COOKED BURGERS
Level 3
Meat Pie Yurts
Serves 4
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: crock pot: 6-8 hours on low, or Dutch oven: about 4 hours on simmer
Serving dishes: circular, oven-proof soup bowls
After a hard day’s work, you can come home to broth that has a beefy depth to it and meat that is tender and flavorful but quite unique from chili or Shepard’s pie. Needless to say, the total effect of four miniature meat pies topped with golden brown mashed potato roofs is adorable. Even better, each meat pie is a complete, self-contained meal. Paired with a salad of mixed greens, it’s a really fun meal to serve on a chilly Sunday night.
* Dutch oven is just a fancy word for any heavy weight, enamel-coated pot with a tight fitting lid.
For the burger "yurts":
2 Tbsp. butter
4 strips raw bacon, finely chopped
1 cup chopped onion (about 2 small onions)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped mushrooms (your choice)
1 Tbsp. each: dry parsley, oregano and basil (if fresh, then finely chop)
1 14.5 oz. can peeled tomatoes, including juice
4 once cooked burgers, broken into small pieces
3 cups chicken or beef broth
½ cup dry white wine
1 bay leaf
1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms or shitakes (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
For the mashed potato "roofs":
6 once cooked potatoes, peeled and mashed (or 4 cups prepared potato buds)
1/2 cup half & half (or milk))
2 Tbsp. cream cheese
1 Tbsp. butter
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
2 Tbsp. butter
Salt and pepper to taste
- In a deep skillet, heat butter. When butter begins to brown slightly, add bacon, cooking until close to crispy.
- Add onions, garlic and celery and keep cooking until translucent.
- Add fresh mushrooms, and cook entire mixture over medium heat until mushrooms begin to soften and release their moisture.
- Empty mixture into crock pot. To the crock pot, add hamburger meat, tomatoes (including juice), broth, white wine, bay leaf, herbs, and dried mushrooms, blending well with a wooden spoon. Set crock pot to low. Cover tightly with lid, and forget about it. When done cooking, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a food processor, add potatoes, half & half, cream cheese, milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Pulse until smooth and liquid is incorporated.
- Ladle 1 cup of meat mixture into oven-proof soup bowls, leaving 1” for the potato mixture.
- Spoon mashed potatoes on top of the meat to cover. Sprinkle each “roof” with shredded cheese, and dot each “roof” with 1 teaspoon of butter.
- Place bowls on a cookie sheet or in a glass pan; bake 20 minutes until tops are golden brown.
Prepping Tip (for cutting bacon): Use scissors to snip bacon into little pieces, three strips at a time. It’s faster and easier.
Cooking Tip: If using a Dutch oven, preheat oven to 275 degrees. Empty all ingredients into pot; mix well and cover tightly. Place in oven for 6-8 hours.
