Put an Egg on It

The first time I was in Paris, France I was 20 years old. I wasn’t altogether familiar with French food. I guess I wouldn’t have called myself a Francophile even though I really wanted to be one. I spoke a little French and knew how to make a croque monsieur and a croque madame. (For those of you who are unfamiliar with this particular French food item, it is essentially a much better version of a grilled cheese.) I knew of crème brule and escargot, all of which I tried in France. Other than that, I really didn’t know what to try or where to try it, so I was going where fate took me. It so happens that fate brought me near the Notre Dame in a little brasserie. Since I didn’t speak French fluently, the only thing on the menu I recognized was a burger. When the burger arrived, it was a slab of ground meat with an egg on the top and a bun on the bottom, nothing more and nothing less. I recall looking at it and thinking, “why the heck is there an egg on my burger?”

Well it is a few years later, and my confusion regarding the egg on top of my burger has blossomed from uncertainty to a full-fledged love affair. Luckily, I think it has become somewhat of a thing here in the states. I see eggs offered on pizzas and burgers all over the place.

I don’t think I actually realized when it was that I started liking eggs on my burgers or anything aside from my morning toast. The next time I was to have an egg on some other food related item was on a pizza at a pizzeria in downtown Campbell, California. A little place called La Pizzeria on Campbell Avenue. They have delicious thin-crusted pizzas with fresh, flavorful meat. They plop the sunny side egg right on top of the pizza in the middle. When you cut it into slices you have a gooey mess all over your pizza. I know what your thinking. “That really doesn’t sound too appetizing.” Well you’re wrong! It is amazing! The trick is that you want the egg to be gooey or you are doing it all wrong.

The next time I had an egg on a food item was a burger at the Left Bank in Santana Row in Santa Clara, California. Loving all things French and trying my hardest to pretend I was a Francophile, I decided to drop in on this place for a quick bite at the bar. At this point, I think I realized the only French things I really loved were the language, the cheese, wine, croques and the crème brule. This may be wrong, since I haven’t tried all French food, but as it happens, I wound up getting a burger again. And yes, it had an egg on it. Although this time, it also had blue cheese crumbles. This thing, I believe, is where my true love affair developed for eggs on top of burgers or pizzas. There was not a morsel left. I was all but ready to lick the plate, when I realized I was in public. I did, however, scrape up some of the blue cheese.

Now that this love affair has developed, I have decided to try my luck in creating my own burger. I have taken things from what I have experienced in dining and brought all of the best ingredients together to make the best burger. Please see the photos above for the final product. A beer and side dish of fries or some vegetables (I chose asparagus) make this a delicious and yet decadent meal. I wouldn’t say this is your normal burger or your all the time burger. It is a special burger for special occasions, since it is a rich and self-indulgent meal. However, in my humble opinion on those special occasions, there is nothing like this burger.

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Blue Cheese Egg Burger Recipe

The Ingredients:

·      Wheat Burger Bun

·      Blue Cheese Crumbles

·      Cage Free Large Eggs

·      Sirloin Ground Meat

·      Spinach Leaves

·      Tomato

·      Ketchup

·      Dijon Mustard

·      Garlic

·      Salt

·      Pepper

Instructions:

1.     Set your oven broiler to High.

2.     Cut a 1-2 cloves of garlic.

3.     Salt and pepper your Sirloin Meat.

4.     Put the meat into patties and put cut garlic on the top of each patty.

5.     Broil each patty for about 5 minutes on each side. (This may be more depending on your broiler. Be sure to cut in the middle and see if it is cooked to your liking.)

6.     Start to pan fry your eggs in light spray oil to over medium (or to your liking).

7.     Brown the top of your buns in the oven for a minute or so.

8.     Place the patty on the bun and the egg on top of the patty.

9.     Cut a tomato slice and wash a few spinach leaves. Place on top of egg.

10. Drizzle blue cheese crumbles on top.

11. Drizzle mustard and ketchup on top bun and place on top of patty.

Enjoy!

 Also, Check out my Yelp Review for the Left Bank Brasserie: bit.ly/GYccI1