NATIONAL CHEESEBURGER DAY 9/18-Delicious Recipe by Jessica Merchant

The day burger lovers have been waiting for is coming up on Friday, September 18. We have a fabulous recipe by Jessica Merchant, author of "The Pretty Dish" for our readers. Gather your ingredients and plan a burgerlicious day. Merchant's "Caramelized Onion Smash Burgers" are loaded with flavor, smothered with cheese and caramelized onions, topped with garlic herb aioli and served on a St. Pierre brioche bun.

CARAMELIZED ONION SMASH BURGERS (Yield 4 People) Total cooking time is 1 hour

Caramelized Onions Ingredients:

2 medium sweet onions, thinly sliced

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

pinch of salt

Method:

Thinly slice the onions. Heat a large skillet over medium-low heat and add the butter. Once melted, add in the onions with a good pinch of salt. Stir to combine everything. Cook, stirring often, for 20 to 30 minutes, until the onions caramelize. I love a classic, slowly caramelized onion, but if you'd like to speed up the process, you can add a pinch of sugar while cooking. You can also make these ahead of time and store them sealed in the fridge, submerged in a bit of olive oil.

Burger Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef, approximately 93%

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 tablespoon canola or vegetable, or any high heat oil

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

4 slices sharp cheddar cheese, or your favorite cheese

leafy green lettuce, for the burgers

4 Brioche Burger Buns

Note: Jessica recommends St. Pierre buns for their light texture and fine flavor. They are the ideal bun for your burgers.

Method:

Divide the beef into 4 equal parts. I like to form mine into balls so they smash into a more circular burger.

Heat a large cast iron skillet or your grill griddle over medium-high heat. You want it to be hot, so heat it for at least 5 to 10 minutes.

Once it's hot and your burgers are ready to go, quickly brush the skillet with oil and place half of the butter on the skillet. It will smoke, so work quickly! Place one of the balls of beef on the skillet and smash it down with a burger press, spatula, mason jar, etc - once or twice. You want it to be about 1/2 inch in thickness (or a little less) and want to try and smash it only 2 or 3 times. Season it with salt and pepper and repeat with the rest of the beef. Cook the burgers for 2 to 3 minutes and then flip, season with salt on the other side and cook for 2 minutes more. Add the cheese and let it melt for just 60 seconds or so.

Garlic Herb Aioli Ingredients:

½ cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons chopped basil

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 tablespoon chopped rosemary

2 garlic cloves, minced

freshly cracked black pepper

Method:

Whisk together the ingredients until combined. You can make this ahead of time and store it in the fridge.

Here's a special Burger Cooking Tip: By smashing or pressing the beef patty on the cooking surface you're actually getting the most flavor. It's because when the burger meets the heat, the amino acids and sugar react resulting in delicious flavor and color. They refer to this as the Malliard reaction.

To learn more about Jessica Merchant, who is also behind the popular blog "How Sweet Eats" and to follow her on social media, please visit: https://www.howsweeteats.com/

Photo Credit: "How Sweet Eats"

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