Ingredients

  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced to a paste
  • Zest and juice of 1 lime, divided
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
  • 1/2 package bacon, about 10 to 12 slices
  • 1 small red onion, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons (about a palmful) brown sugar, depending on your desired sweetness
  • 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
  • 4 whole ears of corn on the cob, husked
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 1/3 pounds ground sirloin
  • 1 tablespoon (about a palmful) cumin
  • 2 teaspoons (about a palmful) chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon steak seasoning, such as McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning
  • 2 teaspoons (a small palmful) ground coriander
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 4 Kaiser rolls, split and toasted
  • 1 pound spinach, stemmed
  • 1/2 pound queso fresco or feta cheese, grated
  • 2 scallions, whites and green tops, chopped
  • 3 tablespoons (about a handful) cilantro, chopped

Yield

Serves: 4 servings

Preparation

Preheat an outdoor grill to high or a grill pan over medium-high heat.

Place a small sauce pot over medium heat and add heavy cream, chipotle paste and lime zest. Bring up to a simmer and season with salt and pepper. Turn heat down to low and cook for about 5-10 minutes.

While cream is heating through, heat a medium-size, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat with 1 tablespoon EVOO. Add the bacon to the pan and cook for about 4-5 minutes per side, or until crispy. Remove the bacon from pan and set on a paper towel-lined plate, leaving 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat in the pan. With the pan still on medium-high heat, add the red onion and cook for about 4-5 minutes, or until onions are slightly translucent. Add Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar and the lime juice, and cook for about 1-2 minutes. Add tomato sauce and bring up to a simmer. Season BBQ sauce with salt and pepper, and cook for about 10 minutes.

While sauces are simmering, husk the corn, remove all the silk then run under cold water until wet.

In a medium bowl, combine meat with cumin, chili powder, steak seasoning, coriander and chopped garlic for the burgers. Divide meat into 4 patties about 1 inch thick. Drizzle patties with a touch of EVOO and season with salt and pepper.

Place the corn and the patties on the grill. Grill, turning frequently, until tender and well-charred all over. Grill the burgers for 6-7 minutes on each side. Baste them with some of the BBQ sauce the last 2 minutes of cooking.

Before the burgers and corn are ready to come off the grill, place a medium skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 turn of the pan EVOO, about 1 tablespoon. Add the spinach to the pan for about 1 minute, or until barely wilted.

Place a burger on a Kaiser roll and top it with BBQ sauce, bacon slices and spinach. Remove the corn from the grill pan and place on a serving platter. Pour the chipotle-cream mixture over the top of the corn and sprinkle with cheese. Garnish with chopped scallions and cilantro.