Burger

Cubanos are traditionally served on a sweet roll. The orange juice and honey are used to hit that sweet note here.

Serve the Seared Peppers and Onions (page 46) with any or all of these Fajita Burgers. They’re hot! Wrap the pepper and onion topping in a warm, soft tortilla with a burger, or pile a quarter of the mixture on each plate and garnish with a little cilantro. Top with a burger of your choice.

Wow! Is this one a looker!

This sammy is so hearty you won’t think to ask “where’s the beef?”

When they’re made with 99 percent lean ground turkey breast, these burgers are a figure-friendly way to enjoy a sausage sandwich.

Wade, my good friend and coworker for many years, joined me at a fancy restaurant in Las Vegas in honor of our friend Lucky’s birthday. He saw me cringe as he politely asked our server to request that the chef prepare a “Chicken Caesar” for him. The broad menu of culinary creations just struck him as too complicated for a late-night-following-a-long-workday meal. I rolled my eyes and the server gave a bit of a twitch. In hindsight, I have rarely been so ashamed of my own behavior: me, an Upstate New York blue-collar girl, suddenly acting too haughty to even sit with someone who would request a Chicken Caesar outside of a highway pit stop. Chef Eric Klein at SW at the Wynn Las Vegas Hotel made Wade a fabulous free-range roast chicken Caesar salad. Eric was neither shocked nor insulted by the simple request. Instead, he made a humble visit to the table to remind us all of the Golden Rule of food: the customer is always right. Wade, this burger is for you. Viva Chicken Caesar!

Wild Alaskan canned salmon is a great staple to keep on hand—it’s packed with good nutrition and calcium. This is my favorite way to use it, but also try it scrambled up with eggs and sweet peas, or tossed with some cream, pasta, and fresh dill or tarragon. It’s so versatile!

Bacon—what’s not to like? It’s smoky flavored salt and fat! Yum-o! In fact, the only way to improve on bacon is to wrap it up with beef and top it with cheese, then open wide! You gotta be more hungry than tired for this one!

A friend recommended that I add a little fresh dill and lime juice to my regular Bloody Mary concoction. I gave it a shot and it was great! The dill and lime punched up all the flavors without taking them over. I’ve applied that trick to these burgers.

Here’s another one of my Better Burgers. This one comes out looking so impressive. I would serve it even when I entertain (were I not so exhausted!).

I am the self-proclaimed “Queen of Burgers”—this is probably my 140th burger recipe! Ground meat is so versatile and accessible. Who doesn’t love a good burger? This one combines lean ground turkey breast with spicy horseradish, sharp Cheddar, and tangy cranberry sauce. Yum-o!

The fried asparagus is a perfect use for the thick stalks that you find from time to time in the market.

Serve with barbecue chips and oil-and-vinegar dressed slaw. So much better for you than wings, you could eat two!