Anyone that knows me well knows my love for cheeseburgers. I just can’t think of anything more wonderful than grilled beef covered in perfectly melted cheese. Most of the time I crave those juicy, fatty, drippy burgers (with American cheese of course!) but there are times when you want to do things a little fancy. Fig and blue cheese is a perfect pairing and bacon goes with everything. You have sweet, stinky, and smoky all in one bite! It’s perfection! This burger should definitely be served with a light, fresh salad (pictured below is mixed greens and tomatoes with a lemon vinaigrette) to cut the fattiness. Yum!

What you’ll need:

• 4 shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 4 slices applewood smoked bacon
• 11/3 lbs ground beef (80% lean is best – fatty = juicy!)
• Blue cheese, crumbled
• 4 hamburger buns
• Fig jam
• Mixed greens or other toppings of your choice

Directions:

• Get the shallots cooking first by heating the oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and turn the heat down to low. Once they start to break down (about 5-7 minutes) add salt. Let them slowly cook, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes or until they are a deep golden brown color. At the very end add the balsamic vinegar and remove from heat.
• The shallots should be left alone to do their thing so use this time to get going on the rest of the burger. Place the bacon in a cool cast iron skillet and place over medium-high heat. Flip bacon consistently to keep the ends from curling. Once the bacon is brown and crispy remove from pan and place on a plate lined with paper towels. Keep the bacon fat in the pan!
• Divide the beef into 4 patties (each about 1/3 pound). Make sure your patties are flat and larger in size than your buns as they will seize up with you cook. Nothing worse than the cooked patty being too small for the bun! Season both sides of the patties with salt and pepper.
• Heat the skillet with the bacon fat over medium-high heat. Place patties in the hot skillet and cook each side for about 5 minutes to medium doneness (160°F). You should get a nice crust on each side and the meat should be cooked through but still pink in the center.
• When you have 2 minutes left on the second side add crumbled blue cheese to the top of each patty to let it melt. It helps to cover the pan to get it super melty.
• Toast the buns in the over or in a toaster and add a nice layer of fig jam to the top bun (how much depends on how sweet you want your burger). Spoon a layer of the caramelized balsamic shallots to the bottom bun and top with a patty. Add a slice of bacon (broken into two pieces) and to finish top with mixed greens and whatever additional toppings your heart desires.
• Enjoy!!!