Extra Special Hamburgers

We had a pool and cookout today. We figured we’d enjoy the 3-day weekend by having about 30 friends over. But rather than serve up plain ‘ol hamburger patties from Costco, I made two different kinds of seasoned hamburger patties. Everyone seemed to enjoy the not-your-typical burger taste. They were especially good with toasted hamburger buns and grilled, caramelized onions. Yum! Here are the recipes for our burgers:

Garlic ‘n Onion Burgers

2 lbs. lean ground beef
1 medium sized yellow onion, diced fine
1 cup bread crumbs
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper

Mix all the ingredients together and shape into 8-10 hamburger patties.


Italian-style hamburgers

2 lbs. lean ground beef
1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped in food processor
2 tsp. minced garlic
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper

Combine all ingredients and shape into 8 hamburger patties.

These make some yummy hamburgers!

Happy grilling!!!
~Becky

Favorite Lemon Meringue Pie

We’re having lots of company over this coming three-day weekend. I did quite a bit of baking today to get ready for our guests. One of the desserts I made today was a lemon meringue pie. It’s a family—and company—favorite!

Lemon Meringue Pie

Prebaked 9-inch pie crust, cooled

Filling:
1 ½ cups filtered or distilled water
¾ cup granulated sugar
Dash salt
3 T. cornstarch
3 T. flour
4 large egg yolks
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 ½ tsp. finely grated lemon peel
3 T. unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Meringue
4 large egg whites
½ tsp. vanilla extract
½ tsp. cream of tartar
¼ cup granulated sugar

Beat the 4 large egg yolks together in small bowl; set aside. Blend water, sugar, salt, cornstarch and flour in medium sized saucepan. Bring to boil over medium-high heat. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir about a quarter cup of the hot mixture into the beaten egg yolks; then return to the hot mixture over medium heat. Bring to a boil and cook over for another minute. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice, lemon peel and butter. Blend well, and pour into bottom pie crust.

Next, prepare the meringue. (Do this while the filling is still hot). Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Beat the ingredients for the meringue together until stiff, glossy peaks form. Spread the meringue over the hot lemon filling, sealing to the pie crust edges. Bake for about 10-12 minutes, until lightly golden. Chill in refrigerator (at least 2-3 hours) until ready to serve.

Have a good weekend everyone!

~Becky