Hamburgers & Fries

David and I share our household duties very evenly. We both do our best to keep our lives running smoothly. I tend to do more of the cooking because I am home and it's easier for me to watch over that area of our lives. However, there are a few meals that are "David Meals". I don't make them. That is what we eat when David tells me that he's giving me a break and that he's going to cook dinner for me. Or what we eat on a Friday or Saturday night when he's home and he makes dinner while I work on the dishes, or set the table. It works for us and I love it. I love that I'm the one who does most of the cooking - but that David is willing to step up and take his turn in the kitchen to make our family a delicious meal to enjoy together. Hamburgers is one of those "David Meals". He know the perfect thickness that the hamburger should be, the perfect way to season it, and the perfect length of time to cook it so that it is well done but still deliciously moist. I'd take a David-burger over a McDonalds burger any day. Serve up with some french fries, onion rings, or potato chips and you've got yourself a true american classic!

Hamburgers & Fries
Source: David Peaden

Ingredients:
1 lb Ground Beef
4 Hamburger buns
McCormic Hamburger Seasoning
Onion Salt
Garlic Salt
Salt and Pepper
Red Pepper Flakes

Lettuce
Ketchup
Pickles
Mustard
Onion Rings
French Fries

Directions:
Split ground beef into four sections. Flatten each section into a fairly large hamburger patty (it will shrink as it cooks). Season to taste. Cook in a skillet on the stove until no pink is left in the middle but the burger is still juicy. Meanwhile put frozen french fries or onion rings in the oven. When fries/onion rings and burgers are done, place each burger on a bun and top with desired toppings.

Serve with fruit and fries, onion rings, or potato chips.

Update: March 2021
David is still solely responsible for making hamburgers at our house - although of course, everything we do is a team effort. We recently ordered a Meal Delivery Kit and one of the recipes was "Griddled Onion Burgers". I thought that the sauce on the burger was pretty good, so I thought I'd include the recipe below. 

Optional toppings to make "Griddled Onion Burgers" (2 servings)

1 Yellow onion

1/8 cup Mayonnaise 

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tbs dijon mustard

salt and pepper 

Trim and peel onion; slice into four 1/4 inch thick rounds.  Finely chop remaining onion until you have about 1/4 cup. 

Combine mayo, mustard, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. 

Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add chopped onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until lightly browned, 4-5 minutes, stir cooked chopped onion into mayo mixture.

Heat another drizzle of oil in the same pan, add onion rounds and cook until deeply browned and tender, 2-3 minutes per side. Toast hamburger buns with garlic butter, and serve with aoili and onion rounds on top of burger. 

Grilled Taco and Lime Chicken

David and I really like chicken tacos, however, sometimes I get bored with plain old shredded chicken.  This yummy dish is the perfect way to make chicken tacos. It's packed full of flavor and so delicious! I found this recipe at Picky Palate, and as I was reading through her full tutorial (check it out, her pictures are beautiful and showcase all of the details brilliantly) I kept wishing to myself that I had a pan like hers that I could grill the chicken on inside. I even read through the comments and saw where she had posted a link to a website where you could buy a similar grill pan. When I finally saw the pan as a whole, a audibly gasped. It was just like that random cast iron pan in the back of my cupboard that I didn't know how to use! I was giddy like a school-girl, ran and grabbed the pan, made sure I was right and then cooked up this chicken for dinner. I'm so in love! What an awesome way to be able to grill chicken on the stovetop. Shout out to whomever gave us that grill pan for our wedding. I love it! 

Grilled Taco & Lime Chicken

Source: Picky Palate

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (regular paprika works too)
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
3-4 medium to large boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 limes, split

Directions:
Combine cumin, salt, pepper, paprika and garlic salt in a bowl.
Place chicken breast into a large bowl or large ziploc bag. Coat chicken with seasonings then squeeze the juice of one whole lime over chicken and seasonings. You can marinate up 1-5 hours or grill immediately. 

