National Burger Day

It was National Burger Day on Thursday... and we missed it. For some reason when we were doing meal planning we thought it was on Friday and so we celebrated it a day late. But boy did we celebrate it! We used locally sourced beef, my daughter and I made pickles, and I made slaw and homemade hamburger buns. It was a friends birthday and so we enjoyed this feast and had a socially distancing picnic in our back yard and then enjoyed a drive-in movie.

My first project was making the pickles. I looked at several recipes for overnight refrigerator pickles and came up up with my own version.

Ingredients

1 bunch of fresh dill sprigs/ or a generous sprinkle of dry dill

4 garlic cloves minced

2 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes (I just used a couple of packets of red pepper flakes that I got with my last pizza delivery.)

1 small chopped onion

3 cucumbers, sliced (I just used the standard cucumbers rather than buying cucumbers that were specifically for pickling.)

3 cups water

1 1/2 cup white vinegar

2 tablespoon sugar

2 tablespoons salt

black pepper, to taste

Sliced jalapeño peppers and sweet peppers and any other fresh herbs you think would complement the pickles (I had some fresh basil on hand)

Instructions

Place dill, garlic, red pepper flakes, fresh peppers, fresh herbs and onion in a large mason jar and then fill the jar to top with cucumbers.

Meanwhile, place the water, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper in a saucepan over high heat. Whisk until the mixture comes to a boil. Pour hot liquid over cucumbers. Cool slightly, then refrigerate overnight.

As for the buns I used the 40-minute Hamburger bun recipe. The texture wasn't as light and airy as I normally like in a hamburger bun... but they were super fast and much better than your average store bought buns.

For the slaw I used a ramen coleslaw recipe from allrecipes.com. It was pretty good. I didn't have almonds so I used walnuts. I also substituted white onion for the green onion and added red bell pepper for a little color and crunch.

After this fabulous meal we enjoyed a drive-in movie. The perfect ending to a wonderful day.

Happy Black Cow Day!

Today, June 10th, is one of two days of the year dedicated to the root beer float (also known as a black cow, or a brown cow). The other National day for this creamy beverage is on August 6th. Why the root beer float has two national holidays in it's honor I'll never know... perhaps it is because it's just THAT good.

Much like the Ice Cream Sundae the history of the invention and origin of this delicious beverage is under debate. There are several people who claim to be the originator of this tasty treat... but most folks attribute it to Robert Green in 1874 who either created it as a way to keep his soda cold or as a way to create a new dish for his expanding business. Whatever the reason the root beer float caught on.

All you really need to do to make a root beer float is a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a bottle of your favorite root beer... but if you want to get fancy about it then you can go for the works.

Vanilla Ice Cream

Root beer
Chocolate Syrup (the chocolate syrup is optional, but I have never tried it this way so I think I'm going to have to give it a whirl)
Whipped Cream
and some cherries

Place a scoop of vanilla ice cream in a tall glass. Top with a squirt of syrup and then top with soda. Pour it slowly so that it doesn't over flow. Add a bit of whipped cream and then put the cherry on top. Enjoy.

Cheers,
Jenn

Happy National Donut Day!

According to Woman's World Magazine, National Donut day was started by the Salvation Army in the 1930s as a way to honor women who served donuts to soldiers in WW1. It is held the first Friday in June and you might find deals at your local donut shops to honor the occasion.

Dunkin' Donuts is apparently offering a free doughnut when you buy a beverage today to celebrate the occasion.

Krispy Kreme is also offering free doughnuts.

So grab a cup of Joe and get out there and celebrate!