So here it is. The first post. Just in time for the New Year and the Football Playoffs.

There is nothing wrong with a good ol’ fashioned cheeseburger. It’s classic, it’s tasty. Sometimes you just need to up the ante, mix it up, take the burger to the next level. Meat the Jalapeño Popper Burger (pun intended).

Classic tailgate burger meets Super Bowl party food jalapeño poppers. The best part? It’s super easy and quick. Start to finish is about 30 minutes.

The patty is key. To make this burger really stand out, you need the patty to be fire. I like to start with some lean ground beef. Then add some minced onion, soy sauce, Worcestershire, and salt and pepper to finish. Nothing in this is overly complicated, everything compliments the beef. Beef is KING. The patty is simple, just take all the ingredients and thoroughly mix ’em up. Once mixed I form them into quarter pound patties. Keep in mind that we will be taking two quarter-pound patties and making them into one once we have our filling. These burgers are serious business. I like girth, I like huge mouthfuls of flavor. The bigger the burger, the bigger my eyes and my appetite.

Now here’s where things get interesting. The filling. Jalapeños, cream cheese, fresh grated sharp cheddar cheese. You don’t know this about me yet but I love spicy, but beyond spicy I LOVE cheese. Cheese rules in this household (next to our pupper). I can eat basically any cheese like candy. When I use cheese, I like to know my cheese is there. Enter the bold and classic sharp cheddar. It compliments the spicy jalapeño. Together they smack you in the taste buds.

You’ll need to use room temp cream cheese in order to properly combine the ingredients. Forgot to set out the cream cheese prior to diving into this recipe? No worries, I’ve been there. While it’s not my first choice, you can always warm up the cream cheese in the microwave. I stick it in for no longer than 20 seconds on 50% power. You don’t want to accidentally boil it.
Slice open the jalapeño and remove the seeds (or keep some in if you want to up the heat level).Finely chop the jalapeño add it to a mixing bowl with the cream cheese, sharp cheddar, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix everything up and prepare for assembly.

Take one of the pre-formed patties and gently create a indentation in the center. This will be where the filling lives. Once you have a home created add a couple generous spoonfuls of the filling. Next take another patty place on top of the first patty. Gently press the edges of the two patties to create one half-pound patty.
It’s grilling time! I like to add a little more salt and pepper to the outside of the burger for some additional flavor just before I stick them on the grill. It’s important to note that you should alway preheat your grill before you stick the patties on there. I enjoy my burgers medium rare. I’ll typically grill them 5-6 minutes, then flip and grill for an additional 5-6 minutes.

Remember when I said that beef is king? It is, but a sure way to compromise your hard work is a bad bun. Don’t skimp on the bun. If the patty is king, the bun is queen. Treat her with respect. For this burger I used a brioche bun. I brushed a little butter on the inside of the bun and stuck it on the grill a few minutes before the patties are done. I enjoy a little char on my bun.

Last step, put the burger together. I topped mine off with more shredded sharp cheddar, sweet onion, and tomato. Toppings are subjective so this I leave in your capable hands. I didn’t have any bacon or prosciutto on hand, but I could see either of these as a pretty fantastic addition.