Preheat grill pan to medium high heat. Spray grill lightly with cooking spray then carefully place chicken onto grill. Let grill 5-6 minutes each side, or until cooked through. Let chicken rest for 10 minutes. Thinly slice chicken and sprinkle with last of lime juice.

Top with lettuce, spinach, cheese and any other toppings. Serve with lime wedges and creamy salsa sauce (equal parts  Hidden Valley ranch dressing and salsa). 

Grilled Bruschetta Chicken

This is a meal that David and I had at one of our neighbors houses way back in the day when we lived in Logan. I can't believe it's not up here. This is what I like to think of as my "Grown-up Shantel Meal". Why? Well you can read about it here. But to quote that post: "The other day, I ate the most delicious chicken I have ever had. It was cooked on a grill and covered in fresh tomatoes. I didn't scrape the tomatoes off. I ate them all. Even the ones that were left over when the chicken was gone. When did that start happening???"

I don't generally like tomatoes, in fact, I've always kind of hated them. But this meal is delicious and both David and I really enjoy it. I served it up for us again last night with a big loaf of garlic french bread and it was perfect. Just light enough to feel super healthy, but just filling enough to not need a large helping of some other side. Try it out. You will like it.

Grilled Bruschetta Chicken

Source: The Koefeds (Or you can find the recipe at Kraft.)

Ingredients:
4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)
1/4 cup Sundried Tomato Dressing, divided
1 tomato, finely chopped
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Place chicken in large resealable plastic bag. Add 2 Tbsp. dressing; seal bag. Turn bag over several times to evenly coat chicken with dressing. Refrigerate for about an hour. Remove chicken from bag; discard bag and dressing. Heat grill to medium heat. Cover half the grill grate with sheet of heavy-duty foil. Place chicken on uncovered side of grill; cover with lid. Grill 6 min. Meanwhile, combine remaining dressing, tomatoes, cheese. Turn chicken over; place on foil. Top with tomato mixture. Grill, covered for 8 minutes or until chicken is done (165ºF).

*Tonight, due to the fact that it is February (even if it is an unusually warm February) - we did NOT grill this. Rather. I browned each piece of chicken briefly in a skillet and then topped it and baked it at 350 for 25 minutes or so.  It turned out really well. If you don't have a grill - try this instead. **I also have grilled it on our range-top grill pan. Works perfectly.

Sanpete Turkey (Chicken)

Yum, yum, yum. I can't tell you how much I love this delicious meal. It brings back the sound of thousands of people wandering around excitedly chatting with each other; the smell of grass, and dirt, and delicious food wafting around the crowded food booths. This recipe is somewhat of a local tradition. You can find it towards the end of May, as you spend the day walking through hundreds of booths at the Scandinavian Festival in Ephraim. Several weeks later, it can be found in one of the many booths near the Manti Temple grounds while people are enjoying the summer day waiting for the Mormon Miracle Pageant to start. Of course, it is always made with turkey from one of the several local turkey farms and served with piccadilly chips. It is just as delicious when made with chicken (and I love making some of my very own crisp and tender Picadillies)

(I just came across this backstory of Sanpete Turkey and I loved it: 750lbs of Barbecued Turkey.)

Sanpete Turkey

Ingredients:   
1 part oil
1 part soy sauce
2 parts Sprite or 7-Up
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp horseradish sauce (optional)
8-10 chicken tenders

Directions:
Mix the first 5 ingredients together in a medium sized airtight container. Place the chicken in the marinade and cover. Refrigerate overnight. (12 hours to get it really perfect, but at least 5 hours to let the juices soak.) Pull the meat out and grill it on your barbecue until cooked through.

Serve with picadillies, a salad and some fruit.

Update: If you don't believe me, check out The Friendly Kitchen, I just found that the amazing Camille Phillips (older sister of my best friends, Kayla and Tausha) posted her rendition of this Sanpete Turkey on her food blog. Also, another picadilly recipe from my Ephraim-friend Sarah at High Heels and Grills. Seriously SOO good.