“Baked” Brie Burger

Pairs well with:

Chardonnay

Reach for our Chardonnay when you’re in the mood for a rich and creamy wine that delights with the fruity flair of pear, apple, and peach.

Ingredients:

2 cucumbers
2 tablespoons garlic (approx. 4 to 5 lg cloves)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon fresh sage
1 teaspoon fresh dill
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup mayonaise
3/4 cup pecans
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 large vidalia onions
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon pure olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
12 oz brie cheese
6 slices of prosciutto
1/2 lb maple breakfast sausage, casings discarded
2 lbs ground beef (85% lean)
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 bosc pears
4 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
6 fresh kaiser style rolls with sesame seeds, if available
3/4 cup baby arugula
pure olive oil (to brush on grill)

Instructions:

Thoroughly wash and dry the cucumbers. Slice off the ends and cut in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds. Julienne, using a mandolin. (Coarsely shredded cucumbers will work if you do not have a mandolin.) Put the cucumbers in a strainer over a bowl, cover and refrigerate for an hour to remove most of the moisture.
Mash the garlic and salt into a paste with the blade of your chef’s knife. Transfer to a mixing bowl. Zest the lemon and add to the bowl along with 2 tablespoon of the juice from the lemon. Chop the sage and dill into fine pieces and add to the bowl. Also add the cayenne pepper. Whisk together. Stir in the 1/2 cup of mayonaise. Store in refrigerator. When cucumbers have finished draining, stir them into the mayonaise and return to the refrigerator until ready to assemble the burgers.
Preheat gas grill to medium heat. Once hot, place pecans into a dry, room temperature skillet. Toast 8 to 10 minutes, until oils have released. Keep a close eye on them and stir frequently as they will burn easily. Add the teaspoon of cinnamon and toss together, set aside. Let them cool and then chop coarsely.
As the pecans are toasting peel and slice the vidalia onions into thin slices using a mandolin, set aside. (If you do not have a mandolin you can certainly use a knife, but take care to slice as thinly and evenly as possible.) When pecans have finished, wipe any remaining cinnamon from skillet and return to heat.
Add the butter and olive oil to the skillet and heat until butter has melted. Add the onions, sprinkle with the sugar and cook for 25 to 30 minutes or so, stirring frequently, until the onions are well caramelized. When finished, stir in the toasted pecans, set aside and keep hot until ready to assemble. Turn the grill heat up to medium high.
As the onions are cooking, cut brie into (12) 1/2 inch wide by 2 and a 1/2 inch long slices. Lay two pieces
side by side. Fold a piece of the prosciutto in half lengthwise and wrap around the 2 pieces of brie. Repeat until all six are completed and store covered
in the refrigerator until ready to assemble. (If the wheel or wedge of brie you are using is not 2 and 1/2 inches long it is ok to use more than two pieces to achieve the size, as long as you have 12 portions of brie 1/2 an inch thick by 2 and 1/2 inches long, this will give you about 2 ounces of cheese per burger.)
Remove sausage from casings and discard them. Put sausage into a food processor and pulse just until finely chopped. In a large bowl, combine sausage and beef together and shape into six patties that fit the buns you are using. (Take care not to overwork the meat.) Salt on both sides with kosher salt. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Wash and dry the pears, slice in half and remove the seeds. Brush the cut sides with white balsamic vinegar.
Wrap all six buns in tinfoil.
Wash and dry baby arugula thoroughly and set aside.
Brush the medium high grill with the pure olive oil. Put the pears onto the grill. Grill cut sides down for approx. 5 minutes or so until they are slightly tender, but still have some crunch left to them and caramelization has begun. Remove from the grill and set aside.
Brush the grill with more of the pure olive oil and put the patties on. Cook for 4 minutes on the first side, flip and cook for 5 to 6 minutes more for medium or longer to desired doneness. During the last 4 minutes of cooking, top each with the prosciutto wrapped brie. When the burgers are finished remove from the grill and cover with tinfoil for 5 minutes. Put the buns on the grill at this point as well. Flip frequently to warm, but not toast the buns. As the buns are warming, slice the pears into paper thin slices and brush with a little more of the vinegar. When the buns are hot, remove from the grill. Put 1/8 cup of baby arugula on each of the bottom buns. On top of that, place 6 equal portions of the onions and pears. Put the patties on top of the pears and top with a generous amount of the garlic cucumber mayonaise and the top of the buns.