Garlic-Parmesan Crunch Burgers #SaucyMama #WFC #Giveaway

I am happy to announce that I've been chosen to participate in Saucy Mama's 2017 recipe contest! This is a big deal, folks. You may remember that I participated with my Saucy Orange Habanero Burger, a couple of years ago. Life gets in the way, so I skipped last year, but I couldn't pass it up this time...I'd really love a chance to win a Golden Ticket into the World Food Championships. How fun would that be?! Not only that, but the chosen participants received a box of Saucy Mama condiments to experiment with. A good deal any way you look at it!

I chose well, don't you think? Keep reading to see how you can win a box of 3 Saucy Mama condiments for yourself!

My mission, once I received the goods, was to create something delicious with bacon or burgers. It had to be easy to make, delicious, and inventive. Let's take a look at what I came up with....

A burger needs a good bun....

Part of the "crunch" comes from the easy topping I put on the buns. Sure, you can make your own buns...it's not hard...but it's even easier to add a little "everything bagel" seasoning and some Parmesan cheese to a few store bought buns....

And speaking of crunch, who doesn't love some good honey-mustard pretzels? Since I was all out of pretzels, I subbed chow mein noodles baked with a bit of honey and some of Saucy Mama's Smokey Garlic Mustard....a handful on top of the burger is so good! 

Droolworthy.

Garlic-Parmesan Crunch Burgers

Ingredients:

1 egg yolk

1 tablespoon Saucy Mama Smokey Garlic Mustard

¼ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 ½ lbs. 80/20 ground chuck

½ cup Saucy Mama Parmesan Garlic Marinade

4 (1 oz.) slices sharp cheddar cheese

4 Kaiser rolls with Everything Bagel/Parmesan topping /split and toasted*

½ cup Garlic-Parmesan Aioli*

2 cups baby arugula

1 cup Honey and Garlic-Mustard Chow Mein noodles*

Sliced tomatoes and/or pickle slices

Whisk together the egg yolk, garlic mustard, Parmesan cheese, and black pepper. Add the egg mixture to the ground chuck and mix by hand until just combined. Form the meat into 4 patties, slightly larger than the rolls to allow for shrinkage.

Heat a skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium-high heat until very hot. Reduce heat to medium. Fry the burger patties for about 5 minutes before flipping. Brush the flipped burgers generously with the Parmesan Garlic Marinade. Flip the burgers again after about 5 minutes, brush with more marinade and top each one with a slice of cheddar cheese. Continue to cook until cheese has melted. Remove from heat and tent with foil to keep warm.

For each burger, spread the bottom half of a toasted Kaiser roll with 1-2 tablespoons Garlic-Parmesan Aioli (recipe follows). Top with a handful of arugula, the burger patty, sliced tomatoes and/or pickle slices, and about ¼ cup Honey and Garlic- Mustard Chow Mein noodles (recipe follows). Place the top half of the bun over the noodles and serve immediately.

*Topping for Kaiser rolls:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small saucepan, bring ½ cup water to boil. Stir 2 teaspoons cornstarch into ¼ cup warm water. Stir the cornstarch mixture into the boiling water and cook until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Lightly brush the top of each Kaiser roll with the cornstarch mixture. Sprinkle each roll with about a teaspoon of everything bagel seasoning, and about a teaspoon of shredded Parmesan cheese. Bake the rolls for 4 minutes. To make your own seasoning, combine 1 T toasted sesame seeds, 1 T poppy seeds, 1 T minced dried onion, 1 T minced dried garlic, and ½ teaspoon coarse salt. Store in covered container.

*Garlic-Parmesan Aioli

½ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon Saucy Mama Smokey Garlic Mustard

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients and chill until needed.

*Honey and Garlic Mustard Chow Mein Noodles

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine 2 tablespoons melted butter, 1 tablespoon Saucy Mama Smokey Garlic Mustard, and 2 teaspoons honey. Fold in 1 (5 oz.) can chow mein noodles (about 2 ½ cups). Spread the noodles on a parchment lined sheet pan and bake for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. Noodles will crisp when cooled. Store in an airtight container.

