BURGERS: got the perfect one?

What is the PERFECT HAMBURGER in your opinion?  Friends barbecued burgers for us out on the deck Friday in Venice, California, overlooking their canal...ducks going buy, picture-perfect weather; and FABULOUS burgers (to say nothing of the excellent company).  As I ate the burger, I realized it was as pink as I personally like inside, but without that 'soft and kind of uncooked feeling' inside like a rare burger sometimes is, and gorgeously charred on the outside, so I asked my friend what he did.  A big smile crossed his and his wife's faces "You noticed!" they said, "the trick is to put them on the grill frozen and don't buy the meat too lean because the fat cooks off into the coals, anyway, and emits that gorgeous flame that charbroils the burger so well.   I'm telling you, they were PERFECTION.

Do you have a special way of preparing them?  And what do you like on them?  Ours yesterday had melted cheese and we all used catsup, S&P, and that was IT.  They were THAT good. (and one MUST put the buns on the grill just for a little grill marking and heat as my host did...perfection)
z

Easter Sunday was wonderful...sorry this is so late!

I hope all your Easters were as nice as mine......If you didn't see the PRELUDE to my Aunt and Uncle's yearly Easter festivities at their home, please scroll down. And, the post just below this one shows the gorgeous floral arrangements on the outside tables and the dining room centerpiece where the buffet was set out........

My aunt and I laughed at the fact that I nearly got the menu correct in my 'prelude'! She joked that she's predictable but the truth is that she's just a wonderful cook and so I put my wish list there in the original post full of things I've loved at her house. This year was only slightly different, though I got the main course wrong I got the side dishes and hors d'oeuvres pretty close....but the things I didn't guess were just delicious and I particularly wanted you to have the main course recipe which I have also made myself...it's deeeelicious and perfect for this coming summer.

Let me tell you the full actual menu first.....we started with my mother's stuffed grape leaves extraordinaire, that wonderful salami I'd hoped for, served with brined black olives, a delicious goat cheese and pita bread, a fifteen year old Cheddar from Wisconsin that was FABULOUSLY full of those little salt crystals you get when you're eating a terrifically aged cheese....stuffed eggs and I think I'm forgetting something but you get the delicious picture...all with red or white wine, of course!

My aunt emailed me the italicized list of the dinner menu when I sent her the link to the piece about her which she really enjoyed!

Or am I that predictable? You're right on ... mostly:

Grilled Skirt Steaks

Potato Salad

Ambrosia (so glad you like it ... I always wondered if anyone did)

Heirloom tomatoes with basil and mozzarella
Sweet corn off the cob in butter

Fresh peas and carrots with butter, parsley and orange zest

Artichokes with Remoulade sauce

Cookies

Ice Cream bars

Date Bars (wait till you try these ... you'll be addicted)

See how close I was!? It was FABULOUS! And, oh, was she right about the date bars...they're like date cookie-bars and I will see if I can get that recipe for you, too.(Z: update: that recipe will be here soon!)

Here's the SOUTHWESTERN FLANK STEAK WITH FRESH SALSA from "GourmetLA" (where ELSE? :-)

1 1/2 lbs flank steak (or skirt steak)
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 T chili sauce
2 T chili powder
2 T soy sauce
2 T oil
1 tsp honey
1 tsp grated orange peel
1/2 tsp grated lemon peel
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 medium orange, thinly sliced
Cilantro sprigs to garnish

Place steak in a shallow baking dish. Combine OJ, chili sauce and powder, soy sauce, oil, honey, orange and lemon peels, garlic, salt and cayenne. Pour over meat....place orange slices over meat. Marinate in refrigerator overnight. Preheat Grill.

Bring meat to room tep. Remove steak from marinade and discard marinade. Grill steak for 4-6 minutes per side or to desired doneness. Slice diagonally especially if you're using flank steak. Place on a platter and surround with Fresh Fruit Salsa, orange wedges and cilantro sprigs.

Fresh Fruit Salsa:
1 cup diced pineapple, 1 sliced kiwi, 1 cup chopped papaya, 1/2 tsp crushed hot red pepper flakes, 1/2 cup diced red bell pepper, 1/4 cup diced green bell pepper, 1 1/2 T's white wine vinegar, 1 1/2 Ts minced cilantro, 4 tsps sugar

Combine ingredients in a bowl, mix well and chill overnight...serve at room temperature.

Serves 4 (just multiply if you're having more, we had about 25 that day, but do not multiply the hot stuff if you don't like things really hot...) Great with grilled fish, too. AND, if you'd like to share some of the delicious things you had, fire away in 'comments' Thanks.
Enjoy...From Z and Z's Aunt and Z's Uncle, who barbecued the meat JUST RIGHT!
xxx