Burgers For Dinner- Oh yeah!

I woke up this morning and had one thing on my mind, burgers. Actually, that is not entirely true, I started thinking about burgers last night. This morning it was completely obvious that the day would not pass without me enjoying a delicious burger. It is a little strange since I really am not a huge burger fan. I can have a burger once in a while, but it is not something I usually crave. I think the first time I craved a burger, was for my 3rd pregnancy. This was very different from my first 2 where I could barely stand to eat meat. My first 2 were girls, the 3rd was a boy, perhaps that was the reason why.

In my house we usually keep a pretty healthy food plan during the week. I try to focus on fruits and vegetables as much as I can. This is a little challenging for my son, but he has promised to try to eat 1 "new" food a week, well, new for him. I am pleased to say, last week I made seared salmon and he tried it, and loved it! Yay! This is big for him, and I am so proud because he has really made an effort.

I never force my kids to eat something they are not comfortable with. I think this is important because I believe it can do more damage than good. When I was growing up, my sister HATED vegetables. She had a special disdain for lettuce and tomatoes. One day my mom was tired of it and she forced her to eat her salad, and when my mom was upset, you didn't mess with her. Well my sister ate it, but she was sick the rest of the evening. To this day, almost 30 years later, she still refuses to eat lettuce or tomatoes. I know my mom had good intentions, but sometimes we have to try to accept our children's point of view, even if we don't understand it. Believe me, there have been times when I wanted to force my son to eat something, especially foods I know he needs to eat, but I have done my best to understand him, and for us it has been working.

Now back to the burgers. I really wanted a bacon and blue cheese burger. I decided to make these from scratch. I keep the burger patty simple, I usually just add a little salt, pepper, and worcestershire sauce. This is great because it gives me more time to focus on toppings. Today I made some bacon and I sauteed some mushrooms, and onions, for my daughter.

Of course a batch of fries were in order as well. To make delicious crispy fries at home is not hard. After slicing my potatoes, I keep them in water and pat them dry with a paper towel before frying. Frying is a 2 step process. For the first one, fry them in oil that is 275 degrees F for a few minutes and then remove them from the oil. This just takes a few minutes, you don’t want any color on your fries at this point. I then line them in a baking sheet until we are ready to eat. This accomplishes 2 very important things. First, it softens the inside of the potato and prepares the the surface. Second it reduces the 2nd frying time. When you are ready to finish them off, heat the oil to 350 degrees F. They will only take a few more minutes before you have perfectly crispy golden brown fries.

After the burgers and fries are done it’s time to put them together.

I keep everything separate, that way everyone can have it their way.
Just toppings for my daughter, just meat and bacon for my son, and for the rest of us, everything goes.

Burger and fries for dinner is not the healthiest meal, but it is a nice treat for everyone once in a while. It is a fairly simple meal and comes together quickly, which lets you share more quality time together.

Whatever you are having for dinner, I hope you enjoy it with your family, and enjoy your family as well.