didn't ask, "Where's the beef?" Oh ye of little faith. These are so good because no single flavor overpowers the other. You can taste the beef for sure, and yet you won't need to have your arteries unplugged after eating this. Just look at this and tell me what you think … oh yeah, flatty patties are are good eats.