Lizella Burgers with Spinach Spread Topping

Ingredients

Spinach Spread Topping
1 16 oz. tub sourcream
1½ cups mayonnaise
2 8 oz. cans water chestnuts, drained & chopped
5 green onions, chopped
1 pkg Vegetable Recipe mix
2 10 oz. pkgs chopped spinach, thawed and drained
Patties
1½ lbs. ground chuck
3 tablespoons Steak Seasoning
1½ tablespoons maple syrup
1½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1½ garlic cloves, minced
1½ teaspoons salt
Vegetable oil for brushing the grill rack
6 freshly baked Kaiser rolls, split
½ cup butter, softened
½ cup mayonnaise
6 crisp leaves of Romaine, shredded
1 well ripened tomato, thinly sliced

Instructions

Prepare a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill with a cover, or preheat a gas grill to medium-high. To make the spinach spread topping, blend sourcream and mayonnaise well in a large bowl. Add water chestnuts, green onions and Vegetable Recipe mix, and stir until well blended. Hand squeeze excess water out of drained spinach and mix well with other ingredients. (Using the tines of a large fork usually works well to ensure spinach is separated well in mixture.) For best consistency and texture, chill mixture an hour or more prior to serving. To make the patties, combine the beef,  Steak Seasoning, maple syrup, black pepper, garlic and salt in a large bowl. Mix ingredients by hand, handling the meat as little as possible to avoid compacting. Divide the mixture into 6 equal portions and form patties to fit the rolls. When the grill is ready, brush the grill rack with vegetable oil. Place the patties on the rack, cover, and cook, turning once, until done to preference (5-7 minutes on each side for medium). During the last few minutes of cooking, lightly toast the Kaiser rolls by placing them cut side down on the outer edges of the rack. To assemble the burgers, spread butter on the top halves of the rolls and spread mayonnaise on the bottom halves of the rolls. On each roll bottom, place a nice helping of shredded Romaine, a patty, a tomato slice and a generous portion of chilled spinach spread topping. Add the roll tops and serve! Makes 6 burgers.