I once read an article about a butcher who was famous for his burgers. His trick was to include minced berries in the ground meat. He used the fruit to enhance flavor and keep the meat moist, but it turns out that cherries provide a health benefit as well. Probably because of their high antioxidant levels, cherries slow spoilage in meat and also help prevent carcinogens from forming when cooking the burgers on high heat. Naturally, I had an “aha!” moment when I brought home cherries and ground meat from the farmer’s market this week.
You don’t really taste the cherries in the burgers, but the meat is noticeably moist and ever so slighly tart (in a good way). The burgers are nice on their own, or on a pain de mie bun with a little mustard. They would go well with sliced red onions, or pickled red onions and a bit of Romaine lettuce. It might be fun to experiment with different types of berries, such as blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, even strawberries (I wonder how much berry you can use in the burgers without affecting flavor and texture?). Here’s a burger that needs no ketchup.
Cherry Burgers
10 cherries, pitted
4 cloves garlic
1 lb lean ground meat
2-4 TBS melted butter
a couple pinches of baharat spice mix
salt and pepper to taste
- Process the cherries and garlic in a food processor, or chop finely with a knife. You want the cherries and garlic to be finely minced, but not dripping with juice.
- In a large bowl, combine the meat, cherry garlic mixture, spices, and melted butter.
- Place a large cast-iron pan over medium-high heat and place some butter in the pan.
- Make a bite sized burger and cook it in the pan. Taste the burger and correct seasoning accordingly.
- Shape the meat into burgers and fry them in the pan.
- Flip when browned, then lower flame to medium. Cook to desired level of doneness.
Serves 2-3
Local links:
- Pain de mie burger buns from Acme
- Meat from Prather Ranch
- Cherries and garlic from a number of growers at the farmer’s market
