cheeseburgers

Yields about 8 burgers

1 lb. freshly ground chuck
1 lb. freshly ground sirloin
Salt
Black pepper
Cheese (preferably American, cheddar or muenster)
Hamburger buns (preferably brioche buns or sesame-seeded whole wheat buns)
Fixings (lettuce, tomatoes, onions (raw and/or caramelized), organic ketchup, mustard, homemade mayonnaise, homemade barbeque sauce, bacon, pickles, etc.)

Without handling the meat too much, gently combine chuck, sirloin, a very generous amount of salt and black pepper until well combined. Form mixture into 4 oz. patties that are not too thick. Gently press center of burger down to form a slight dimple.

Place patties on a parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate for at least half an hour. Alternatively, place baking sheet into freezer until patties are frozen through and then stack them in layers separated by parchment paper and place back in freezer. Thaw patties thoroughly in refrigerator before proceeding to cook.

Once ready to cook, preheat a gas or charcoal grill to high (if using charcoal, bank coals to one side to create a high-temperature zone and a low-temperature zone). Remove patties from refrigerator and place on grill (over high-temperature zone if using charcoal grill). Cook first side for about a minute and a half then rotate 90 degrees to obtain grill marks – cook for another minute and a half. Flip burgers and lower heat to low (or place over low-temperature zone of charcoal grill) and cook an additional 3 minutes with grill lid closed. Add slices of cheese to burgers and cook on low with lid closed until cheese has melted. While cheese melts, toast buns on upper rack of gas grill (if using charcoal, toast over low-temperature zone while burgers rest after their done cooking). Let burgers rest for 1-2 minutes then serve on buns with appropriate fixings.