June 1, 2017 Plume Ridge Bottle Shop

O-Pah! Burgers for Father's Day

Opah! Father's Day is quickly approaching and it's time to start thinking about how to surprise Dad. Burgers are usually a sure way to please the man of the house and takes little effort. These delicious Greek style burgers are packed with olives, stuffed with Feta cheese and topped with homemade Tzatziki dressing. Of course if Dad does not like lamb or you do not have time to make homemade dressing, you can always cut corners or make modifications with this recipe. Making sliders can be a fun way to eat these burgers for the whole family. Since it is Father's Day, don't forget to spoil Dad with a bottle of Bordeaux or Greek Red wine. You can't go wrong with this combination.*Makes 2 Burgers

Burger Ingredients:

1 lb Ground Lamb or Beef
1/2 cup Kalamata Olives (pitted and roughly chopped)
1 Shallot, diced
½ cup of Fresh Mint, diced
2 tbsp of Worcestershire Sauce
2 tbsp Olive Oil
24 oz Feta
Salt & Pepper
Ciabatta Rolls
Garlic Powder *optional
Burger Toppings: Green Leaf or Butter Lettuce, sliced tomato and red onion.

Burger Instructions:

Combine the diced Kalamata Olives, diced Shallots, Worcestershire Sauce, diced Mint and desired amount of salt and pepper into the meat while mixing evenly.
Segment the meat and roll into 8oz (1/2 lb) balls. Using wax paper, place your meat ball on one side and fold the wax paper over the ball. Lightly press the ball till the meat starts to swell out.
Cut the feta into smaller pieces and place the cheese in the middle of the meat ball, pressing into the meat. Refold the wax paper over and reshape the patty to cover back over the cheese. Seamlessly covering the cheese will prevent it from leaking out during cooking time.
After the raw patties are stuffed with feta, refrigerate them for at least 30 minutes. These can be made in advance.
Cook the patties on the grill or in a grill pan with 1 tbsp of olive oil. To achieve medium rare, cook the patties for about 3 minutes on each side. For medium, 4 minutes on each side should suffice. Do not cut into the burger to check on the cooking, you will loose the cheese and the meat juices.
Slice the buns and brush the insides with olive oil. Sprinkle the buns lightly with granulated garlic and place on the grill or broil in the oven till golden and toasty.

Tzatziki Ingredients:

5oz container of Plain Non Fat Yogurt (regular, not Greek )
1 Large Garlic Clove, minced
1/2 of a small Red Onion
1/4 of an English Cucumber (peeled)
1 tbsp of Dried Dill
1 Tsp of Salt
1 Tsp of Pepper
1 Tbsp of Olive Oil
1 Tbsp of Lemon Juice

Tzatziki Instructions:

On a large box grater (usually used for cheese), grate the cucumber and onion over a plate using the side with the large holes. You will want to keep the juices that collect on the plate below.
Mix all the ingredients together.
Chill in the fridge until ready to use, 30 minutes minimum.

Assembling the Burger:With your homemade Tzatziki sauce and toasted Ciabatta, assemble this burger how you like! Here's how we assembled ours: Bottom of toasted bun, lettuce leaf, tomato slices, patty, red onion slices, Tzatziki dressing and bun top. Enjoy!

This recipe has been contributed by Leo Coulourides, our Culinary Specialist.