Bacon Spinach Artichoke Dip Burgers with Balsamic Marinated Mushrooms

Pairs well with:

Chenin Blanc

This wine is bursting with crisp, refreshing fruit flavors like apple, pear, and melon, making you want to swing your legs off a dock at sunset.

Ingredients:

Ingredients
Balsamic Marinated Mushrooms
6 oz. fresh, petite sized button mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
1/3 cup balsamic vinaigrette

Garlic Mayo
3/4 cup mayonnaise
A pinch of sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoon chopped garlic (About 3 cloves, minced or pressed)

Patties
2 lbs. ground chuck
8 pieces of already quartered artichoke hearts, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
1 to 1 1/2 ounces of Tobasco Chipotle sauce

1 tablespoon Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil
12 slices hickory smoked bacon

Spinach Cheese Topping
3 cups pre-washed bagged baby spinach, finely chopped
2 medium sized lemons, preferably Meyer
1 cup romano cheese, shredded
3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil, for brushing on grill rack
1 1/2 loaves of ciabatta bread, fresh and split longwise (makes 6 buns)
3/4 pound parmesan cheese, sliced thinly

Instructions:

Directions
1 hour before beginning to cook, place the sliced mushrooms into a plastic zip bag and pour in the balsamic vinaigrette to marinate. Close baggie then refrigerate.

Place mayonnaise into a container with a lid. Sprinkle in sea salt and garlic. Stir then refrigerate until needed.

Prepare a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill with a cover, or preheat a gas grill to medium-high.

Heat a large, heavy nonstick fire-proof skillet on the grill. Place sliced mushrooms in for 20-30 minutes closing the grill, watching carefully so as not to burn them and stirring occasionally. There will be no liquid in the pan when the mushrooms are ready. Cover in aluminum foil in a separate container for later use.

Gently combine the burger meat, artichokes, sea salt and Tobasco sauce into a bowl, handling as little as possible. Form 6 patties to fit the buns, leaving the centers with a concave area that will fill in as the burgers cook. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.

Add olive oil to the same pan for the bacon and cook until crisp. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Wrap in foil to keep warm. Drain and wipe out pan, place it back on the grill to warm for later use with the spinach mixture.

Place spinach into a bowl and squeeze the juice from the lemons over. In a separate bowl, mix the romano cheese, cream cheese and sea salt thoroughly. Place spinach and the cheese mixture into a food processor and blend. Put olive oil into pan on grill and place the spinach and cheese mixture into the pan to melt together about 10 minutes. Time it so the mixture will be ready by the time you have flipped your burgers and need it to spread.

Brush grill rack with vegetable oil. Place the patties on the rack and close the grill, turning once after 5-7 minutes for medium done, more for further cooking. Spread the spinach cheese mixture evenly onto the burgers with 5 minutes left for grilling. Place the buns, cut side down, on the outer edges of the rack to toast lightly during the last 4 minutes of grilling. Place cheese slices next, with approximately 3 minutes of grilling.

To assemble each burger, place equal amounts of marinated grilled mushrooms on each bun bottom, then the spinach and cheese topped burgers and 2 slices of bacon. Slather garlic mayo onto the bottom side of the top bun, add to top of burger and serve.