Burgers, Burgers Everywhere

Posted by Stephanie Meyer on May 8, 2009 at 7:15am

You can tell we’re heading into summer by the number of burger posts around the web. The goods (don’t worry, not all of them are decadent!)…

President Obama and Vice President Biden stopped for lunch at Ray’s Hell Burger in DC this week. Check out this fun blogpost reviewing the place – which sounds fantastic – before it’s big day in the spotlight (thanks to my aunt Kathy for providing the link). Even if you don’t have a trip to DC planned anytime soon, you’ll find lots of inspiration for jazzing up your own backyard creations.

The New York Times Dining & Wine section includes a feature on the Burger of the Month Club, a group that meets the first Monday of each month at a new NYC burger joint. Their (delicious looking, wow) Top Ten are here. They post all of their reviews on their blog.

The current issue of Clean Eating Magazine includes a recipe for “turkey slider” appetizers – mini turkey burgers topped with tomato and onion. I think they’d make a great starter for a light, summery dinner party.

Looking for tasty ways to use my new canned salmon, I found this recipe for Lemon Salmon Burgers. I haven’t tried it yet, but plan to soon – I have had great success trying well-reviewed recipes on allrecipes.com.

I love veggie burgers every bit as much (if not more than) hamburgers. (In the name of moderation, hamburgers are an occasional treat, while veggie burgers see a lot of action ’round these parts.) The Morningstar Farms Garden Veggie burger (pictured above) is delicious – loaded with mushrooms, nuts, and whole grains, it’s hard to beat topped with pickles, mustard, onion, maybe a slice or two of avocado. Their Spicy Black Bean burger is fantastic too. Both work well on the grill. Another favorite is Amy’s Organics California Veggie Burger – topped with a slice of lowfat mozzarella cheese, it’s The Kill. All versions are good sources of protein, fiber, and monounsaturated fat, for around 100 calories.

Don’t even get me started on the deliciousness of a grilled portabella mushroom-as-a-burger (pictured below), brushed (or spritzed) with a bit of olive oil, sprinkled with seasoned salt, grilled until soft, and topped with a piece of melty lowfat mozzarella…  You get the whole burger-y gestalt, for less than 300 (very tasty) calories. Nice.

My own favorite local restaurant burgers? Love (love!) the genius mini-lamb burgers in the bar at La Belle Vie. Ditto the mini-burgers at Bar Lurcat. Ditto again (redundant?) the mini-burgers at Bacio (Zelo, Ciao Bella). The regular-sized burgers there are fantastic too. I’m a nostalgic sucker for diner-style burgers, so Lion’s Tap has a warm place in my heart, as did my beloved Wagner’s Drive-Inn (RIP, sniff). I’ve eaten the black-bean burger at McCoy’s so many times they damn near start one up when I walk in the door.

And for what I consider the definitive word on the best local burgers, Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl’s list for Minnesota Monthly is not only spot-on, it’s a great (funny, mouth-watering) read.

Happy Burger Weekend! Happy Birthday Stacey!

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