Friday, April 15, 2011

Over the Top: The Grilled Cheesus Bison Burger & a Cheesy Giveaway

UPDATE & REQUEST:  We entered our Cheesus Burger into Dude Foods Ultimate Grilled Cheese competition -- and we're a finalist.  Please consider taking the time to put in your vote for our behemoth creation by clicking here. You will have to ‘Like’ DudeFoods.com (if you don't already) and then you can ‘Like’ our grilled cheese. Thank you!

Some of you may already know that April is National Grilled Cheese Month.  We have no idea who decides these things, but we heartily approve, as it gives us the perfect opportunity to play with one of our favorite ingredients, Wisconsin cheese.

Needless to say, when we heard that Laura Werlin, James Beard Award-winning author of five books about cheese, was coming out with a new tome just in time for Grilled Cheese Month, we were seriously excited to check it out.  Even better, our friends at the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board offered to send us a copy to review.

We drooled from the moment we opened Grilled Cheese, Please!, which features 50 amazing grilled cheese sandwiches -- from inventive savory classics like Double Cheddar and Tomato Jam to decidedly delicious dessert worthy creations like The Sweetest Thing, a grilled marscapone, raspberry, and chocolate sandwich with slices of melted brie.

Not only is the book a virtual hotbed of inspiration for sandwich lovers like us, but Laura really knows her stuff.  Her grilled cheese tips, which include simple suggestions like using grated cheese to ensure even meltage, and covering the sandwiches during cooking (which locks in the heat and helps the cheese to melt even faster), really make the difference when it comes to creating the perfect grilled cheese.

You probably won't be surprised when we tell you that we didn't waste much time before we started trying out recipes from the book.  Peef was feeling particularly inspired when we came across a behemoth sandwich containing not only TWO grilled cheese sandwiches, but also a burger.  It was so crazy, we just had to try it out for ourselves.
 
And so we present one of the most outrageously monstrous grilled cheese concepts known to man:  The Grilled Cheesus Burger.  Inspired by the grilled cheese-hamburger combination created by Portland Oregon's Grilled Cheese Grill, our version of this delectable monstrosity is comprised of a perfectly seasoned bison burger cradled between two delicious grilled cheese sandwiches.
 The top sandwich features melted smoked Wisconsin gouda and caramelized onions, while the bottom incorporates more smoked gouda nestled between slices of spicy homemade dill pickles. The burger itself is made from locally raised ground bison, char-grilled and embellished with ketchup, a swipe of dijon mustard and topped with locally grown mixed greens from Milwaukee's own Growing Power.


Grilled Cheesus Bison Burger

Since we figured you'd either be appalled or drooling by the end of the post, we decided to give you a chance to take on your own personal grilled cheese project.

Thanks to our friends at the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, we're pleased to announce that we'll be giving away copies of Laura Werlin's book, Grilled Cheese, Please! to five (5) lucky readers.

For your chance to win, please read the instructions below. Be sure to leave a comment for each entry (and leave your email address if you don't have it listed on your blog/contact info).   Please note that this contest is limited to readers in the United States & Canada. Contest ends 4/29/11 at NOON (CST).

Mandatory entry (must be completed or no other entries will count):   
Extra entries – please leave a comment for each additional entry, letting us know you completed it
  • Give us a "like" on Facebook!
  • Follow @WisconsinCheese on twitter
  • Use the following text to tweet about this giveaway (please leave a link to your tweet in the comments for credit):  
    • Grilled Cheese Please! book giveaway - #win your copy @Burp_blog:  Ends 4/29 #giveaway
NOTE:  The five winners will be chosen randomly and announced on Facebook on the afternoon of 4/30 .  The winner will be emailed separately to arrange for mailing of the prize pack.

Full Disclosure: This giveaway is sponsored by the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.  Although we were sent a free copy of the Grilled Cheese Please! book for the purpose of this review and giveaway, all opinions expressed in this review are our own.

Creative Commons License
Want more? Read Lo's latest ruminations at FOODCrush, her Milwaukee Magazine blog.

42 comments:

  1. Holy hell. I went for option B, the drooling.

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  2. Um wow. That should win a world record or something.

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  3. Never had bison... boo hoo. If it's anything like venison, count me in! Grilled cheese is amazing any way you serve it up if you ask me. My all time fav grilled cheese sammy is with 'maters and hot peppers!

    OMG smoked Gouda and onions... Love the photos too

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  4. Appalled? Ya. Appalled that I don't have one of those in front of me right now. And you actually want me to choose a favorite...ain't happenin' - love them all. I have the book Great Grilled Cheese, so I don't technically need to enter this contest. But if I should win, you won't hear any complaints.

