Todd's "Five for Flamin'" Burgers

So, your favorite hockey team is out of town, but they are on TV tonight! A couple of questions probably come to mind. What drinks or EANABs (pronounced ee'nab, Equally Attractive Non-Alcholic Beverage) should I get for the game? And, what should I make for dinner when the action starts? It's cold outside so something warm would be great. Todd's "Five for Flamin'" Burgers will cure the hunger pangs and set the proper mood!

Ingredients
1 lb. 80% lean ground beef
1 egg
4 oz. sharp cheddar, cut into small cubes
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 oz. thick, smoked bacon, sliced into 1/2 strips
2 jalapenos, sliced
1/4 cup chipotle mayo (recipe follows)
1 Tomato, sliced
Lettuce
4 kaiser rolls

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, place the ground beef, egg, cheddar, onion, garlic, bacon and jalapenos. With your hands, thoroughly combine all ingredients. While the mixture stands, make the chipotle mayo and cover a large plate or platter with wax paper. Form the burger mixture into 4 patties. Cook the burgers outdoors on a grill or indoors using the stove top and a grill pan to medium (since this recipe uses raw bacon, make sure it gets cooked!). Once done, set aside on a platter and briefly toast the kaiser rolls. Assemble each burger topping with a tablespoon of the chipotle mayo, tomato slice and a leaf of lettuce. Serve with some curly fries and enjoy!

Here are a couple pictures I took during preparation:



The ingredients sans the egg.

Five for Flamin' Burger patties

Chipotle Mayo

Ingredients

1 cup mayonnaise
2 chipotles in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon adobo sauce
1/2 lime, juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Add all the ingredients to a food processor or blender and puree. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Todd's "Five for Flamin'" Jambalaya

I'm a big fan of Cajun food and a good jambalaya is always a great meal. Over the last month or so, I've been researching jambalaya recipes and put together one of my own. I have been making and tweaking this recipe for the last four weeks straight and am very happy with how it tastes now, so I'm going to share it. It's "Five for Flamin'" due to how much cayenne pepper I add, which is around 2 teapsoons (I think, LOL), so it comes out quite spicy hot. However, the cayenne is added at the end, so one can only add as much as they wish. This recipe is actually surprising easy to make and doesn't take much time. It makes 8 hearty servings. Schwing!

Ingredients

24 medium to large shrimp, peeled, deveined, cut into thirds

8 ounces boneless chicken breast, diced

12 ounces andouille sausage links, sliced in half lengthwise and then cut into half moons

1 large yellow onion, chopped

1 large green bell pepper, chopped,

4 stalks celery, chopped

4 tablespoons garlic, chopped

2 15 ounce cans diced tomatoes (with jalapeno if available)

6 bay leaves

6 cups low sodium chicken stock

4 tablespoons Cajun seasoning

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

two teaspoons hot sauce

1 3/4 cups long grain rice

ground cayenne pepper

salt

black pepper

Directions

In a mixing bowl, combine the shrimp, chicken and Cajun seasoning working in the seasoning well. In a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the celery and allow to sweat for 5 minutes. Add bell pepper and onion and cook 5 more minutes. Add garlic, tomatoes, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce. Let cook for 1 minute while stirring to mix well. Stir in rice and then slowly add the chicken broth. Reduce heat to medium and cook until rice absorbs the liquid and becomes tender, stirring occasionally but careful not to over stir, about 15 minutes. When rice is just tender add shrimp and chicken mixture and andouilli sausage. Cook until meat is done, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning and cayenne pepper. Serve immediately and enjoy!