Texas Sized Burger with Sicilian Olive Salad
Ingredients
Olive Salad
1 cup pitted green olives, drained
1/2 cup pitted calamata olives, drained
1 cup Giardiniera (pickled cauliflower, carrots, celery), drained and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup bottled roasted red peppers, drained and coarsely chopped
3 gloves of garlic, crushed and thinly sliced
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3/4 cup Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt to taste
Patty
1/4 pound Genoa salami, thinly sliced
1 1/2 pound freshly ground chuck
2 heaping tablespoons grated onion
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper
Grilling basket, approximately 10″ square
Vegetable oil, for brushing grilling basket
Round, 8-10″ Italian loaf, sliced horizontally
Aluminum foil
8 slices Provolone cheese
Instructions
To make the olive salad, crush each olive with your hand on a cutting board and add to medium bowl. Add the giardiniera, roasted red peppers, garlic, celery, parsley, oregano, black pepper, red wine vinegar and olive oil. Stir to combine. Add salt to taste. Stir and set aside to marinate.
Prepare a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill with a cover, or preheat a gas grill to medium high.
To make patty, pulse salami in food processor until chopped. In large bowl combine chopped salami, ground beef, grated onion, cream, salt and ground pepper.
Mix ingredients well, handling the meat as little as possible to avoid compacting.
Form one large patty, approximately 10″, on dinner plate, making sure formed patty will fit into available grilling basket. Rub vegetable oil on grilling basket using a paper towel. Slide patty to the inside of oiled grilling basket using a large spatula. Close basket.
From the top and bottom halves of Italian loaf, pull out some of the insides with your hands. Leave shells about 1″ thick to make room for olive salad topping. Place halves together and wrap loaf in aluminum foil.
When the grill is ready, place grilling basket, with patty, on grill rack. Place bread loaf, in foil, on grill to heat. Cook burger turning once, until done, about 4-5 minutes per side for medium.
When burger is done, open grilling basket and transfer patty to clean plate using a large spatula. Place provolone slices on top of patty.
Remove loaf from grill, unwrap from aluminum foil and place loaf bottom on cutting board.
To assemble burger, spread approximately 3/4 cup of olive salad on loaf bottom. Using a spatula, slide patty, with cheese slices, on top of olive salad. Place 1 1/2-2 cups of olive salad on top of patty and add loaf top. Cut into six pieces and serve.