Grilled Beef and Mushroom Burgers

You know that moment when you serve a new burger recipe to your son's fiance and you neglect to tell her that it's made with mushrooms until after she consumes the entire burger and then tells you that she may or may not be allergic?  Yup, that happened to me the other night.  I felt terrible.  In retrospect, I realize that I should have disclosed all ingredients to everyone at the table PRIOR to serving dinner.  

The truth is that I didn't forget to tell everyone that the burgers were made with mushrooms. I was trying to trick my daughter who is somewhat finicky eater, into eating the scrumptious fungi.  My strategy actually worked too.  Unfortunately, I never even considered the unfortunate bystandards who got caught up in my surreptitious mushroom scheme.  And I certainly never even dreamed that anyone would have a mushroom allergy.  Luckily, my poor victim (and future daughter in law) did not have a reaction to the mushrooms.  Lesson learned.  From now on, I will only serve secret ingredient foods to people who I gave birth to - or married.  

Using low fat ground sirloin to make hamburgers is a great way to make them healthier but it can also leave you with dry and tasteless patties.  Adding mushrooms to a ground sirloin burger can really boost the nutritional value and also add flavor and moisture.  (Just make sure that you let your burgers know that they are eating mushrooms please.)  

Grilled Beef and Mushroom Burgers
4 ounces button mushrooms
1 pound 90% lean beef
2 Tablespoons oil
1/8 teaspoon pepper
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chopped cucumber
4 garlic cloves, roasted
1/4 cup plain whole  milk Greek yogurt
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon parsley
8 butter lettuce leaves
4 heirloom tomato slices
4 red onion slices

Process mushrooms in food processor until minced. 

Combine mushrooms, beef, oil, pepper and 3/8 t. salt.  

Divide meat into 4 burgers.  

Stir together cucumber, yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, parsley and 3/8 t. salt.   

Grill burgers until desired degree of doneness.  

Top tomato slice and heaping Tablespoon yogurt sauce.   This cool and creamy cucumber yogurt sauce is a great way to boost the flavor of your burger. 

Summer is here and that means burgers will be on the menu.  Burgers, chips, watermelon and raspberry lemonade - the essentials of summer.  Enjoy friends. 

Ciao!

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