Barbecued Hamburgers

We had these burgers the other night and I remembered how much I like them. They are a good make-ahead meal if you are feeding a lot of people, or if you just have a few to feed you can freeze the leftovers in portions that are right for your family. They are good with just the BBQ sauce you cook them in or you can dress them up with the usual burger toppings. We had cheese, tomato, pickle, caramelized onion, and some chose to put Ketchup on. I like them on squishy wonder bread type buns, but I like them even better on fancy buns (possibly made with artisan bread dough). Whatever sounds good to you.

Barbecued Hamburgers

Managing Your Meals, Winnifred C. Jardine

1/1/2 pounds lean ground beef

1 egg, slightly beaten

3/4 cup dry bread crumbs or quick-cooking oats

3/4 cup evaporated milk

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

3 tablespoons coarsely grated onion

3 tablespoons vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

1 cup catsup

½ cup water

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

Combine beef, egg, crumbs, milk, salt, pepper, and 3 tablespoons chopped onion. Shape mixture into 12 patties, allowing 1/4 cup mixture per patty. Brown in hot skillet, using a little oil, if necessary. (Or patties may be quickly browned under the broiler; do not overcook, however.) Combine remaining ingredients in large heavy saucepan; simmer 5 minutes. Put in large heavy saucepan; simmer 5 minutes. Put drained patties carefully into barbecue sauce, making sure sauce is spooned over all of them. Simmer for 30 minutes. Serve each patty in a bun with 1 teaspoon sauce over top. Makes 12 patties.

Note: One advantage of these tasty burgers is that they may be prepared ahead of time, refrigerated, then heated slowly just before serving. You can freeze them too!!