Monday, June 21, 2010

Pancetta and Swiss Cheese-Stuffed Burgers with Pesto Mayonnaise

These were really good. D made them in grill pan. He also didn't stuff the burgers but just laid on top. Very tasty. Would have again.

We had with tater tots.

Pancetta and Swiss Cheese-Stuffed Burgers with Pesto Mayonnaise


"This is my answer to the bacon cheeseburgers we were eating way too often at our house. Stuffing the burger allows you to use a smaller amount of high-fat ingredients, but in a way that still makes a big impact. And as far as my husband is concerned, stuffing anything with bacon is never a bad idea." —Jill Simmons, Suisun City, Calif.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 burger)

Cooking spray
1 ounce pancetta, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces (about 2 slices)
1/3 cup diced onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1 pound ground round
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Swiss cheese (such as Sargento)
3 tablespoons light mayonnaise
1 tablespoon commercial pesto
4 (2-ounce) whole-wheat hamburger buns


1. Prepare grill or broiler.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add the pancetta to pan; cook 4 minutes or until crisp. Remove pancetta from pan, reserving drippings in pan; set pancetta aside. Add onion and garlic to pan; cook 5 minutes or until softened, stirring frequently. Combine onion mixture, pepper, salt, seasoning, and beef in a bowl. Shape beef mixture into 8 (1/4-inch-thick) patties. Top each of 4 patties with pancetta and 2 tablespoons Swiss cheese, leaving a 1/4-inch border around edge. Top with remaining 4 patties; pinch edges to seal.

3. Place patties on grill rack or broiler pan coated with cooking spray; cook 5 minutes. Turn and cook 5 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted in center measures 160°. Combine mayonnaise and pesto. Spread about 1 tablespoon of the mayonnaise mixture on bottom half of each bun. Top each serving with 1 patty and top half of the hamburger bun.

CALORIES 444 ; FAT 18.3g (sat 6.2g,mono 7.3g,poly 3.1g); CHOLESTEROL 82mg; CALCIUM 229mg; CARBOHYDRATE 30g; SODIUM 687mg; PROTEIN 39.9g; FIBER 3.4g; IRON 4.4mg

Cooking Light, JULY 2009

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