bbq wine burgers

no photo, sorry. but i whipped these up on tuesday night and they went over really well, so i wanted to share the recipe with you all. (it's kind of hard to photograph a burger without a bun in an attractive way.)

to keep this dish gluten-free i used sweet baby ray's bbq sauce and sargento shredded cheddar cheese which are both gluten-free products. i also ate my burger sans bun, but i didn't miss it.

ingredients:
1# 97% fat free ground beef
salt and fresh ground pepper (to taste)
2 tablespoons of sweet baby ray's bbq sauce
1 tablespoon of red wine (i used pinot noir)
1/2 cup sargento shredded cheddar cheese
olive oil

directions:
salt and pepper the ground beef to taste, and then gently mix it using your hands. divide evenly into three chunks, and then further divide these in half so that you end up with six even sized balls of seasoned ground beef.

flatten out three of the balls into very thin patties. top each patty (in the center only) with cheddar cheese (as much as it will comfortably hold) and then flatten out the remaining three balls into patties. top each of the already cheesed patties, and then using your fingers pinch the edges together and smooth them out so that none of the cheese can escape. repeat for the other two burgers.

mix together the bbq sauce and wine in a small bowl until well-combined. then lightly brush one side of each of the burgers and place them sauce side down in a lightly oiled pan over high heat. brush the top side with sauce and cook for about 4 to 6 minutes. then flip and cook 4 to 6 minutes more. baste throughout with the sauce until it's gone. enjoy!

notes:
this was my first forray into making something for me that my husband could also eat and not notice the difference. it worked. the sauce is delicious and cutting it with the wine decreases the sweetness (so if you like it sweet, add more bbq, but don't eliminate a liquid all-together because it keeps it "brushable"). i usually add egg and onions and panko to my burgers, so this "purist" approach was a departure for me, but it was very good. vj ate his with a nice whole grain bun, and we both enjoyed potatoes on the side. this could easily be done on the grill as well as in the house.