Burgers are such an easy meal to throw together in the summer. We used to make our burgers with 93% lean meat, but we’d hate how dry the burger came out. I thought it was the recipe, but no, it was the meat. You totally need some fat in that beef to make a burger taste absolutely amazing.

We usually buy 93% meat for most of our cooking, but now for burgers, we get 80% or 85%. Whatever is on sale.  I swear it makes all the difference in the world.

Now, I’m sure most of you are thinking, “Ok Amy, seriously? You didn’t know this?” Yeah, I really didn’t know that this made the difference. My husband knew, but stubborn me kept blaming it on the recipe.  

For the 24×24 party we threw, we googled the heck out of Minneapolis food and found that the Juicy Lucy was pretty darn popular out there. Such a simple concept…a cheese stuffed burger. The cheese fiend in me wants to know why aren’t those served out here??

We need Juicy Lucy burgers in our lives…seriously.

And if you haven’t had a Juicy Lucy burger yet, I highly recommend you try making these. Absolutely delish!

Juicy Lucy
Source: adapted from Cooks Country

Ingredients:

• 2 slices of white sandwich bread, torn into rough pieces
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 1 1/2 lb 85-percent-lean ground beef
• 1/2-inch thick slice deli American cheese, cut into quarters

Directions:

1. Using a potato masher or your hands, mash the bread, milk, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in large bowl until smooth. Add beef and gently knead until well combined.
2. Divide the meat mixture into 4 equal portions; divide each ball in half so that you have 8 balls of equal size. Using small ball of meat, encase each piece of cheese in meat to form a mini burger patty. Mold remaining half-portion of meat around the mini patty and seal the edges to form a ball. Flatten the ball with the palm of your hand, forming a 3/4-inch-thick patty. (Note:  To avoid the cheese from oozing out and the burger from separating, it’s essential to completely seal in the cheese. )
3. Grill burgers over medium fire until well browned and cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes per side. Transfer to plate, tent with foil, and let rest 5 minutes. (Since the cheese is very hot, don’t omit the resting part.). Makes 4 burgers.

My husband and I usually keep two types of meat on hand for cooking: chicken or ground beef. Sometimes we stray from the norm and do seafood or steaks, but to make our food budget happy, those are our staples. Chicken is so versatile and super easy to find meals for, but ground beef? I always feel a little limited there for some reason. I find it hard to find new ways to incorporate ground beef into our meals (feel free to comment if you have good ground beef recipes).

A while back, the hubs made some killer sloppy joes, and I thought I should challenge his with a good solid Cooks Illustrated recipe that I found. This recipe was pretty good, but a little bland compared to what the hubs came up with. Next time, I think I’ll have to spice things up a bit.

I paired this with some awesome oven baked fries and enjoyed the meal with a glass of lemonade. Classic summer meal, right?

Sloppy Joes
Source: mildly adapted from Cooks Illustrated

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion , chopped fine
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 2 cloves garlic , minced
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• Ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1 cup tomato puree
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon tabasco sauce
• 4 hamburger buns

Directions:

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onion and salt and stir until coated with oil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft, about 10 minutes (if onion begins to burn after 5 minutes, reduce heat to low). Add garlic and chili powder and cook, uncovered, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add beef and cook, breaking up meat with wooden spoon, until just pink, about 3 minutes.
2. Add 1/4 teaspoon pepper, brown sugar, tomato puree, ketchup, water, and tabasco. Simmer until Sloppy Joe sauce is slightly thicker than ketchup, 8 to 10 minutes. Adjust seasonings. Spoon meat mixture onto hamburger buns and serve.

Po’Boys are just awesome. Usually in New Orleans, we eat ‘em in fried seafood form. There’s no such thing as a healthy po’boy. It just ain’t happenin’. Every Friday during Lent, it’s tradition for my family to buy some real New Orleans French bread and fill it with shrimp. Ever so often, I’d have a roast beef po’boy, but it just wasn’t the same as the fried seafood concoction I grew to love.

One time at a restaurant, I tried a meatloaf po’boy. I had my doubts, but it was fantastic. I decided it would be simple to replicate this at home, except I made meatloaf patties this time to make a quick weeknight dinner. Luckily, the meat was still moist and reminded me of meatloaf.

Meatloaf Po’Boy

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
• 1 tbsp. fresh parsley
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 tsp. ground pepper
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning
• 1 tsp. canola oil
• French bread loaf
• brown gravy (use your favorite recipe)

Directions:

1. Mix first 9 ingredients in a bowl until well combined. Form into 4 long, oval patties (to fit on french bread).
2. Preheat skillet with oil on medium heat.
3. Cook meatloaf patties appx. 5 minutes on each side.
4. Add gravy to skillet. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook for 5-10 more minutes or until meat is done in the center.
5. Serve patties with french bread, topped with gravy.