Recipe Time: Wicked Tasty Burger

We're already familiar on here with my love/hate/hate relationship with ground beef. Hamburgers are not my favorite thing, and I'll usually eat hot dogs at cookouts instead (I genuinely LOVE hot dogs, don't judge). But for some reason, after planning to make my chicken lentil stew recipe, I got a major craving for burgers. I'm not sure I've even made a homemade hamburger since college, but it just seemed right yesterday.

I went to Trader Joe's and picked up 1lb of 90/10 ground beef, and one package of 80/20 to mix it up a bit. The results after I added all my seasonings and toppings was nothing short of delicious, but I like the word tasty better. So, below is my recipe, but sorry I had no time for pics, had to eat.

Wicked Tasty Burger

Makes 8 burgers

2lbs lean ground beef (or turkey if you're not a beef person, but I'd suggest adding more egg and/or a little olive oil if you go that route)
1/2 large onion, diced
2-3 cloves of garlic, diced or crushed
1 whole egg
1/2 - 1T balsamic vinegar
1tsp Cajun seasoning
1/2tsp Tony Chachere's (optional, if left out, add a touch more Cajun seasoning)
4 diced pieces of salame or pepperoni
1tsp crushed red pepper
1/2tsp dried oregano
Generous freshly ground pepper
salt

Toppings:
1 1/2 large onions, French cut/sliced
dill pickles sliced very thin
2 avocados, sliced or mashed, per preference
Swiss cheese
diced pickled Jalapeno peppers (or fresh if you prefer)

8 whole wheat hamburger buns or sandwich thins (the Trader Joe's buns are just 110 calories, so barely more than the sandwich thins)

Begin by putting the 1 1/2 large onions in a medium to large saute pan with a little bit of olive oil or butter on medium heat to caramelize. This will take a while, so start this then move onto preparing the hamburger ingredients, pausing to stir the onions occasionally. Combine all burger ingredients in a large bowl and mix until evenly combined (hands are best!) I find the easiest way to make 4 close to evenly sized patties is to flatten the meat out in the bottom of the bowl and then cut into 8 wedges. Roll wedges into balls and flatten to desired thickness. If you like them thick, punch a little divet in the middle with your thumb to keep them from turning into balls. Once the onions have turned a (weird!) caramel color and taste nice and sweet, those can be set aside.

It's not really grilling weather yet here, and I'm too lazy to go down 2+ flights of stairs [ugh, I totally spelled that "stares", feel free to judge] to do so unless it is really nice outside. Therefore, I busted out my awesome cast iron grill pan. Place patties on your grill or pan, and prepare your other toppings. Cook until close to desired level, then add cheese till it's all nice and melty. Add burger to toasted bun, and top with jalapenos, onions, and 1/4 avocado per burger.

Enjoy!