Liven Up Your Brunch: Bloody Mary Burgers

You love brunch, right?

So do we. 

I'll confess that we don't make it at home very often, but that's because there are so many amazing places here in Milwaukee to grab awesome eats during the brunch hour.

And while the food varies wildly from restaurant to restaurant, there is always one thing you'll find at a good Milwaukee brunch: A Bloody Mary.

In fact, it's gotten a little bit crazy around here -- with all sorts of restaurants competing for attention with their crazy Bloody Mary concoctions.

One of the biggest -- and reportedly the best -- is the Sobelman's Bloody Mary.

This behemoth of a brunch cocktail comes complete with 13 total garnishes, including celery, onion, Brussel sprout, lemon, pickle, shrimp, mushroom, cherry tomato, olive, cheese, sausage, asparagus and green onion. Oh, and a bacon cheeseburger slider. Once you toss in the Sprecher Brewing Company beer chaser (a Wisconsin tradition), the drink really becomes an entire meal in itself.

So, if Sobelman's can put a burger into their Bloody, we figured we'd put a Bloody Mary into our burger.

Tender ground chuck is flavored with Worcestershire, celery seed and horseradish, grilled, and then topped with a rich vodka tomato sauce that pulls in all the sweet and salty qualities of a great Bloody.

Because it's brunch -- and because they're the perfect size for a burger, we planted these puppies atop toasted English muffins with the prerequisite lettuce and tomato. And bacon, of course!

The garnish is completely optional -- but in Wisconsin it’s tradition to serve a Bloody Mary with a beer chaser. So, we recommend serving up these burgers with a nice cold beer on the side. 

Top with a sunny side up fried egg for the ultimate brunch burger experience.

Bloody Mary Burgers

There are more great recipes where this one came from! We created this dish as part of our work with the Go Bold with Butter blog, where you'll find an amazing collection of delicious recipes using real butter.

©BURP!

The Cream City Cheeseburger

When you hear the term “Cream City,” you think it’s a reference to dairy, right?
Well, would you believe me if I told you it was really a reference to bricks?

It just so happens that the red clay so prevalent along the western shore of Lake Michigan turns a creamy white color after it’s been fired. And since many of the buildings in Milwaukee are constructed of locally produced brick, it got to a point (beginning in the 1870’s) that visitors couldn’t help but notice that the buildings in the city were virtually all cream-colored. Hence the city became known as the "Cream City," and the bricks, in turn, became universally known as "Cream City bricks."

Now, this story might be neither here nor there were it not for a recently developed recipe that we named after our beloved “Cream City.”


Although the city of Milwaukee’s rich heritage has been influenced by many cultures and traditions it seems best known for its German ties. During the middle and late 19th century German immigrants fleeing the Revolution of 1848 discovered both inexpensive land and freedom on the banks of Lake Michigan. And their settlement created a culture that washed over the city and gained widespread influence, particularly with regard to its food.

Nowhere is this more evident than along Old World Third Street, a three-block historic landmark zone just north of downtown. The city’s past is brought to life in the detailed facades of the 19th-century European–style buildings lining this cobblestone street, home to Usinger’s Sausage, Mader’s Restaurant, Wisconsin Cheese Mart, The Spice House, and the Old German Beer Hall

This burger is a tribute to all that makes Milwaukee, the Cream City, famous.

It begins with a simple burger made from fresh Wisconsin-made bratwurst, removed from its casing, shaped into a patty, and grilled. The burger is topped with beer-braised onions and a liberal serving of delicious beer cheese sauce made with Springside beer cheddar and Lakefront Brewery’s Riverwest Stein lager.

 Even the pretzel roll on which it is served has a German ancestry, with the word “pretzel” being derived from the German word “bretzel.” Because the dough contains no shortening, eggs, or milk, pretzels traditionally kept well, and their saltiness made them a favorite accompaniment to alcoholic beverages like German beer. These days, the Pretzilla pretzel roll is made by Miller Baking Company, an 88-year-old Milwaukee-based business known for its traditional German rye bread.

For the full Cream City experience, enjoy this burger on a warm summer night washed down with a cold beer and followed by a scoop of delicious frozen custard.

The Cream City Cheeseburger

We're pleased to say that this recipe is being featured on Wisconsin Cheese Talk, along with a series of other delicious recipes.  Check it out!


References Related to "The Cream City"
Milwaukee Architecture, Dr. Steven Ryer
Seeing the Light: Lighthouses of the western Great Lakes

©BURP! Where Food Happens

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):   

• Visit the More Grilled Cheese Please page, take a look at the sandwiches listed and let us know which one is your favorite. 

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.

©BURP! Where Food Happens

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