50/50 Burgers: A Love Story

I've recently made a few posts on my Facebook page, From Farm To Table, about my 50/50 burgers and have had some inquiries on how to make them.  So, here we goooooo!

I stumbled into 50/50 burgers last summer when I NEVER wanted to see another summer squash in my CSA box again.  But alas, they kept coming.  "What on earth can I do with all this?" I thought.  "Maybe I can hide them in some grass fed ground beef in burger form, similar to my meatloaf."

So out came the Cuisinart with the shredder attachment and in went all those beautiful green and yellow summer squashes.  As much shredded squash as I could cram in, one pound of grass fed ground beef, and salt and pepper to taste all went into a mixing bowl.  I kneaded them together, as if it were bread, until mixed throughly.

The burgers were spectacular!

Since then I've experimented with all different types of veg.  The more veg the better!  I love to put in whatever is seasonal.  This is a great trick to use if you have some veg leftover before you get your next CSA box, you have an abundance in your garden, you want to get some more vegetables in your diet, or you'd just like make 6-8 burgers out of that pound of grass fed ground beef!

Last night I made my 50/50 burgers with a bunch of beet greens, stems removed (I don't like the texture), and half each of white and red onions, both chopped.  Add in one pound of grass fed ground beef and sea salt and chili garlic sauce to taste.  (I tend to shy away from black pepper and use red pepper instead -- and I used to abhor spicy, too!).  I kneaded all the ingredients together for about 3 to 5 minutes until all the veg is incorporated in with the ground beef.  It might seem like this is more than the ground meat can hold.  But if it sticks, it fits!

I also made my first grass fed lamb burger the other day.  I put in a ton of fresh mint from my garden and pine nuts in it.  It was soooooo good! Play with it!  I've used chard, kale, beet greens, basil, mint, various fresh herbs, peppers, squash, garlic, and many many more.  All are delish!

Have fun, enjoy, and please let me know what you've tried and how it came out!