Rueben Burgers from Restaurant Impossible

I was watching Restaurant Impossible this week and saw this burger and knew I just had to have it. And voila...there was the recipe on the internet. What did we ever do without Google? They were definitely worth the search...love these burgers!

Ingredients

Dressing:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup catsup
• 1/4 cup pickle relish
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce, such as Tabasco
• 2 cups sauerkraut, drained
• Grapeseed oil, for cooking
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Burgers:

• 1 pound ground beef, 80/20 blend
• 1 pound corned beef, ground
• 1 pound ground pork
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 slices Swiss or Gruyere cheese
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Burger Construction:

• 2 tablespoons butter, cut into pats
• 4 good-quality kaiser rolls

Directions

For the dressing: In a bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, catsup, relish, vinegar, celery seed and hot sauce, mixing well. Then blend with the sauerkraut and hold.

For the burgers: Preheat a grill to 350 degrees F.

In a bowl, blend the beef, corned beef and pork by hand, mixing well until evenly and thoroughly mixed. Next, portion the meat into 4 equal patties and sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper on both sides. Grill the burgers on the first side for 5 to 6 minutes, then flip and repeat grilling on the second side.

While the burgers are cooking, in a saute pan over high heat, add grapeseed oil, allow to heat until smoking then reduce the heat to medium. Next, add the dressed sauerkraut and cook until browned, 3 to 4 minutes, stirring with a spatula during the process. Once cooked, add one-quarter of the dressed kraut on the top of the burgers, and then top with the cheese.

To build the burgers: Heat a pan over medium-high heat, add the butter to the pan and brown the rolls one at a time, repeating the process until all the rolls have been browned. Then place the dressed burgers on the bottom buns, finish with the bun top and serve.

Runza

Ingredients

• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 2 eggs
• FILLING:
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 2 small onions, chopped
• 4 cups chopped cabbage
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, place 1-3/4 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Heat milk, water and shortening to 120 degrees F-130 degrees F. Pour over flour mixture; add the eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low until blended. Beat 3 additional minutes on high. Stir in the remaining flour; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes Place dough in a greased bowl; cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
2. Meanwhile, brown beef and onions in a skillet. Add the cabbage, salt and pepper; cook until cabbage is wilted. Punch dough down; roll into 12/6-in. squares. Top each square with 1/3 cup meat mixture. Fold into triangles. Pinch edges tightly to seal and place on greased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve hot.

Natchitoches Meat Pies

1/2 pound lean ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
5-6 cloves garlic, minced
2 plus teaspoons Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning or similar Cajun or Creole seasoning, to taste
Tabasco sauce to taste (start with about 1/4 teaspoon)
1 (14.5 ounce) can beef broth
Pie crust, tripled
1 egg
1/4 cup cold water

1. In a large skilled, brown ground beef and ground pork, breaking the meat into small pieces. When it's about halfway cooked, drain excess fat (if necessary) and then add green and red peppers, onion, celery, and garlic. Cook until vegetables are tender and onions are translucent.
2. Add 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning and 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco. Add beef broth and bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Cook for about 20 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated. Season with additional Cajun or Tabasco if necessary, keeping in mind the the seasonings will mellow in the pie. You can refrigerate this mixture for 3-4 days before baking the pies.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
4. Prepare pie crust and roll the entire ball onto a floured surface. For large (meal-sized) pies, use a bowl that's about 6 inches across the top; just invert the bowl onto the dough and trace a knife around it to cut the dough. For smaller, appetizer-sized pies, use a round cookie cutter.
5. Place about 1/4 cup of the meat mixture onto one half of the dough circle for meal-sized pies (1-2 t for appetizer pies), keeping about 1/2 inch to 1 inch from the edges. Fold the other side over and gently pinch the edges shut.
6. Place prepared pies onto baking sheet. In a small bowl, whisk together egg and cold water and brush over the pies. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

You can prepare the pies through the stop of brushing with the egg wash, place on baking sheet and freeze, and then transfer to ziplock bags. When ready, bake at 400 until the pies are golden brown, about 40-45 minutes.

Meatball Stew

(feeds 25)
1/4 c. Onion-- Saute in 4 T. oil
1 1/2 c. Bread Crumbs -- soak in 2/3 c. Milk
Add to 3 lbs. Hamburger
2 t. Salt
3 eggs
Mix well-- refrigerate 1 hour

1 1/2 c. chopped celery
3 large onions, chopped fine
6 c. potato cubes
9 carrots, sliced
5 tsp. salt
Pepper
8 c. Water
3 cans petite diced tomatoes
Cook vegetables 1/2 hour. Add meatballs and cook 1/2 hour longer.