My husband preferred his without the noodles...his loss...

How can you win a package of three tasty Saucy Mama condiments? Simply enter your information into the Rafflecopter! Brownie points for letting me know you are Saucy!*

*Open to US residents only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Okay--so I was in a bind the other day. I desperately needed a nice looking bun. Stop with the snickers. I needed a hamburger bun.  At any rate, I did what any normal person does and I stopped at the grocery store. Since it was so late, however, there weren't any good buns left. What to do?  Well, I made my own of course!

I feel serious eye rolling from the audience. I get it. Why would you make your own buns when you can buy perfectly good ones from the store and/or bakery? For starters,  they are damn good. And, while you may not believe it, they are easy to make with a few simple ingredients.

Homemade Buns

They may not be easier than the ones from the bakery...but they are so good!

Ingredients

• 1 cup warm water
• 1 envelope yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 3 1/2 - 4 cups flour
• 1 egg, room temperature, slightly beaten
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg yolk, slightly beaten
• poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or caraway seeds for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Whisk together the water, yeast, sugar, and 1/2 cup of the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer. Allow to sit for 15 minutes. Add the egg, butter, salt, and an additional 3 cups of the flour. Use the kneading attachment to knead the dough for 5 minutes, or until it starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl but is still a bit tacky to the touch. Add additional flour, tablespoon at a time, if the dough is too sticky.
2. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, turning once to coat. Cover loosely with a damp towel and allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft free spot until doubled, about 90 minutes to 2 hours.
3. Gently deflate the dough. Cut into 12 pieces (18 for slider size) and form into hamburger and/or hot dog shapes. Place on baking sheets lined with a silpat or parchment paper, cover loosely, and allow to rise until puffy, about an hour. In the mean time, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
4. Beat the egg yolk with 2 teaspoons of water. Lightly brush each bun with the yolk and sprinkle with desired toppings. Bake for 17-20 minutes or until golden brown. Move to a wire rack to cool completely.

The dough should just start to pull away, and feel just a bit tacky to the touch.

Once risen, the dough will be satiny and soft.

Sprinkle liberally with seeds of your choice....

I especially like a little caraway seed and sea salt.

Fill with whatever you desire....Pulled Pork with Poblano Ranch Dressing? Yes!

Even a simple hot dog will seem special with a homemade bun.

What do you put on your buns?

Pretzel Buns

Have you discovered Pinterest? Oh boy---is it addicting or what? I keep pinning pictures of great looking food to my boards. Besides my own stuff, though, I hadn't made any of the things that I fully intended to. Until today. Today, I made the Pretzel Rolls.

I've been eyeing these little devils for weeks, all the while buying pretzel buns at Trader Joe's. Want to see how I made them? Here you go:

Pretzel Rolls (adapted from [Une Bonne Vie])

Printable Recipe

1 3/4 cups milk, warmed to 110 degrees F. (bathwater warm)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

3-3 1/2 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

Coarse salt for sprinkling

Water Bath

7-8 cups water

1 tablespoon salt

4 tablespoons baking soda

Place the warmed milk in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the olive oil and the yeast. Let this mixture stand for about 5 minutes or until it starts to foam (this way you know the yeast is working). Add three cups of the flour and the salt.

Attach the dough hook and knead the dough for about 5 minutes, adding additional flour, if needed. The dough should nearly clean the sides of the bowl, but still be a little tacky. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Knead lightly, by hand, for about a minute until the dough is smooth and elastic.

When measuring the flour, lightly spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife. If you have to add flour, add it a tablespoon at a time.

Place the dough in a well oiled bowl and turn it over so that both sides are oiled. Cover the bowl with a clean towel and let the dough rise in a draft-free area until it's doubled, about 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.; Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Punch the dough down and plop it on a floured surface ( I prefer my Silpat), then divide it into 8 pieces. Form each piece of dough into a ball, slightly flattened. Place the dough balls on the lined baking pan, cover and allow to rise for an additional 20 minutes.

