Chibi's Slider Sampler

First of all, you don't have to make all three types of sliders if you don't want. I call it a slider sampler because there are three great varieties in this recipe for you. But if one doesn't sound so great to you, then just make more of another! Or even get brave and mix and match ingredients. That's the beauty of it. Still, I think all three of these tiny cheeseburgers are sure to please, and encourage you to give them a try! There's the Wholly Guacamole, the Bacon BBQ Bonanza, and Chibi's Classic Cheeseburger. We’re trying to limit our carbs lately, so I’ve prepared them sans rolls- but feel free to throw them on the buns of your choice, OR, make your own! Nothing beats the smell of freshly baked bread. I’ll be including a few recipes here on the blog very soon, so make sure to follow me and keep an eye out for them! The same goes for guacamole. There are store brands, but they really don't compare to freshly made. Serve these up with a nice side salad and enjoy!

Note:  The ingredients I use are ALWAYS all organic. I think hunting for a new ingredient or a replacement for something I really loved to cook with is exciting and fun. If you don't agree, check out my links for brands that I use to help get you started.

Yield: 9 Sliders

Click to Enlarge

Ingredients

1 lb grass-fed ground beef

Guacamole
¼ Small Onion

Crispy Fried Onions

2 TBSP Shredded Cheese

Kirkland Brand Organic No Salt Seasoning

Garlic Powder

Salt and Pepper to taste

2 Slices Bacon

½ Tomato

Lettuce
BBQ Sauce
3 Slices of Cheese (I like cheddar, but you can use your favorite! Whole foods sells a large variety of sliced organic cheeses.)

Ketchup (try to find it in glass- acidic things like tomatoes leech chemicals from plastic. Many of which are carcinogens! Yikes.)

Mustard

Step One: Prepare Your Toppings

Nothing is worse than making the perfect burger only to have it get cold while you’re busy scraping together your toppings as quickly as you can. In a pan, fry up two slices of bacon until they’re nice and crispy, then set aside to drain.

Slice up your ¼ onion into thin slices, and then sauté until translucent. If you’re feeling crazy, use the bacon grease to sauté your onions- it adds a little extra umph! Next, slice your tomato. You’ll need three slices. The rest you can snack on while you’re cooking or put away for another recipe (like guacamole!)

Grab your guacamole, BBQ sauce, ketchup, mustard, and lettuce (wash it first and pat try! You’ll need three small pieces.) Take your cheese slices and quarter them- you’ll end up with a few extra, you can eat them, I won’t tell.

Once your bacon is cool, crumble it up and divide it into six parts.

All right, we’re ready! Let’s get cooking!

Step Two: Season Your Meat

I don’t think a lot of people do this, so I don’t think you might realize how crucial this step is! Adding things to your beef before you cook it really ups the deliciousness factor in your finished product.

Start by making an indentation in your beef where you can throw all of your seasonings. Be warned, I like things to have a lot of flavor. So if you’re more on the, well, let’s face it- boring side- you can scale down any spices to taste. I put about ¼ tsp of Kirkland Brand Organic Salt Free Seasoning. This stuff is so yummy! It has 21 spices and veggies all mixed up in perfect proportions and ready to enjoy. I use it on almost everything, to be honest. It never hurts to add a little flavor! Then add ¼ tsp of garlic powder (Frontier spices has a nice line of organics, but buying bulk at your local health food store is going to be a lot less pricey then buying those little jars at the grocery store!) and some salt and pepper to taste.

Note: Table salt is a no-no. It’s not real salt. It’s an overly processed mess that they add aluminum to most times to help it pour more smoothly! Yowza. Sea salt is a step up, but most of them are still highly processed. My favorite is Himalayan Salt. It’s pink! And it comes from the Himalayan mountains. It’s so pure that it does not need refining at all. And guess what? You know how everyone is always telling you, watch your sodium, too much can be dangerous? When you’re eating REAL salt, it’s good for you! That’s right, good for you! Your body needs salt to survive. Eat the good stuff. Your body will thank you. You can usually snag it at stores like TJ Maxx that have a specialty food section, or buy it bulk online or in a higher end store like Whole Foods. Don’t get jipped at the supermarket- they sell a 3 ounce bottle for $10 when you can get 5lbs online for $20!

Throw in 2 TBSP of shredded cheese (I use mozzarella. Try whatever you like!) and 2 TBSP of Crispy Onions. The onions are optional, but they definitely make a big difference, so if you can find them, go for it! The brand I use is Golden Farms.

Step Three: Form Your Patties

That’s all for your seasonings. Preheat your cookware of choice over a medium high flame. I always cook with cast iron. It’s the safest way to go, it’s not as much of a hassle as they would like you to believe, and I promise- nothing tastes better than food in a cast iron pan. There is just something about it that makes stuff so much better. If you don’t have cast iron, that’s fine. Just promise you’re not using non-stick cookware, like Teflon! Did you know that people with birds can’t use non-stick cookware, because the birds will die? Have you ever heard of the canary in the coal mine? If it’s killing the birds, it’s killing you- it just might take a little longer. My advice, toss that garbage into the junk heap where it belongs and get yourself some quality cookware!

If you’d like to acquire some cast iron cookware, it’s really not too expensive. Surf the web. I have a bunch of Lodge pans that have served me well and are very affordable.

Now back to the recipe! Grab that meat and kneed it until everything’s incorporated and well distributed. Then divide it into 9 pieces and form it into little patties. Aren’t they just adorable???

Step Four: Grill On!

You can grill these on a real grill but it’s a bit tricky given their small size- you may lose some between the bars. A better bet is a frying pan or a griddle on the stove top. When your pan is hot (do drops of water sizzle when they hit it?) you’re ready to start cooking. Throw those little guys in the pan and let them cook for 2-3 minutes on one side. Grass fed beef is a little different than your standard grain fed beef, so don’t get lazy here. It has 50% less fat, and so it cooks about 30% faster than grain fed. Depending how you like your burgers, you’re going to want to keep an eye on them or they might end up well done! When the first side is well browned, flip them. It will take another 2-3 minutes on the other side.

Step Five: Cheese, Anyone?

If you like cheese, now is the time to add it. Once the burgers are flipped, place a ¼ slice of cheese on each and then cover (if you’d like, you don’t have to) to speed melting. When it’s been 2-3 minutes and when the cheese is nice and gooey, remove the patties from the heat and get them onto plates.

Step Six: Topping Time

Now for the part we’ve all been waiting for! You’re going to be making three of each kind of slider, so prepare in whatever order makes you happy. For the Wholly Guacamole, all you need is a large dollop of guacamole. It doesn’t sound all that exciting, but all the flavors of the guacamole are going to be all you need to complement your deliciously seasoned slider.

For the Bacon BBQ Bonanza, put one part bacon, add a spoonful of BBQ sauce (I really like the Organic Village brand, classic!) and then smother in 1/3 of your sautéed onions.

Finally, for Chibi’s Classic Cheeseburger, grab some ketchup and mustard (or mayo if you’d like. I’m going to have a recipe for that up soon as well!) and top with a tomato slice, a lettuce leaf, and bacon.

Arrange on a plate with your side salad and enjoy the oohs and awws of your adoring family at the utter cuteness of their lunch!