30 years old

Well this is my last post. As promised I want to recap the last thirty weeks. My first burger was made on August 29th 2009. It was a simple Bacon Cheddar burger. My last burger was on March 21st. It was the classic cheeseburger. Two very plain and simple burgers as bookends to my blog. I made thirty burgers. I grilled fourteen of them and steamed five of them. I also pressed one, the Cuban burger. When I started the blog it was in the hot August days of summer. It was also 2009. As I ended the blog the spring was just starting to peak its head out although not quite there. I cooked fourteen burgers outdoors and sixteen of them inside. Since the blog began we have seen Thanksgiving, Christmas, and St Patrick's Day. I went to see Bruce Springsteen. The yankees won the World Series and The Giants tanked down the stretch. I went to a wedding and spent a weekend in Baltimore for my wife's birthday. I made a lot of different burgers with plenty of themes. I used a St Patti's day theme, a Thanksgiving theme, a Philly cheesesteak theme, and a breakfast theme. I also made burgers in very different styles, I made a Cuban burger, an Italian burger, two Mexican burgers, an Irish burger, a Greek burger, a Japanese burger, a Thai burger, and a southwestern burger. During the course of this blog I made a pretty big lifestyle switch. During the making of "The New American Burger" I decided to eat organic for all produce, meats, and dairy. The most popular meat was obviously beef. However, I also used Lamb, Buffalo, chicken, turkey, sausage, and portobello. The buns were mostly soft wheat hamburger rolls but I also used a few other types as well. I used Kaiser rolls, Sesame buns, potato rolls, and my favorite the Portuguese roll. I used Cheddar cheese five times and gorgonzola cheese twice. I also used feta, American, swiss, imported Irish cheddar, gouda, Parmesan, asiago, fontina, and cheese whiz. I used seven different types of buns including one burger with no bun at all. My most common vegetables were peppers. I used several different types. I used anaheim peppers, poblano peppers, bell peppers, pimento peppers, cherry peppers, piquillo peppers, and lots of jalapenos. I even used a homemade jalapeno guacamole in my Mexican Hamburger. There were two different elaborate spice rubs but the most common spice trio was salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. The most unusual ingredient that I used would have to be peanut butter. I definitely tried several new things that I never would have made or ordered before. I made several homemade sauces and dressings. My favorite was a the three cheese green chili sauce. I condiments as simple as ketchup and mustard. I also created my own mixes such as a chipotle mayo. I used two fruits in my burgers. The obvious one is tomatoes and the other was pear. I used three different types of bacon and two types of sausage. Lots of people have commented on their favorite burgers but the most common question that I received was which burger was your favorite. I think answering this question is kind of like asking who are the greatest baseball players of all time. Sure I can give you a list but once you get to the top two or three you are splitting hairs. So in no particular order my five best burgers in the last thirty weeks are:

The Cuban Burger

La Hamberguesa Mexicana

Lamb Gyro Burger

Philly Cheesesteak Burger

The Classic Cheeseburger

Thanks for everyone who read this blog and for those who made suggestions and commented online and to me in person. It was a lot of fun to do and to eat as well. The funny thing was throughout the whole process I never got sick of burgers. The possibilities were and remain endless. I even had two burgers out at restaurants outside of this blog in the past thirty weeks. Hopefully I inspired some of you to try a new idea for a burger, or a sandwich, or a meal. Take care everyone and thanks again for reading.

Joe