While the buns are rising, prepare the water bath. In a large pot, combine the water, salt, and baking soda; bring to a rolling boil. Gently drop the dough buns into the boiling water, two at a time, and let them "poach" for about 30 seconds on each side. Remove them with a slotted spoon and place them back on the lined baking pan. Using a serrated knife, cut 2-3 lines across each bun and sprinkle with course salt. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the buns are a deep brown. Transfer to a rack to cool.

I found the dough balls to be a little sticky when I was putting them into the boiling water, so I dipped my fingers in a little flour first. The water does foam up, so make sure your pot is large enough. A crinkly appearance is normal--this disappears during baking.

As you can see, I was a little stingy with the salt--I usually scrape salt off of my pretzels, but I found that I did like a little on these.

If you aren't going to use all of these right away, go ahead and pop some in the freezer. They thaw quickly and stay fresh much longer if frozen.

I may never buy another hamburger bun again.

Worstenbroodjes

It is funny that I am the Dutch baker’s daughter and, yet, I rarely post any Dutch recipes. My family moved to the USA from Holland two years before I was born. Subsequently, I grew up with them speaking Dutch to me….and I would answer them in English. With food, since both of my parents spent so much time working in the bakery, I would fend for myself. They did prepare many a Dutch specialty for holidays and on the occasional weekend, but, unfortunately, they both passed away when I was too young to have had any interest in making this food for myself. I sure do remember some of those Dutch specialties, though! So, with my older sister’s taste testing help, I set about trying to replicate some of my favorites (and hers!).

The worstenbroodje is, basically, sweet bun dough wrapped around meat that is shaped into a sausage. This was something my father made for all special occasions. I’ve seen these made with frozen bread dough, but it’s not the same taste I remember. My sister has given my creation the “thumbs up”, so I know I’m not too far off.

Worstebroodjes
Printable Recipe

Meat

• ½ pound ground chuck
• ½ pound ground pork
• ½ pound ground veal*
• ½ cup crushed Holland Rusk or unseasoned bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 egg, beaten

*May use 2 parts ground chuck, 1 part ground pork.

Dough

• 1 cup warm milk (110-115 degrees)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg, room temperature, beaten
• 2 ¼ teaspoons yeast
• 3-3 ½ cups flour

Combine the ground chuck, pork and veal in a large bowl. Add Holland Rusk, nutmeg, salt, pepper and 1 beaten egg. Mix gently by hand until thoroughly combined. Refrigerate until ready to use.

(Holland Rusk is a crispy, round toast that is a Dutch staple. Buying some of this brought back even more memories....we used to eat it with milk and sugar instead of cereal. I assume this is kind of like what my husband means when he talks about "milk toast".)

But, I digress....

In large mixing bowl, combine warm milk, sugar, oil and yeast. Let stand for 5 minutes or until yeast starts to foam. Add salt, beaten egg and 3 cups of flour. Using dough hook, knead dough on medium high speed for 5 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic, adding additional flour if needed. Turn dough into a greased bowl, cover with a warm damp towel and set in a warm draft free space for 45-60 minutes, or until dough has doubled in size. Punch down dough and divide into 18 pieces. Keep covered and set aside.

Meanwhile, remove meat from refrigerator and divide into 18 pieces. Roll each piece into a sausage shape, about 4” long. Set aside.

Line three cookie sheets parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

For each worstenbroodje, roll out a piece of the dough into a rectangle, about 5”X3”. Place one piece of meat in center of dough. Fold ends of dough over the meat and wrap, pinching the seam closed. Place worstenbroodjes, seam side down, on cookie sheets. Brush each one lightly with beaten egg, if desired. Let the worstenbroodjes rise in a warm area for about 20 minutes, while oven is pre-heating to 350 degrees F.

Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Leftover worstenbroodjes can be eaten cold, or reheated. If you dip them in ketchup, please don’t tell me about it. If you find it necessary to jazz up the meat by adding garlic, onions or other spices, be my guest. Just don’t tell me about it. Feel free to use a little mustard-- that you can tell me about.

The dough gets nice and crispy on the bottom...that's the best part!