Chili and Cheese Burger Surprise

When I was down in Pflugerville, um yes, that actually IS the name of this suburb of Austin town, I stayed with Robin, Jon, and the Godkids for a couple of days. Robin and Jon were my roommates when I lived in DC a million years ago...okay, in the late nineties.

I always joked that I had a husband and a wife when we lived together. Jon was really good at taking out the trash and picking us up from work in the snow...and Robin could cook like there was no tomorrow! Whenever I have a cooking fiasco or question, I IM Robin and she always has the answer! Because she always has awesome recipes, I asked her if we could stay in one night and whip something up...and that naturally, I'd blog about it! : ) She didn't disappoint.

Instead of regular ole burgers, Robin invented a tasty tasty treat...the Chili and Cheese Burger Surprise (don't make fun of her for the terrible name...I clearly just made it up - ha!)!

1. Robin began the cooking process by grilling green chilis on her gas cooktop, until they were all black. She then put them in a plastic bag with a wet paper towel for them to sweat.

2. In the meantime, we (ME!) shredded jack cheese and heated up the grill.

3. After a while, Robin took the chilis out of the bag and under cold water, stripped the skins, cut off the ends, and essentially got to the middles. She then chopped the chilis up and mixed them in a bowl with the cheese.

4. Next, she created half of a burger patty with a hole in the middle. In the hole, she scooped a chunk of chili and cheese, then covered it up with the rest of the burger patty, hiding the mixture.

5. Once prepared, she threw them on the grill and cooked them the "usual" amount of time. (I say usual because I totally fear the grill and typically overcook everything! Ha!)

6. When they were finished cooking, we threw the burgers onto toasted buns and let the eat-a-thon begin!

These burgers were DELICIOUS, different, and a surprising treat for the tastebuds! I highly recommend you give it a try sometime! Now, for those of you who say grilling season is over now that summer is gone, I'd like to share one of my favorite stories about life with Robin. Being the good Texas girl that she is, she grew up rocking the grill. She even had to explain the difference between BBQing and "grillin' out." She loved our little smokey joe hibachi grill so much that I'd catch her on the porch grilling something EVEN in the snow. So don't be afraid to do the same!!!


Be sure to check out Tasty Tuesday for more recipe goodness, too! I'm sure there are many "Robin's" online who can help you will all your culinary emergencies!