Red Wine Burgers with Mushrooms, Goat Cheese and a Tomato Salad

The summer is almost upon us and you know what that means…time to clean out the ol’ grill and put it to use again cooking up some tasty grilled burgers and veggies. I started my tomatoes very early this year so I was able to start harvesting them mid-May, and decided to have a little “welcome back, summer!” dinner by making a small salad and having some rich and delicious burgers made with the prizedFlannery beef blend and Troublemaker wine. I was very intrigued by the two because they’re both “blends”of various different types of ingredients. I used the wine within the burger patties, as well as some diced mushrooms that I sautéed prior to incorporating them into the patty mixture. The result was a resoundingly rich and deeply flavorful burger that tastes of the old French classic,boeuf bourguignon, (beef and mushrooms in a red wine sauce), but in a simpler and more manageable form.

Now, let’s talk about this creative ground beef blend. Flannery beef is owned by Bryan Flannery, a second generation butcher with a passion for prime cuts of beef, and he lets you pick your own cuts of meat to create a specialized ground beef blend. The blend I used was 25% Prime Chuck, 25% Wagyu Short Rib, 25% Prime Hanger Steak, and 25% Prime Rib Cap Fat Blend. In other words, it was a very, very rich mix of beef, and it paired very, very well with the Troublemaker wine that itself is a blend of 50% Syrah, 20% Grenache, 10% Mourdevre, 10% Zinfandel, and 10% Petite Syrah. Syrah and Malbecs are my two favorite wine varietals, and this blend carried the same warmth, spice, and fruity undertones that I love about them.

Those same flavors paired incredibly well with the richness of the beef, the earthiness of the sautéed mushrooms, and the tang of the melting goat cheese. This was my first time incorporating red wine into a burger patty, and it tasted just as amazing within the burger as it does withinboeuf bourguignon. (Basically, you really can’t go wrong pairing red wine, beef, and mushrooms together). And if you wanted to get extra-mushroomy, you could always toss a portobello on the grill with the patties and serve it atop the burger as well. (The same goes for a thick slice of sweet onion). Paired with a tall glass of red wine, this meal was quite the way to shout a big hello to the summer months and reacquaint myself with our little charcoal saucer grill. I’ve missed you, old friend.

Red Wine Burgers with Mushrooms, Goat Cheese and a Tomato Salad

Ingredients

Tomato Salad

4
heirloom tomatoes
1
tablespoon
fresh pineapple sage or basil
chopped
1
teaspoon
salt
1/2
teaspoon
black pepper
2
tablespoons
olive oil
1
tablespoon
vinegar

Red Wine & Mushroom Burgers with Goat Cheese

1/2
cup
shitaki mushrooms
finely chopped
4
tablespoons
olive oil
1
lb
ground beef
3
tablespoons
red wine
1/2
teaspoon
Worcestershire sauce
3/4
teaspoon
salt
1/4
teaspoon
black pepper
6
ounces
goat cheese
3
buns
3 to
mato slices
optional
3
lettuce leaves
optional

Instructions

Get the coals lit on your barbecue grill about 45 minutes before you want to start cooking the burgers. The coals are ready when they are grey and glowing red.
First, make the salad. Cut the tomatoes into quarters and toss them with the remaining ingredients. Set aside.
In a medium-sized frying pan, heat one tablespoon of the olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced mushrooms and sauté until they turn a warmer shade of brown and soften a bit, about 6-10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, mushrooms (and the oil you cooked them in), red wine, Worchestershire sauce, salt, black pepper, and the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil until evenly distributed. Divide the mixture into three evenly-sized balls and shape into patties.
Place the patties on the grill and cook for about 5 minutes on each side for medium-well done. Note that the cooking time will depend on the thickness of your patties and the heat of your grill, so keep a close eye on them.
When cooked to your preferred doneness, remove them from the heat and assemble the burger with a 2 ounce slice of goat cheese, a tomato slice, a lettuce leaf, and a bun. Serve immediately with the tomato salad and an accompanying glass of red wine, such as the Troublemaker blend.

Recipe Notes

Notes: Flannery beef and Hope Family Wines were kind enough to provide me with a pound of beef and a bottle of wine to use for this post at no charge, but all opinions expressed are 100% me!