The Mediterranean Burger

Pairs well with:

Pinot Grigio

You won’t need a bouquet of flowers when you share our Pinot Grigio. This crisp wine with floral aromas is a wonderful way to make an entrance.

Ingredients

2 cans 14 oz of Artichoke Hearts (any type will work)
2 cups of mayonnaise
1 16 oz container sour cream
1 tablespoon of red pepper flakes
2 cups crumbled Feta Cheese
3 Yellow Peppers (large in size)
3 Red Peppers (large in size)
1 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Pepper
2 pounds ground Chuck
1/4 cup finely chopped shallots
2 tablespoons Cabernet Sauvignon
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons of Ketchup
2 teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Pepper
Vegetable oil, for brushing on the grill rack
6 large Kaiser rolls
Olive oil brushing rolls

 

Instructions

To make the artichoke feta sauce: Combine the artichoke hearts, mayonnaise, sour cream and red pepper flakes and place them in a food processor until blended well. Remove and place mixture in a bowl. Add the crumbled feta cheese and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour. You can prepare the day before also.

To make the grilled peppers: Thoroughly wash the peppers, cut them in half and discard all the seeds inside. In a large bowl combine the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Toss the peppers in the oil mixture. Make sure you coat the peppers with the oil mixture very well. Let stand for a few minutes and continue to toss once or twice and set them aside until you are ready to begin grilling.

To make the patties: In a large bowl combine the ground chuck, chopped shallots, Cabernet Sauvignon, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, salt and pepper. Mix well and divide mixture into 6 equal portions. Shape size to fit the rolls.

Preheat a gas grill (I use a Weber) to Medium High heat. Once the grill reaches the medium high temp, brush it with vegetable oil. Grill the peppers over medium high heat until tender, about 7 minutes on each side. Brush with remaining oil mixture and try to keep the grill lid down as much as possible. Grill patties on medium high heat for 4 minutes on each side. While cooking the patties keep the lid down as much as possible. Only turn the patties one time and do not press down on them. Once the peppers and patties are done, cover and let stand for about five minutes. Brush the cut sides of the rolls with olive oil and place the rolls on the grill over medium high heat until lightly toasted.

Remove as much of the skin off the grilled peppers as possible. Cut the ends off and then each half into 3 strips. You should end up with 6 strips per pepper (in total for all the peppers it should yield 36 pieces). Repeat the process until all the peppers are cut.

To assemble the burgers: On the bottom side of each roll, place a generous amount of the artichoke feta sauce, then place the patty, 3 red and 3 yellow peppers sections, top with more of the artichoke feta sauce and then add the top of the roll and serve. Order of assembling the burger (bread – sauce – meat – peppers – sauce – bread.)