Sliders!

Bacon Teriyaki, Bernaise Balsamic, Bacon and Blue

I'm just a little bit excited about last night's dinner.  Craving a burger on the way home from work I realized, "I've got some ground beef in the freezer, I'll make my own!" and thus...sliders!  And here's the fun part about sliders, you can make a few with different flavors so you don't have to choose just one type of cheese, or one type of marinade for the beef (Yes, I do in fact marinade my beef).  So here's the lowdown:

For the burger patties: Ground beef (I used 80/20), diced mushrooms, diced garlic, marinade (add diced onions if you have any...I didn't)
My two marinades: Balsamic vinegar or Teriyaki/soy sauce/sesame oil/sesame seeds
Cheeses: Roquefort, Parmesan, Cheddar, Feta (not pictured)
Toppings: Bacon, Scallions
Sauces: Mayo, Bernaise
Bread: Tuscan Pane (from Trader Joe's) lightly toasted

I enjoy marinading my ground beef to add flavor in the burger when you bit into it.  I opted for two marinades last night: a balsamic and a teriyaki.  I also enjoy throwing diced mushrooms and/or onions in with my ground beef to cook within the burger itself.  Another dimension of added flavor and texture.

Ground beef, garlic, mushrooms, balsamic.  Don't be afraid to get your hands messy when you mix it all together.  

Once your beef is mixed to your liking, form small patties with your hands.  If you have trouble with the meat falling apart you can add some egg and milk, but your burgers will taste a bit like meatloaf, if you're cool with that.  Not wanting to use my grill pan, I again opted for the skillet cooked burgers.

It's important not to squish your burgers down as they cook, no matter what surface you're cooking them on, because that's how they lose all their good juices from the inside and you're left with a dry, unappealing burger.  You can squish once they're in the bun.  So cook these, turning over periodically until they're cooked through to your liking.  When almost done, you can add the cheese on top to melt before assembling your burgers.  I also like using bread instead of hamburger buns because I don't have to buy something special for these, and I actually love the taste/toasty texture.

So what were my final creations?  At the bottom of the first picture is your classic "bacon and blue" with the Roquefort cheese, bacon, scallion, and mayo.  This used the balsamic burger.  Going up clockwise we have a traditional bacon burger with cheddar cheese and mayo.  This utilized the teriyaki burger.  And my favorite of the night was the balsamic burger topped with parmesan, scallions, and bernaise sauce (bringing the steakhouse to the burger joint).  I had a ton of leftovers, so I must admit I nibbled later on a balsamic burger topped with feta, scallions, bacon, and bernaise sauce sans bread. 

Proof that you don't need a grill and don't need to settle on a single burger for dinner.