Sliders

If you follow me on Instagram you had a little sneak peek at this week's post. OK, so maybe I posted the pic last week and maybe I promised you a post last week. But alas, life happened. And I have to say it's been a busy life I've lead these last few weeks. Today was a much needed day off that was preempted with an impromptu snow day, woohoo! So a four day weekend was exactly what the doctor ordered. With that said, I'm backing up my promise to share this awesome recipe. 

Recently, I have decided to slowly introduce red meat back into my diet. It has been about 15 years since I've regularly eaten red meat. I do not count the occasional Big Mac enjoyed throughout my college years. I have a weakness for the secret sauce! It was not an easy decision to enter this particular food product back into my diet. I have educated myself on what the beef industry does to our planet and to our bodies. I didn't want to be placing something toxic in my body. I'm trying to detoxify here people. But I did know, that my body was craving red meat and there was a reason for it. 

This lead me to a pact that if I was going to eat red meat, I better know the source and know that it is grass fed. I myself do not claim to be an expert in nutrition, but being in the health and wellness business it is my job to be educated. So if you're interested in why I made this decision, here are some great resources on why grass fed is better: Chris Kresser, NPR, Food Revolution 

So as I introduce this real food back into my diet, I want to think of ways to highlight the meat and what better way than a good ole' American Hamburger. Keeping the portion size right I made sliders. Take note, grass fed beef will cook faster so be sure to watch closely to achieve desired temperature. It is slightly chewier than your corn fed beef so you do not want to over cook. 

Sliders with Sautéed Mushrooms, Onions, a Pomegranate Reduction and Bleu Cheese

(makes 6 sliders)

1 pound grass fed ground beef

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 large onion, sliced thinly

1 package sliced white button mushrooms

1 Tbsp. pomegranate molasses

1 Tbsp. white wine vinegar

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided 

Crumbled Blue Cheese to top sliders 

Small French Rolls, split and slightly toasted 

Season ground beef with salt, pepper, and thyme. Form into six small meatball sized balls. Grill on grill pan for about 3-4 minutes each side. On second side, uses panini press to press into burgers. Heat 1 Tbsp. butter in a separate sauté pan, add mushrooms and onions and cook for about 7-10 minutes or until vegetables develop a deep brown caramelized color. Remove vegetables from sauté pan. In the same pan, add 1 Tbsp. butter, pomegranate molasses, and vinegar cook for 2-3 minutes stirring consistently until mixture reduces by half. Assemble sliders with burger, mushrooms/onions, bleu cheese and top with pomegranate reduction. Enjoy! 

If you're gluten free eliminate the rolls and serve over a bed of lettuce. If you notice I drizzled a bit of the reduction over my salad and it was scrumptious. Well it's back to work tomorrow!! Until next time...