Father's Day Burger Blowout

Dorothy picked up a magazine at the grocery store the other day because it had a Bobby Flay Texas Burger Blowout recipe inside. 

The recipe is actually the Dallas Burger from Bobby Flay's Burger, Fries and Shakes book (page 37). The feast also included Mesa Grill Potato Salad (page 225 of Boy Meets Grill) and Buttermilk Onion Rings (page 101 of Burger, Fries and Shakes). It was Father's Day and it was a scorcher on the grill!

But no weather conditions keep the True Keepers of the Flame off the grill! I think this must have been the hottest grill-lighting temperature so far here at Bobby Flay Everyday. The coldest was 9 degrees last January, but like I said nothing stops a griller. I started by roasting the potatoes in the cast iron skillet which was right on the grill. 

In a separate bowl I mixed together the Mesa Grill ingredients: mayo, Dijon mustard, lime juice, chopped red and green onion, sliced jalapeno pepper, fresh cilantro, together with chipotle, garlic, cayenne, Kosher salt and ground black pepper. When the potatoes came off the grill, they went right into the bowl with the Mesa Grill ingredients. The Mesa Grill ingredients were cool, but the potatoes came off smoking hot. It is important to mix these together while the potatoes are still hot so they will absorb the spicy flavors through and through. After mixing, the potatoes were allowed to cool to room temperature. Next came what turned out to be the surprise star of the show - the Buttermilk Onion Rings.

I first sliced two Vidalia Onions crossways into rings. They really need to be Vidalias because these onions really become very sweet over the heat of the grill. Then I set up an assembly line - the onions followed by three pans. The first and third pan contains flour with Kosher salt, ground black pepper and ground cayenne all mixed in. The second pan was filled with buttermilk, salt and pepper. One ring at a time, the onions went down the assembly line: flour, buttermilk, flour and then on to the cast iron skillet over high heat on the grill. Look back at today's first photo and you will see that the flour formed a golden brown crust around the onion rings that was terrific with that kick of cayenne! I had never made the Buttermilk Onion Rings before - but I will again - they were crunchy on the outside, while the onions inside were tender and sweet. The Dallas Burgers were on the grill at the same time as the onion rings.

Earlier in the day, Dorothy made the homemade cole slaw that goes with the Dallas Burger. She used the processor for the cabbage, then added grated carrots, mayo, sugar, celery seeds, apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper. I seasoned the burgers as they went on the grill with canola oil, ancho chili powder, paprika, dry mustard, cumin, coriander, oregano, cayenne, salt and pepper. I seasoned the burgers this time on both sides to really pile on the flavor and because I knew that the cole slaw would cool it down once it got to the bun. I turned the burgers once - because, as we know, grill commandments #1 is, "Thou Shalt Not Flip Your Burger Multiple Times." Multiple turns just allows juices to escape and that goes along with grill commandment #2 which is, "Thou Shalt Not Press Your Burger Down On The Grill." Pressing the burger down just squeezes out the juice which will leave your burger dry and leather-like. To finish off, I toasted some thin Whole Wheat buns on the grill, melted some cheddar, placed the burgers and topped them the cole slaw and cold dill pickle slices - Fabulous on Father's Day!

If you are around my age (50ish) then I would bet your Father grilled like the pros. My father was traveling on Father's day so I did not get to see him, but I called and caught up with him as he drove across Arkansas. My own kids called and Facebooked. Dorothy made Father's Day perfect in two additional ways. First she made my favor cake - German Chocolate, but with a secret topping. I saw walnuts and chocolate chips on the counter as she was creating - I don't know what else, but I was fantastic!

The second thing she did to make Father's Day perfect is to write about her own father, who sadly passed away seventeen years ago. Please go read her words and see her photos at

http://designdenizen.blogspot.com/2010/06/heres-to-my-father.html

My Dad taught me well in all things, but especially on the grill. He had an old kettle-type grill that lived in the backyard most of the time, but he would place it on the floorboard of our car's back seat and take it with us to grill when we would hike and camp. His specialty is "Hoof and Feather." That's right he grills both beef and chicken at the same time! He insists that everyone gets some of both right off the grill. So thanks Dad, and all Dads, for all the life lessons you taught. Some of those lessons, like patience, the value of a family meal and insisting on quality, were learned over the grill! Yet another reason to Grill It! and pass it on. Paul


PS - Remember to check out the St. Francis Winery's Turn Up The Heat Contest. I have a video on their site and I hope that video will win me the title of Grill King of Sonoma Valley! Go watch the video at
http://www.youtube.com/user/StFrancisContest#p/a/f/1/Gr1Y4MUFX_U