FIERY BRONC BUSTIN ELK BURGERS WITH SPICY LIME MAYONNAISE

Pairs well with:

Pinot Grigio

You won’t need a bouquet of flowers when you share our Pinot Grigio. This crisp wine with floral aromas is a wonderful way to make an entrance.

Ingredients:

Spicy Lime Mayonnaise:
1 1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Buns:
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley
1 teaspoon red-pepper sauce
12 tablespoon butter at room temperature
6 large onion hamburger buns, split

Patties:
2 1/2 pounds ground elk
1/2 pound ground chuck
1 cup finely chopped yellow onion
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon liquid smoke
2 teaspoons red-pepper sauce
8 tablespoons frozen butter

vegetable oil, for brushing the grill rack
6 slices pepper-jack cheese
6 iceberg lettuce leaves, folded to fit the bun
6 tomato slices, 1/4″ thick
12 slices thick bacon, cooked crisp
6 tablespoons ketchup

Instructions:

To prepare the mayonnaise, combine the mayonnaise, lime juice, and pepper flakes in a small mixing bowl. Stir, cover with plastic wrap, and keep chilled until ready to serve.

To prepare buns, thoroughly combine the garlic, parsley, red-pepper sauce, and room temperature butter in a small mixing bowl. Spread the butter mixture evenly on each cut side of the buns. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside until ready to grill.

To prepare the patties, place the ground elk, ground chuck, onion, salt, pepper, liquid smoke, and red-pepper sauce into a large mixing bowl. Grate the frozen butter over the meat mixture. Lightly toss everything together with a fork, trying not to overwork the meat. Divide the meat into 6 equal portions and form into patties 5 inches in diameter. Place the patties on a platter, cover with plastic wrap, and keep cool until ready to grill.

Preheat a gas grill, with a cover, to medium-high heat.

When the grill is ready, brush the grill rack with the oil. Place the patties over the hottest part of the grill, cover and cook, turning once, for 3 minutes on each side for medium. During the last 5 minutes of grilling, place the buns, cut side down, on the outer edge of the grill rack. During the last minute of grilling, place a cheese slice on each burger. Cover and continue to grill until the buns are lightly toasted and the cheese is melted. Remove the burgers and buns from the grill.

To assemble, spread one tablespoon of mayonnaise on a bun bottom. Top with a lettuce leaf, burger, tomato slice, 2 slices of bacon, 1 tablespoon of ketchup, and a burger. Spread 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise on a bun top and place on top of the burger. Repeat process with remaining burgers and serve. Makes 6 burgers.