Sweet & Tangy Burgers with Blackberry Balsamic Glaze

Pairs well with:

Zinfandel

Bright and full-bodied, this Zinfandel wine is a curious contradiction in tastes.

Ingredients

Goat Cheese Mayonnaise:
2 Tbs. pignoli nuts, toasted & chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup goat cheese (4 ounces)
3 Tbs. dried, sweetened cranberries, chopped
Blackberry Balsamic Glaze:
1 cup seedless blackberry all fruit spread
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tsp. whole grain dijon mustard
1/2 cup Colavita extra virgin olive oil
Patties:
1 pound ground chuck
1 pound ground sirloin
1 Tbs. horseradish
3 Tbs. Zinfandel
2 tsp. salt Vegetable oil, for brushing on grill rack
36 arugula leaves
6 thin red onion slices, seperated
6 seeded Kaiser rolls, split

 

Instructions

Prepare a medium hot fire in a charcoal gill with a cover, or preheat a gas grill to medium-high. To make the goat-cheese mayonnaise, place the pignoli nuts in a 8-inch non-stick, fire-proof skillet, and place on the grill rack. Toast the nuts, shaking the pan frequently, until they are lightly golden. Remove the nuts from the pan and let cool. Once cool, coarsely chop the nuts. Combine the mayonnaise, goat cheese, cranberries and nuts in a small bowl. Mix well to combine. Refrigerate until serving. To make the blackberry balsamic glaze, combine the all fruit spread, vinegar and mustard in a small fire proof saucepan, and place on grill rack. Cook the glaze, whisking constantly, until fruit spread has melted and glaze coats the back of a spoon, about 2 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the grill and cool slightly. Once cool, drizzle the olive oil into the glaze whisking, until the oil is incorporated. Set aside. To make the patties, combine the chuck, sirloin, horseradish, worcestershire, zinfandel and salt in a large bowl. Handling the meat as little as possible to avoid compacting it, mix well. Divide the mixture into 6 equal portions and form the portions into patties to fit the rolls. Brush the grill rack with oil. Place the patties on the rack, cover and grill until browned on bottoms, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn the patties, generously brush with the glaze and continue to grill until done to preference, about 5 minutes longer for medium. Turn patties again and generously baste once more before removing from grill. During the last few minutes of cooking, carefully place the rolls, cut side, down, on the outer edge of the rack to toast lightly. In a small bowl, toss the arugula with 2 Tbs. of the glaze. (If the glaze has thickened too much, return saucepan to grill for a minute to return glaze to thinner consistency). To assemble the burgers, spread a generous amount of the goat cheese mayonnaise over the bottom of each roll. On each roll bottom, then place 6 leaves of dressed arugula, red onion and a patty. On each patty, place another dollop of glaze. Add the roll tops & serve.