If Looks Could Kale

Burger 1:

Our first outing turned out pretty well. The recipe was relatively easy, although there were some steps left out maybe, which seems like something that would happen if the Belcher family actually wrote the book (alas they are fictional). 

We bake our burgers typically, as it's far less mess and the burgers are usually still juicy. Plus while they are cooking we can work on other things. So, that's what we did here. We baked the patties themselves, then started on the kale and the orzo.

My first thought when I saw kale as an ingredient was actually a mixture of horror and regret. But it turns out that if you put olive oil and salt on Kale before roasting it until crisp, it's actually really good. 

The orzo salad was the most labor intensive thing on the list, and only because it was the only thing we couldn't cook in the oven. 

Burger: All beef patty topped with Gruyere cheese and crispy roasted kale on top.

Orzo Salad: Orzo cooked in chicken stock and garlic. Rosemary, red wine vinegar and fresh tomatoes added at the end.

   <~~~~ Steamy orzo salad

   <~~~Orzo salad.

  <~~~ If Looks Could Kale Burger

  <~~~ All together Now!


Husband's Thoughts: "Kale provides a nice crunch. Rosemary is a bit strong for the orzo."

                                    7/10

My Thoughts: I thought the kale was interesting, on it's own it was sort of like pumpkin seeds, but the heat of the burger made the crunchy kale less crunchy. Also I added a bit of mayo after my initial bites, because I wanted something creamy. The orzo salad was good, tasted vaguely like Christmas but in a good way.

                                  6/10

All in all, we could have done way worse on our first attempt at this challenge. We followed the directions as closely as possible, and we used all the ingredients it called for, which means we didn't break any of the rules. I do not expect this to continue. Check back next week for our next attempt.

Until next week... Keep Sizzlin'.



L xo