Life is settling back down again. Well, as much as my life can settle down. Being done with St. Patrick’s week is a huge relief. Now, we have illness running through the house but I figure with yesterday being the first day of Spring we can’t be too far from being able to open all the windows and air the house out. I am keeping my fingers crossed that there is no more snow and we are truly over winter.
You will notice that I often say “freshly grated or shredded” when I list cheese in my recipes. This is my own personal preference. The photo above shows the list of ingredients in shredded mozzarella cheese. Below is the list of ingredients in a block of Parmesan cheese. Notice the difference? They both have milk, enzymes and salt but the shredded cheese also has potato starch, starch and cellulose powder and a mold inhibitor. I prefer to give my family the one closer to how it is made without additional ingredients so it won’t stick together during shipping. I didn’t have a can of Parmesan pre-grated cheese in the house but if you have one look at the ingredients. Decide for yourself. I personally think that there is a HUGE flavor difference. Set up a taste test for yourself and see what you think.
With staying in hotels and eating out for the last week we are using up what is in our pantry and freezer to preserve our budget. We still have Easter coming up this week and the kids are super excited for that. So, I am taking inventory again and getting creative.
Pepperoni Pizza Burgers were made the other night because we had taken out some ground beef to thaw and then I really wanted pizza but needed to use the ground beef up. So, Pepperoni Pizza Burgers were made.
Verdict:
These were pretty good. The pepperoni was a little light on the flavor but the pizza taste was perfect. I toasted the rolls before serving the burgers and that gave them an extra crunchy bite that helped them seem even more like pizza to us.
The burgers were cooked on the grill before being put under the broiler to melt the cheese. You can cook your burgers however you like but I like the cheese best under the broiler.
I served this with green beans and a green side salad. For my mostly gluten-free son I served his on a gluten-free roll that was also toasted.
Pepperoni Pizza Burgers
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2-2 lbs. ground beef
- 5 oz. thinly sliced pepperoni, divided and cut into 1/4s
- 1 heaping teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 heaping tablespoon oregano
- 1 heaping teaspoon onion powder
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 1 egg, beaten
- mozzarella, freshly shredded or thinly sliced
- pizza sauce, jarred or homemade
- 8 rolls, cut in half horizontally and toasted
- Parmesan cheese, freshly grated or shredded
Directions:
- Mix ground beef, 3 oz. pepperoni, garlic powder, oregano, onion powder, salt, pepper, bread crumbs and egg together in a large bowl until well combined. Adjust spices to what you think your family may like. I tend to add a bit more garlic powder to ours because my family LOVES garlic.
- Form meat into 8 patties.
- Cook hamburgers in the way you prefer. Grill, skillet or bake. When hamburgers are cooked through remove from heat and place on an aluminum foil baking pan. Place extra pepperoni on burgers then sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and place under broiler until cheese becomes bubbly and starting to brown.
- Remove pan from heat.
- Place hamburger on a toasted roll and top with pizza sauce and Parmesan cheese. Serve hot.
What's for Dinner Moms? 
Oh my gosh… These sound delicious!!
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Thank you so much!
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Those look amazing!
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Thank you!
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Oh, I am salivating again, while reading your post. Yummy! Going to the kitchen to prepare our dinner. It’s past 6:00 PM here.
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Oh, I am just starting lunch. Lol.
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I love these “necessity is the mother of ingenuity” sorts of recipes that come not from a lot of preplanning but from what’s just around the house. At least you’re good about writing down the recipes. My family asks me to make things again, but I can’t remember what went into them the first time.
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That is how I started doing this as a challenge to make different things each night. I used to try 7 day a week but after moving twice in one year (one 550 miles) I dropped down to 5. Also, my kids wanted some repeats so I made 2 day a week repeat days for their favorite meals.
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I saw something somewhere about doing a challenge a couple times a year where you eat entirely out of the pantry/freezer–grocery shopping just for the essentials. I tried that in January, and it was amusing to see the concoctions that worked (and those that were epic fails!).
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I do it every January and June. January to curb the bills from December and June to clean out the freezer for all the great summer and fall produce!
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Good idea about June–hadn’t thought of doing it then, but that definitely makes sense.
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Great sounding burgers. I agree about the cheese but admit I occasionally sacrifice “the better choice ” for convenience.
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I do if I am making something where I need HUGE amounts too. The arms get tired.
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Oh yum! please can I eat at your house? These burgers sound A-M-A-Z-I-N-G 🙂 .
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Thank you!
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Great idea for a different kind of burger!
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Thank you!
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Wow yummy! Glad things have settled down at your house! We are all sick as well! Get better soon Marci xx
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You too! Back home at least to be sick in your own place?
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Yes so true! We have been fighting this for a month which I guess is pretty typical!
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Ick! Better health to you all very soon!
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yes! to better health for sure!
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Great advice on the comparing labels and ultimately choosing the one that’s closest to its original form! Also love the “necessity is the mother of invention” creations… you knew the flavor profile you were going for and nailed it!
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Thank you!
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+1 on pre-shredded cheese. I buy Mozz (or other cheeses as well) when its on sale; set up my Food Processor with the large hole grater disc and it all goes into to zip-top bag, marked and then into the deep freeze. It’s less expensive this way too 😉
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What a perfect idea, Marci! Satisfies cravings for both pizza & burgers all at once! Brilliant!
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Thank you, Lana.
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