THE local burger…

Those of you who paid attention to my Adventure in Food Trading post know that a few of the items I purchased there were meant to be on a plate together. It’s actually astounding how affordable some of their local ingredients are.

Take, for example, the ground beef patties from Kilcoyne farms. I paid $14.55 for six half pound patties. That’s $4.85/lb, or approximately $2.62/patty. Even at the supermarket, I haven’t seen ground beef for under $3.99/lb, and as the multiple beef recalls over the last 20 years should indicate, the meat at a supermarket can be dangerous.

The Stillwater farms bacon that I got at Adventure in Food was another surprising find. For $2.92, I got 10 slices of the best thickly sliced bacon I’ve ever tasted. And 30 cents per slice doesn’t seem like a lot when you realize you shouldn’t be eating more than two slices of bacon at a time.

While I was in the shop, the guys made me try a special truffle cows milk cheese (rubbed with garam masala) produced at R & G Cheesemakers, just miles away in Cohoes, NY. This cheese was something special. It costs about $1/oz.

I put these all together on rolls purchased at Bella Napoli in Latham (which, granted, I can’t account for being totally local, but the bakery I wanted to showcase was closed), and dinner was a blast.

I made a few side dishes, because what’s a burger without onion rings and fries?

I quickly soaked some sliced sweet onions in buttermilk and dredged them in whole wheat flour.

I pan fried these in some vegetable oil until golden brown.

Meanwhile, I boiled some Yukon gold potatoes for about 15 minutes. I sliced these up, coated them in olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, and a generous amount of rosemary…

then laid them out on a sheet pan…

and baked at 400 F for 15 minutes per side.

The burger was cooked in a cast iron skillet, about 8 minutes per side (came out a little rare for my taste).

When the burgers were done, I transferred them to a plate to allow them to rest. I laid a nice slice of the truffle cheese on top to let the residual heat from the burger slightly melt the cheese.

Then I added the cooked bacon on top.

And then I ate an amazing hamburger meal.


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7 thoughts on “THE local burger…

  • Scott C.

    Holy sh*t, that looks amazing. Must try 🙂


  • CMTomaso

    Man do I love that garam masala truffle cheese! Best thing I got at Adv in Food. I wish I had bought more!

    Also, this maybe controversial but I didn’t love the Stillwater bacon. It was a bit too think for me and I felt like I was eating slices of ham. Also, I am really salt conscious and it seemed very salty to me.

    All that aside, that is one great looking plate of food! Nicely done.


    • derryX

      I don’t think that’s controversial at all. If you don’t like something, that’s totally fine.

      I actually liked it for the exact reasons why you didn’t. I dislike bacon that is too thin, and that chewy, ham-like texture is something I enjoy.


  • Jenna C.

    I too love that cheese. Good God, that all looks delicious.


  • Kent

    Great Work! Great Pics. Looks Delish.

    I have not yet been to AiF but now I won’t delay (I had the incorrect pre-conceived notion that everything would be expensive or out of my weekly price range), but hell, at these prices and with this quality, it’s worth the visit!!


    • derryX

      A lot of things come in bulk, do my unit process break them down to show it’s affordable but some sizes of things are wholesale. (but not outrageous)


  • Kate H

    This just made my stomach growl out loud! It looks divine.



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