so meaty.

hello and welcome to another monday! points if you know where i got my title from. i love joel mchale and the soup.

nothing new and exciting to report on my end today, it was just another day at the office. i did get to catch a glimpse of sunshine mid-afternoon because i had to run an errand for my boss. that was nice. i forget that between the hours of 8:30 AM (okay, let’s be honest.. closer to 9) and 4:30 PM there is actually daylight.. and life.. and things happening. i am usually stuck in my windowless office at the window company i work for, hidden from the light of day. yes, i see the irony.

anyway, it was a super sunshiny day today and after basking in the sunlight during my errand, i realized it was a perfect day to bust out the grill!  but, of course, first things first.

when i got home i was a responsible human and headed to the gym to complete a livefit workout. i randomly pulled one of the workouts from phase 3 because i didn’t feel like making up my own routine today. this one was a back, arms, abs, & cardio routine (day 58.) i made it through the full 30 minutes of sprints (30 seconds sprint/30 seconds rest) and even did five minutes at 11 MPH! it was intense. like the circus. more points for you if you caught that joke.

once home, i got started on dinner. my favorite thing to grill? burgers!

i love grilled anything.. chicken, fish, veggies, even fruit! but most of all, i love a good grilled burger.

while our dinners typically involve poultry, marshall and i make sure incorporate other proteins into our meals a couple times a week. i like to plan one meal using fish or tofu and another meal using lean beef. my favorite cut is top sirloin. if we aren’t eating the meat as steaks, i will use my food processor to make ground beef and then incorporate it into a recipe (like i did with the burgers tonight.)

so many people ask me if they should to give up red meat if they want to eat clean and get fit. my answer is always a very enthusiastic “NO!” because there’s nothing wrong with a little lean beef in your life. i always make sure beef comes from a reputable source (like whole foods or harmons) and, like i said, i like to buy top sirloin because it is a very lean cut. if i am at target i will buy laura’s lean beef which we really enjoy—i have never seen it sold anywhere but target.

here are a few reasons lean beef (specifically top sirloin) is a great protein option:

• a 4-ounce serving contains roughly 170 calories and 26 grams of protein
• it is a good source of iron
• it is a good source of zinc
• it is rich in B vitamins
• lean meat can lower your LDL cholesterol levels (see here for more)
• the high protein, low calorie nutritional profile will help keep you full which can support weight management

in addition, it’s always good to get your nutrients from a variety of foods. sure, eating chicken day in and day out is healthy, but our bodies crave variety. switching up foods (just like switching up workouts!) is important.

now that i have sung my praises about beef, let’s talk about those burgers we had tonight.

makes four quarter pound burgers

ingredients:

• 5-6 cloves roasted garlic, minced
• 1 lb top sirloin steak* at room temperature
• 1 TB worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp mustard powder
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground sea salt
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 4 oz (1/2 cup) shredded cheddar cheese (or cheddar jack!)
• 4 hamburger buns
• condiments of choice: avocado, spinach, onion, tomato, pickles, mustard, ketchup, mayo.. you get the idea. marshall even topped his burger with a hard boiled egg tonight!

*you can opt to buy pre-ground beef if you do not want to grind your own, try to find 93% lean.

directions:

1. preheat grill to medium-high heat. coat grill with oil.
2. mince garlic in food processor (or with a knife.)
3. add steak to food processor. grind steak in food processor for about 10-15 seconds (skip this step if you bought it already ground.)
4. add next five ingredients to food processor and pulse until combined. you could always do this with a spoon.. or your hands.
5. transfer meat to bowl and fold in cheese until combined.
6. form four patties with your hands or using aluminum foil (see my method below.)
7. place patties directly on grill and DO NOT CLOSE THE LID.
8. after about six minutes or so (this will vary depending on your burger thickness), flip patties.
9. let patties cook until they reach desired doneness. i like my burger medium-well and that took about 3 minutes (in addition to the six it had cooked on the first side.)
10. remove patties from grill and let rest for a few minutes before serving. they need a nap. you can use this time to toast your bun and get it dressed up with condiments!
11. place rested patty on bun, serve alongside a salad and some fries, and enjoy!

a few tips on making & grilling burgers:

• the patties will shrink a significant amount during the cooking process, so form them slightly larger than your buns
• do NOT close the lid of the grill during the cooking process. you want to grill your burgers, not bake them!
• you only want to flip your burgers once, so make sure you let them cook about halfway through before flipping.
• do NOT press the patties down with your flipper. this removes the flavor.
• do NOT put ketchup on your burger. oh, wait, that was marshall’s tip when i asked him if he had any other tips for me to add to the list… (he’s crazy! i love ketchup!)

step-by-step photo tutorial:

preheat indoor or outdoor grill to medium-high heat.

coat grill with oil. we use a paper towel and canola oil (it has a high smoke level.)

mince garlic in food processor (or with a knife.) i am lazy and buy roasted garlic from the store.

add steak to food processor.

grind steak in food processor for about 10-15 seconds (skip this step if you bought it already ground.)

add next five ingredients to food processor and pulse until combined. you could always do this with a spoon.. or your hands.

transfer meat to bowl and fold in cheese until combined.

to form the patties, i like to separate the meat into four equal portions and roll them into balls. i place the balls on aluminum foil.

next, i lay another sheet of foil over top of the burgers and firmly press the balls down with my hand.

remove the top layer of foil…

…and there you have it. patties.

place patties directly on grill and DO NOT CLOSE THE LID.

after about six minutes or so (this will vary depending on your burger thickness), flip patties. let patties cook until they reach desired doneness. i like my burger medium-well and that took about 3 minutes (in addition to the six it had cooked on the first side.) remove patties from grill and let rest for a few minutes before serving. they need a nap.

you can use this time to toast your bun and get it dressed up with condiments!

i LOVE ezekiel buns! they come in packs of 6 and you store them in the freezer. this is nice for me and marshall because we don’t eat six burgers at a time and i would hate for extra buns to go to waste.

clearly we like green condiments.. lettuce, avocado, and pickles. i usually like tomato and red onion, too, but we were out.

don’t forget to get saucy! our picks:

i put the mustard and ketchup on the bun and served my burger with a side of barbecue sauce for dipping.

place rested patty on bun, serve alongside a salad and some fries, and enjoy!

we used alexia frozen fries because we are lazy and the salad was leftover from easter dinner. slacker meal at its finest!

i hope this has inspired you to eat some lean beef this week! oh, and if you are vegetarian.. i hope this has inspired you to make a garlic cheddar jack veggie burger using this recipe as inspiration, because these were dang good.

i hope to grill again this week.. but the forecast is telling me that utah is going to go from a high of 81 to a high off 55 between wednesday and thursday. stupid utah. oh well, i will enjoy the sun while it’s around!

xo. janetha g.