FLOWER POT KITCHEN: BACON MAC n CHEESE LOADED CHEESE BURGER

29 May 2023

BACON MAC n CHEESE LOADED CHEESE BURGER

Guy Fieri Planet Hollywood Observatory Disney Springs Florida

This is the burger…THE ONE…the only one…

This has been great fun re-creating Guy Fieri’s NYC award winning burger, this is some great eating. Top tip…have all the toppings made and ready to assemble so when you come to cook the burger it is just a job of assembling this outstanding glorious burger.

Perfectly smashed and grilled this seasoned 80/20 burger, seared with a crust is succulent and juicy, topped with cheddar cheese, applewood smoked bacon, six cheese mac n cheese, LTOP, (lettuce, tomato, onion pickles), crispy onion straws, donkey sauce (roasted garlic mustard mayonnaise) and served in a garlic buttery double toasted burger infused brioche bun, that’s all.

Ingredients

(makes 4)

TOP TIP… Have everything prepped, cooked and ready to go before you cook the burger.

(Check list… softened garlic butter, bun, crispy cooked bacon, warm cooked mac n cheese, cheddar slice, LTOP, hot crispy onion straws and donkey sauce) !

The Burger

1 kg 80/20 twice ground chuck steak

(80/20 is the meat to fat ratio generally 60 % chuck, 20% short rib, 20% ribeye)

10g-15g sea salt

1 glug vegetable oil

Burger Toppings

8 crispy slices applewood smoked bacon roughly chopped after cooked

4 slices cheddar cheese

1 finely shredded iceberg lettuce tossed in 1 tsp red wine vinegar

2 tomatoes super thinly sliced and seasoned with salt and black pepper

1 red onion finely sliced in rings

1 large dill pickle sliced

The Bun

4 tbsp butter melted

1 tsp grated garlic

Crispy Onion Straws

2 large white onions halved and finely sliced longwise

1 cup all purpose flower

1 tbsp cornstarch (gives extra crunch)

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 ltr vegetable oil for cooking

Method

Combine all the dry ingredients, mix well, dredge the onions in the seasoned flour, dust off a little and fry in batches at 180 C / 350 F for a couple of minutes until golden and crispy, drain on paper towel and reserve ready to use.

Six Cheese Mac n Cheese

500g small elbow macaroni pasta cooked and drained

4 tbsp butter

4 tbsp all purpose flour

1 ltr full fat cream milk

1/4 tsp grated nutmeg

100g smoked gouda cheese block

100g sharp white cheddar block

100g fontina or Parmesan block

60g Provolone block

60g Emmental cheese block

60g Gruyère cheese block

1 tsp white pepper

Method

Melt the butter, stir in the flour and cook on a low heat for 5 minutes, start to add the cold milk a cup at a time and whisk in each time until smooth, repeat until all the milk has been incorporated, and you have a medium thick sauce, add the nutmeg, white pepper and stir to combine.

Grate all the cheeses, this really makes a difference as pre grated cheese is generally coated in potato starch to stop the cheese from clumping.

On a gentle low simmer cook the sauce for 15 minutes stirring all the time, do not let the sauce catch on the bottom of the pan, add the cheeses one at a time and stir in to combine, taste and season with salt if needed. Stir in the cooked macaroni and combine well, set aside ready to top the burger.

MAC N CHEESE SUPER SPEEDY RECIPE AND GLUTEN FREE

Add to a pan on a gentle heat 2 cups of full fat milk, 1 tbsp butter, 225g velveeta cheese cubed, 1 cup sharp cheddar, 1 cup smoked Gouda, bring to a gentle simmer and keep stirring to combine until you have a thick smooth sauce, season with salt and black pepper to taste, add your cooked elbow macaroni and mix throughly.

Donkey Sauce

8 cloves roasted garlic

6 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp yellow mustard

1 pinch sea salt

1 pinch black pepper

Simply blitz to combine…

Let’s make this bad boy !

