Marinated Pork Burgers

WOW ... it's been WAY TOO LONG!!! There's nothing really outrageous or out of the norm about tonight's post but I promised myself I was going to get back in the swing again since the summer is almost to an end {que the tears or the celebrations ... I know there are always these two extremes that come with the mention of school starting back up}. We are a split household here with a current teacher, a former teacher (who is only slightly ready for a normal routine ... if there ever is such a thing in a family of 6, BAHAHAHAH!), two returning to school, and one getting ready to start kindergarten so we are a prime example of both of these! 

So like I said, I was bound and determined to get a post in and since an evening that involves a home cooked meal (other than frozen pizza, lunch meat sandwiches, or hot dogs) as been few and far between on these summer nights, I decided my efforts for dinner was post worthy ... even if it was just to get writing again!

First was my detailed (not even close) meal planning which consisted of grabbing the local grocery store ad to see what meat was on sale AND would be quick. At $1.99/lb ... pork burgers it was. On a fly-by to the grocery store on the way home from dropping #1 off at open gym it was in and out to grab the pork burgers and some buns {and of course along with a few other items, because really how often do you exit a grocery store with ONLY what you went in for ... for me it's rarely! Unless I have done my homework and my mealing planning is spot on which SO has not been the case this summer :) }. Best part about the pork burgers, they were from Steidinger Foods in Fairbury, IL. OH YEAH! I am going allow myself a little proud moment here since my maternal grandma was a Steidinger from Fairbury, which makes these pretty much from family AND absolutely delish!!!

Marinated Pork Burgers

12 pork burger patties

2 to 3 cups open pit barbeque sauce

1/2 to 1 cup honey

buns

Preheat grill. In a grill-safe pan (foil-lined optional), mix the open pit barbeque sauce and honey. Place pan with marinade on preheated grill. