THE PERFECT STORM BURGER

We are getting ready for the hurricane to hit the east coast.However, I wanted to try another burger idea. Going to the store is not an option so I had to be creative and use what I had on-hand and in my garden. With just a little Greek yogurt, roasted pine nut hummus and a few extra roasted cumin seeds, I started to create our burgers for lunch — one last BBQ before the storm!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup plain Greek style yogurt

1/2 cup Roasted Pine Nut Hummus

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest

1 teaspoon anchovy paste

1/4 teaspoon finely ground toasted cumin seeds

1 teaspoon finely minced fresh mint

1 1/2 teaspoons finely minced fresh oregano leaves

1 Tablespoon butter

1 Tablespoon Colavita Olive Oil

4 cups thinly sliced onion

1 Tablespoon honey

1 Tablespoon Colavita Balsamic Vinegar

2 pounds ground beef chuck with 20% fat

1/4 cup roasted pine nut hummus

1/4 cup minced onion

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon finely ground toasted cumin seeds

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 Tablespoon finely minced mint

1 Tablespoon finely minced oregano

1/4 cup Sutter Home White Zinfandel

6 cups fresh baby spinach

2 Tablespoons oil, for brushing grill racks.

6 King Hawaiian Sweet Sandwich Rolls, split

1 1/2 cups diced and seeded Nature Sweet Cherry tomatoes

1 cup finely crumbled feta cheese

1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

1/3 cup toasted pine nuts

3 Tablespoons soft butter

Instructions:

In a small glass bowl combine Greek style yogurt, hummus, lemon juice, lemon zest, anchovy paste, cumin, mint and oregano. Mix well. Set aside.

Preheat a gas grill to medium-high heat. Heat butter and olive oil in a 10″ nonstick heavy skillet on the grill rack. Add the onions. Close cover; cook, stirring occasionally.

When onions become soft and tender, stir in honey and balsamic. Continue cooking, about 15 minutes to caramelize. Remove from grill; cover with foil to keep warm.

To make the patties, crumble beef into a chilled stainless steel bowl. Sprinkle with hummus, onion, salt, pepper, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, nutmeg, mint and oregano. Handling the meat as little as possible, mix well. Form into 6 patties to fit the rolls.

Bring wine to a simmer in a large cast iron skillet on the grill. Add spinach; cover; set to edge of grill to wilt. This will just take 30-40 seconds. Keep warm.

Brush the grill rack with vegetable oil. Place patties on the rack; cover; cook turning once 4-6 minutes per side for medium-rare. During the last minute of grilling, place the rolls, cut side down on the grill to toast. Meanwhile, stir tomatoes and feta into spinach; drizzle with lemon juice, season with salt and pepper. Toss gently to blend. Stir pine nuts into onions. Remove patties from grill; brush each with butter.

To assemble burgers, spread inside of both halves of the toasted rolls with yogurt/hummus mixture. Line bottom of rolls with wilted spinach mixture; top with a burger and the caramelized onions and pine nuts. Close and serve. Serves 6