Toast the Bun

Mix the garlic and melted butter together and generously spread on the top and bottom of the buns. On a hot flat top or cast iron skillet toast the buns garlic butter side down first then turn over and toast the other side, use a spatula to press the buns down slightly for a full toasting. Place on your plate ready to load.

To Cook the Burger

Divide the chuck mince into 4 equal Pattie balls, generously season with salt all over the balls. Heat your flat top or skillet hot on a medium high heat, place the chuck mince balls in the skillet and sear for 30 seconds, using a burger press or 2 spatulas crush the burger down in one move only it to a pattie around 1” thick.

Sear for a further 1 1/2 minutes to form a crust, turn the burger over and place the burger in a different spot in the pan, sear for 1 minute then top the burger with a slice of cheddar, 2 slices of the chopped bacon and 2 generous large spoons of the mac n cheese, cover the burger with a dome and squirt two dashes of water under to dome to steam the burger, melt the cheese slice and heat the mac n cheese, cook for a further 1 minute.

To Assemble the Burger

Generously spread the donkey sauce on the top and bottom of the toasted bun.

Place the loaded burger on the base of the bun.

Next slices of red onion, tomato and shredded iceberg on top.

Next the crispy onion straws pile high.

Finish with dill pickles and toasted bun lid, secure with a skewer.

Tuck and roll with people that love you and lots of paper roll!

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LIFE MY PASSION

Welcome to my daily life of cooking, one winters day many years ago my family and I were all inspired by a back to back rainy day of River Cottage this got us to stop talking about and start actually doing, suddenly three weeks later eight vegetable beds were dug, greenhouse erected and our first vegetables were propagating, this was the start to raising and growing our own food, our fabulous son Oscar changed our path in life which lead us to sell our small thriving restaurant of 10 yrs and to start our new life (Terrifying!) a life of the self sufficient in touch with nature and seasons, taking a step back and looking forward to a slower change of pace and making the most of every moment.

My passion for cooking was stronger than ever and having time at home with Oscar I found I had a new direction and I was no longer striving for perfection, I was suddenly very passionate for the enjoyment of the other side of food, something I had not realised, being the Chef/Cook and every other duty of your own small restaurant made me see that I never actually took time to cook what I wanted!

So there I was muddy boots and hands digging deep in more than one sense and I found myself transported back in time to where everyone grew some of their own food, it is a wonderful world with a real sense of achievement and loss, Slugs Snails and Caterpillars! But thats another story! Childhood memories of summers when I lived with my grand parents reminded me of so much that I had learnt about the make do and mend generation that I had forgotten.

Now as a family we love our free wild food days where we gather what nature has provided, have gone from being mini mini garden urban small holders, who did raised pigs at home because we could not wait to find land and supporting ourselves from our garden to now owning a very small farm that allows us to grow more vegetables for the whole of our family and neighbours, raise our own gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs, (Sausages!) and pets! Dorset Down sheep, chickens for eggs and pet goats! Suddenly having large quantities of produce started to wake up the Cook in me!

The Cook was awake that part of me that wants to cook for the masses and I found myself setting up Flowerpot Kitchen, a Farmers Market Stall, I wanted to use our honest raised meats and make old fashioned pork pies, rabbit pies and game pies from the local game keeper along with old fashioned techniques and the best hot water crust pastry. This in turn grew to a small cottage industry from home weekly supplying three farm shops and a deli along with also attending three farmers markets A few years later there came a time when my son Oscar's health changed and it was an easy decision to stop.

I still hold the occasional pop up 40 seater restaurant or gourmet lunch which we do for local charities for the love of sharing food and to remind that Cook in me why I love our go slower self sufficient life!

So here I am sitting amoung the vegetables watching the chickens loving that every season nature teaches me something new and that nature is in charge! She has taught me to just go with it and grow. Give it a try from a tray of salad on your windowsill to a few tomato plants it all counts.