Cardio and Cooking: In Alberta, we eat cows.

I really needed a beef fix. I didn't know I'd actually have that Albertan withdrawal, but I did. I've already sworn that upon my return to Edmonton for Christmas, I am going to have a steak. A really good steak. Probably a tenderloin while I'm at it. But for now, I am sticking to ground beef here, because steaks don't look as awesome unless they're from the butcher or the farmer's market, but then they're realllllly expensive.

Sooo, I got myself some lean ground beef from Loblaws. Today, I made my first homemade burgers AND buns. The size of my burgers are smaller than normal, but larger than sliders, so I have dubbed them, "Less Than Burgers".

Things I have learned today about burgers:
- Burgers are a lot easier to make than you would think.
- Cooking ground meat isn't actually that scary :D Just make sure that you cook it through.
- You can make burger patties without using chopped onion or breadcrumbs.
- A burger without bacon just isn't the same...always opt for bacon if you have it. :)
- According to Wikipedia, "burger" is apparently also the name of a grape used to make white wine. (I don't know anything about wine. I just know names because I went on a winery tour in the Okanagan with my parents, but I wasn't of legal drinking age yet, so I just had a lot of fancy sparkling grape juices. I'm of legal drinking age now, but I still haven't had my first alcoholic beverage. I'm just one of those, I guess...)

Apparently, I still need to work on this "divide the dough into even portions" thing.

Huh...well, what do you know? They do look kind of "Asian"...

Inside of a bun, courtesy of burnt fingertips. This was a quicker bread recipe, so of course the buns are not as soft and fluffy as they would be with a bit more effort, and instead were a bit denser than your typical hamburger bun. Still, not bad.

Yay, hamburger patties!

So. When you make patties, it may be better to make them thinner and larger circles, because when you cook them, they will shrink a bit in diameter. Also, they don't look as circular anymore :/

My first homemade burgers! It was just the beef patties, some Roma tomato (because they tend to be crisper), Romaine lettuce, shredded Cheddar cheese, and some Dijon mustard. Not bad. I ate another one after badminton, and sauteed some mushrooms along with some Sriracha. Burgers can actually be quite versatile if you want them to be!

Less Than Burgers
Buns (adapted from Taste of Home)
*Makes 12*
1 packet (1/4 oz.) active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/3 cup canola oil
1/4 cup golden brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp table salt
3 cups all purpose flour

1. Add the warm water to a medium-sized bowl, and dissolve yeast.
2. Add oil and sugar into the yeast mixture, and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes until it starts foaming a little. Take this time to grease or line your baking pan with parchment paper.
3. Add a beaten egg, then the flour with salt, until evenly combined.
4. Knead the dough until it's smooth and elastic, flouring your hands if it gets sticky.
5. Divide the dough evenly into 12 balls, and place them an equal distance apart on the baking pan.
6. Brush the tops of the buns with a beaten egg and some water or milk to make the tops shiny. (I've been told that because I like to do this with my buns, they end up looking and tasting more "Asian".) Allow the buns to rest with a damp cloth over top of the pan for about 10 minutes.
7. Preheat the oven to 425 F, and bake the buns for about 12 minutes - they should be golden brown in colour. (Make sure that you bake the buns for long enough. I've eaten an improperly baked bun or roll before, and even though it tasted really good, I had stomach issues for about a day :/ Yeast that doesn't get killed in the baking process kills your stomach, or at least it feels that way.)
8. Let them cool a bit before slicing them open. I didn't do this, and burned my fingertips because I'm smart like that. You can make your burger patties while they cool!

Beef Patties
*Makes ~6 palm sized patties*
1 package of lean ground beef (My package said 0.688kg. Also, I would have preferred extra lean ground beef, but eh.)
Salt and pepper
Dijon mustard
Worcestershire sauce

1. Break apart the package of ground beef into a bowl, squeeze and mix by hand so that it no longer resembles stiff worms.
2. Add about 1 1/2 Tbsp of dijon mustard and about 1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce and mix by hand until combined and evenly distributed.
3. Divide the beef mixture into 6 even portions, and shape them into balls. Flatten them with your palm to form them into patties.
4. Over low-medium heat, add 1 or 2 patties onto a frying pan, flipping them, to make sure that the ground beef is cooked through. I don't bother adding oil to the pan before because of the fats already in the ground meat, but my pan is nonstick. You should consider this beforehand, and add oil to the pan if you need to. You can always pat dry the excess oil with a paper towel after cooking the patties.
5. When cooked, remove from heat, and transfer to a plate to assemble your burgers.

I look forward to the day that I can eat steak again...Real Albertan AAA beef steak...Mmm...

-M