Juicy Lucy "Cheese Stuffed Hamburgers"

Monday, we had our neighbors over for dinner and I decided to make Juicy Lucy hamburgers.  I had heard of these from a cooking show on television and decided give them a try.  I will show you the way I did it and share a couple of my tips with you.

If you don't want to stuff the patties, this recipe makes one mean regular hamburger patty as well.

Gourmet Dads Rating: 1-5,  1 = Bad, 5 = Excellent
Simplicity - 5
Taste - 5
Preparation Time - 4
Kid Friendly - 4 (Young kids may have trouble with the size.)

Ingredients:
2 lb Ground beef (Any type works, Lean is best)
2 1/4" Thick slice of American Cheese (From the deli, thickness setting of 40 at my local deli)
4 Pieces of bread (I prefer a premium more dense bread)
1/2 cup Milk
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp Mrs Dash Original or other grilling spices (Optional)

Yield:  8 delectable 1/4 lb Cheese stuffed hamburger patties
Preparation Time:  20-30 min  (Not including refrigeration time)
Cook Time:  10-20 min

Items you will need:
Liquid measuring cup
Large mixing bowl
Plastic wrap or wax paper
Gas or charcoal grill

Directions:

I used a gas grill, you may have to adjust cook times slightly if you are using charcoal.

1.  Break up the bread into quarters and mix with the milk, garlic powder, pepper, and Mrs Dash.  Do this with clean, washed hands until the bread is mostly broken up.

2.  Add the ground beef to the mixing bowl and mix well.  Again the best way to ensure proper mixing is to mix with your hands.

3.  Remove the mixture from the bowl to a plate and mold into a ball for separating.  Separate into two 1lb balls as seen below.

4.  Separate each ball into 4 equal parts.

5.  Cut your pieces of cheese into 4 equal square portions each for a total of 8 squares.

6.  Take a single ball and separate it into 2 equal parts.  Using one half of the meat, push the cheese into the center and wrap the edges around the cheese to form a small patty.

7.  Take the other half of the meat and separate it once more into 2 equal parts.  Add half to the top of the patty and half to the bottom, then shape into final size.  (We make the patty this way to prevent "Eruptions" during cooking.)  I shaped them to a final thickness of between 1/2" and 3/4" thick.  Keep the same thickness throughout to encourage even cooking and to prevent burning on the edges.

8.  Place finished patty on plastic wrap or wax paper and repeat steps 1-7 until complete.  Refrigerate finished patties for 1-2 hours to help keep the patties together while cooking. (Overnight works too if you want to prepare in advance.)

9.  Heat grill on high for 10 minutes for gas.  Reduce heat to medium before adding patties to the grill.

10.  Add your patties to the grill and cook for 5 minutes on each side.  (Medium heat is important here so we don't burn the patties but they cook throughout and melt the cheese well.)

11.  Remove patties from the grill and let stand for 5 minutes before consuming.  (Waiting 5 minutes is important due to the cheese inside being very hot.  This will burn your chin if you do not wait!)

12.  Prepare your burger with your favorite fixins and condiments.  ENJOY!!

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