Nate's Ultimate Bacon Burger

The other day my husband and I were talking to our friends Nate and Kelly on the phone (by talking I mean he was talking, and I was yelling in the background), and they started to talk about the blog and how it was slightly vegetarian. After TJ hung up, he turned to me and said, "You need to make a burger for Nate". TJ and Nate were college roommates and ate their share of burgers. So I did something I rarely do, and cooked red meat. This burger may be the ultimate bacon lovers burger, maybe even the ultimate burger lovers burger.... Bacon on the inside, bacon on the top, caramelized onions, and cheddar cheese.....my heart is stopping just talking about it! But you only live once, and this is a treat you are sure to enjoy.

Nate's Bacon Burgers

1 pound lean ground beef

12-14 strips of bacon

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 egg

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

dash of hot sauce

3/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon pepper

Toppings

1 large yellow onion

 1 tablespoon olive oil

8 slices cheddar cheese

Lettuce

8 whole wheat buns

Makes approximately 8 burgers

First, slice your yellow onion into even rings and place into pan with olive oil. Heat over medium heat, occasionally stirring. This will take a while so start here first! They should be done and ready to top the burgers by the time everything is cooked.

Heat a large pan over medium heat. When hot, add all strips of bacon, cooking to desired crispiness. After bacon is cooked and cooled, reserve 8-10 strips for topping your burgers, and place the remaining bacon on a large cutting board. Chop bacon into small pieces and add to a large mixing bowl.

In the same large mixing bowl as the crumbled bacon, add ground beef, egg, bread crumbs, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, oregano,  pepper, diced onions, and minced garlic. Using your hands or a large spoon mix well, until mixture is uniform. Using 3/4-1 cup of the mixture at a time, form into round patties. Be sure to make the patties an even thickness, so they cook the same, all the way through.

I like to brush my burgers with a little soy sauce after flipping to make them a nice deep brown with a little flavor!

Heat your grill to medium-high heat. No need to use spray here :) Place each patty on hot grill and grill for 5-7 minutes on each side or until no longer pink in the middle. Remove from heat a get ready to top!

To assemble, place burger on whole wheat bun, add one slice on cheddar cheese, 1-2 strips of bacon , a spoon full of caramelized onions, lettuce and your favorite condiments. Then....hit the gym :)