These have got be the most god-awful ugly-ass burgers before they are cooked. I had to shield the view of the stove with my body so the small suspicious people with whom I live wouldn't catch a glimpse of the mashed up blueberries that are mixed in with the beef.Thankfully, they soon browned and lost the purpleish hue and once blanketed with sharp cheddar cheese, looked pretty normal:
And when presented on a bun with all the fixings, it would take a very sharp eye to spot anything amiss:
And the taste? My lord these are good. I took one bite and juice ran down my chin and I was sold on the fruit/meat concept. I buy lean grass-fed beef and it has good flavor, but it can get tough and dry pretty quickly when you cook it. 1/2 C of mashed up thawed frozen blueberries mixed into the meat made such a huge difference. One must also appreciate that (heh heh heh) I figured out a sneaky way to get fruit into the fructophobic kid.In case you are crediting me for unexpected creativity, I have to tell you I read about blueberry burgers at a fun blog called ACME Instant Food (updated: sadly the site appears to have been taken down but there are plenty of other recipes on the web; just google berry and burger and you get a ton!)
Here's my version:
Blueberry Burgers
1.25 lbs lean, grass-fed ground beef
1/2 C frozen blueberries, thawed and chopped fine, either with a knife or in a food processor.
1/2 t kosher salt
1/2 t fresh ground pepper
1/4 t garlic powder
Squish all ingredients together to incorporate the blueberry mush into the meaty mush. Don't get carried away and over squish it--just enough to get the job done. Shape into patties and cook on a grill, grill pan, or frying pan.
Top with whatever you like--cheese, mushrooms, onions, condiments...
Serve with LOTS of napkins.
