The Truly Delicious "Big Mouth Burger"

Well, the warmer weather means my favorite season--Grilling Season! We do try and grill as much of the year as we can but it's much more enjoyable in nice weather!

One of our favorite things to grill is homemade burgers. I truly believe these are some of the best burgers I have ever eaten. Combined with the homemade hamburger buns (see my earlier posts), they simply can't be improved upon!

GRILLED CHEESEBURGERS

(modified slightly from The Best Recipe Grilling and Barbecue from Cook's Illustrated)

1 1/2 pounds hamburger (I don't recommend it any leaner than 85% for grilling!)

1 tsp (or to taste) kosher salt

1/2 tsp (or to taste) freshly ground black pepper

1/2-3/4 c cheddar cheese (can use other cheese if desired: blue, feta, monterey jack, etc.)

Place hamburger in large bowl. Break up with your fingers so the meat is loose. Add salt, pepper, and cheese. Mix gently with your fingers until combined. Divide into burgers (this amount of meat for us usually makes about 4 good-sized burgers). Shape into 1/2-3/4" burgers gently, pressing meat so that it holds together but is not tightly packed. After each burger is formed, lay on a flat surface and press gently into the center of each burger a slight but definite circular indentation (about 1/2" circumference). The purpose of this is to make the center of each burger slightly thinner than the rest of the burger so the burger will cook at a uniform rate. After preheating and cleaning grill, cook each burger about 3 minutes on each side. Do NOT press down on hamburger with spatula during grilling. Serve immediately with your favorite condiments and toppings (some of our favorite toppings are tomatoes, pickles, avocados, mushrooms, lettuce). Tell me if it's not one of the best burgers you've ever had.