This juicy burger combines 4 of my favorite B words: bleu cheese, burger, brioche, and BACON. The caramelized onions don’t hurt either.

It’s Memorial Day Weekend, which, aside from it’s actual, patriotic purpose, also means BBQs, a three-day weekend, and the start of summer. We decided to kick off this wonderful weekend with dinner on the back porch. Dan does all the grilling, so I focused on the toppings inside while he cooked the burgers. With that type of teamwork, dinner was done in no time.

These burgers pack a serious punch of flavor with a hefty amount of bleu cheese and a hint of Worcestershire sauce, but the brioche buns help to calm the powerful flavors.

I think I was inspired for this burger by one of my favorite meals ever. I was just barely 17 years old on a family vacation camping and hiking through Yellowstone and Sequoia National Parks (among others on that trip) and we stopped in a small town for a night in a hotel. We all got the chance to shower and put on non-hiking clothes to go out to eat. We had been eating lunchmeat sandwiches and camp dinners for a few days, and I ordered a salad with steak, bleu cheese, caramelized onions, candied pecans, and a balsamic vinaigrette.  I was in love. Ever since, I’ve been attracted to anything that combines beef, bleu cheese, and caramelized onions.

I mean seriously. Just look at how juicy that burger is.

I think the key to a tasty burger is good beef. Not the kind that’s $1.99/pound at a supermarket. Go to a butcher. Get the real stuff. And it’s really not that much more expensive. We’re incredibly luck to have a butcher around the corner, and it makes all the difference. Butchers often have pre-made burger patties too, if you want a shortcut (just be sure to add some salt and pepper to both sides.)