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  5. p.s. I know that I didn't follow the directions there. I'm a rule breaker :D

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  6. My first thoughts were that that is obscene, but i am sitting here on a sunny day. If i was presented this on a cold winters day i don't think i would be complaining!

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  7. Love all the comments guys! Be sure to visit the MORE GRILLED CHEESE page and let us know which sandwich listed there is your favorite. I have FIVE books to give away, after all :)

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  8. ooooh, I'd have to go with double cheddar and tomato jam!! we made tomato jam a couple summers ago - SO good!

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  9. Wow looks absolutely yummy!hmmm so cravin to try this!

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  10. I could imagine how happy you were receiving the book! This bison burger is really making me drool :-)

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  11. I always wonder who decides these food days and months, too. I mean, can I declare it National Bottom of the Crisper Drawer Day? NOT that cheese doesn't need a whole month - I certainly agree! And, a burger between two grilled cheeses (cheesus)? WOW!

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  12. the chips and guac one does not look appealing to me but the creamy, cheesy and smokey croissant looks great!
    ykatrina at hotmail dot com

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  13. I love your grilled cheese! My favorite from the More Grilled Cheese Please page would have to be the Chips and Guacamole Grilled Cheese since I'm a sucker for anything with avocado.

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  14. Cheese, Chips and Guacamole Sandwich sounds amazing!
    cassandra@aubut.net

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  15. Follow wisconsin Cheese on Twitter -@tally2525
    cassandra@aubut.net

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  16. Ok Lo since you must know, my fav is the Mozzarella with Crispy Prosciutto and Broccoli Rabe.

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  17. I like you on facebook!! I would so love to win one of these, grilled cheese is my favorite! thanks for the opportunity!

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  18. Haha, I thought that looked familiar! Before the Grilled Cheese Grill there was another cart here in Portland (Brunch Box) that makes the "I Can Haz Cheezburger," which is the same as the Grilled Cheesus but with Texas toast instead of bread. Simply amazing.

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  19. My favorite is the Chips and Guacamole
    Grilled Cheese!
    andreapaetkau at gmail dot com

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  20. I follow @WisconsinCheese on twitter! (@ampaetka)
    andreapaetkau at gmail dot com

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  21. Tweet! http://twitter.com/#!/ampaetka/status/60576985071620096
    andreapaetkau at gmail dot com

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  22. Cheesus, indeed. I’d have to detach my jaw to take a bite outa that!

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  23. Oh my. That looks so outrageous! TWO grilled cheese sandwiches for buns? The sandwiches alone would be great and now you shove a burger between them. I haven't had good bison in almost a year (since my Wyoming trip). WANT WANT WANT even if I prbably have to apply this directly to my hips.

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  24. I am just curious where the "cheesus" comes from...we have an iside joke with some friends of ours using that word...but I am sure it is not the same reason.

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  25. Jenn - Actually, I was going to write about the name in the post, but forgot. Matt Breslow, of the Grilled Cheese Grill actually named his sandwich the "Cheesus Burger" since it came to be around the Christmas holiday and this behemoth burger was... well maybe fitting of the name. So, your inside joke probably isn't far off. We kept the name to be true to the original...

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  26. The Wisconsinite sounds delicious! Maybe it's because I am partial due to the fact that I am a born and bred Wisconsinite myself. :)

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  27. I already follow Wisconsin cheese on Twitter.

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  28. I tweeted about the giveaway!

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  29. WOWOWOW!!! That looks amazing. I have died and gone to heaven

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  30. ...and I am following Wisconsin Cheese on twitter! (@spabettie)

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  31. I'm liking the Mozzarella with Crispy Prosciutto and Broccoli Rabe.

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  32. The Wisconsonite is my favorite!

    candjpalmer at wyoming dot com

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  33. I tweeted, and please forgive my ineptness, but here is what I think is a link to my tweet? :)

    http://twitter.com/#!/spabettie/status/62052686182359040

    I promise I tweeted! <3

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  34. That Wisconsinite sounds pretty amazing!

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  35. I love the look of the Creamy Cheesy and Smoky Croissant

    momtodc(at)gmail(dot)com

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  36. I follow wisconsinCheese on twitter as edmontonjb

    momtodc(at)gmail(dot)com

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  37. http://eatwisconsincheese.com/recipes/MozzarellaProsciuttoBroccoliRabe.aspx is my pick
    I also voted for you :)
    aunteegem@yahoo.com
    thanks

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  38. I really like thanks for the chance to win Creamy, Cheesy &
    Smoky Croissant thanks for the chance to win eaglesforjack@gmail.com

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