Toddler burgers.

I can't really take vegan recipes seriously. Or restaurants for that matter. I enjoy reading more than one wonderfully written blog by a seemingly normal woman with cute kids who likes to discuss running work-outs and stroller purchasing and vegan eating. But the recipes? Sorry, no chance. At the same time, vegetarian food I can get behind. I've recently become a little obsessed with trying every single recipe in my birthday gift for this year, a little book you might know called Plenty which I believe everyone with a mouth has at least heard about.

Of course, I am not immune to the intense meat craving every once in a while, and it usually comes right around this time of year when burgers become newsworthy again. And, while I won't agree that a hunk of ground meat is what essentially screams summer for me (that prize goes to caprese salads, grilled corn on the cob, and sweet melon), I will never pass up an excuse to enjoy the perfect hamburger. With cheese, please.

The only problem is that I've been wanting to try cooking our burgers in a skillet this time, but I couldn't reconcile being in a hot kitchen on a gorgeous holiday weekend. So, for our 4th of July, we ate sausages outside which we grilled and had an amazing salad which I will share later this week.

But the next day we had burgers straight from a cast iron skillet as many articles and chefs recommend. There are several aspects to a burger that I think make the most impact. First, as with all sandwiches, the bread is key. In my mind, the bun should be about texture and, in general, less is more. My go-to choices are usually a toasted English muffin or ciabatta roll, but this time I wanted to try my hand at an amazing recipe I had heard about, a light brioche roll from the NY Times.

The second aspect is grinding your own meat. This is usually my husband's department, and he uses our Kitchen Aid mixer meat grinder attachment. I am not sure if I buy into the idea that you need the right blend of cuts. Tasting Table recommends a mix of ground chuck, ground short ribs, and ground sirloin, but I would argue that it should be more about the right proportion of fat and that once it's ground, the cut shouldn't matter as much. Most chefs agree about 20-30% fat is ideal, although there is much debate within that range. We pre-salt our meat 24 hours before and then grind it twice, shape it loosely into patties, and place these back in the fridge so that the meat is as cold as possible prior to cooking. I think of it like making pie crust - you want to handle the dough or meat as little as possible and keep the butter or fat as cold as possible prior to cooking.

I will also mention that we tried a new sauce from the Tasting Table article which didn't revolutionize anything for me, but was damn good all the same. I can't eat raw onion, so we forewent the macerated onion, but I was planning to add grilled red onion and just didn't get it together. Next time!

Toddler burgers (for adults too)
Makes 4 smaller burgers

1 lb beef chuck
kosher salt

butter lettuce
1-2 ripe tomatoes, sliced
4 slices sharp cheddar cheese
4 brioche buns (see below)
burger sauce (see below)

Salt beef chuck with plenty of kosher salt at least 24 hours prior to grinding. When ready, grind chuck in home grinder twice. Immediately form 4 small patties (one article mentions using the top of a Hellmann's mayonnaise jar lid as the best form) about 3/4 inch thick. Place your thumb in the center of each patty to make an indent (as burgers shrink and plump in the middle when cooked). Place patties back in refrigerator until time to cook, but at least 15 minutes.

When ready, preheat a large cast iron skillet on medium to high heat. When you cannot leave your hand close to the bottom of the pan for more than a few seconds, it's ready. Sprinkle patties with a pinch more of kosher salt and add to pan salted side down being careful not to crowd them. Salt the other side of burgers with another small pinch of salt. For medium-rare burgers, cook for 3-4 minutes per side. Once flipped, add cheese slices on top and cover for 1-2 minutes at the end of cooking to melt cheese.

Meanwhile, toast brioche buns and slather both sides with burger sauce. Add sliced tomato and lettuce to one side and burger patty to the other. Enjoy!

Burger sauce
via Tasting Table

1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp chopped sweet bread and butter pickles (the organic ones from Trader Joe's are amazing and you will want to eat them all the time)
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp paprika

Mix above ingredients together in a small bowl until well blended and then refrigerate until time to smear on burger buns.

Light Brioche Buns
NY Times, June 30, 2009
Makes 12 small buns or 10 medium buns

3 tbsp warm milk
2 tsp active dry yeast or 1 packet
2 1/2 tbsp sugar
1 cup warm water - (If you're unsure on temperature, a good trick is to combine 1/4 cup boiling water with 3/4 cup cold water and this should give you the correct temperature water to activate yeast without killing it)
2 large eggs
3 cups bread flour (408 g)
1/3 cup all-purpose flour (43 g) (Picky, I know. I stopped caring once I tasted the buns)
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tbsp butter (36 g), softened

I preheated my oven to 200 degrees so that I could let my dough rise on the stove top. Mix together warm milk, yeast, sugar and water and let stand for 5-10 minutes or until it develops about 1/2 inch of foam. If no foam develops, you can try placing the bowl on top of a warm oven, but if still without foam, your yeast may be dead and you will need to try again with new yeast.

Meanwhile, beat 1 egg in a small bowl and set aside. Mix together flours and butter in large bowl with hands, smashing the butter with your fingers so that it makes little crumbs. Add beaten egg and yeast mixture and stir until makes a sticky dough. Scrape dough onto clean, unfloured surface and knead for about 8-10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Shape into a ball and place back in bowl, cover with dish cloth or plastic wrap and place on top of warm oven for 1-2 hours or until dough has doubled in size.

Divide dough into 10 or 12 small balls depending on what size you prefer. I kneaded each one a few times before forming the ball. Arrange about 2 inches apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover with clean dish cloth again and place on top of warm oven to rise for another 1-2 hours.

Before preheating your oven, place a shallow dish of water in the bottom of the oven. Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack centered in the middle. Beat the remaining 1 egg with about a tablespoon of water and brush over tops of rolls generously. Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.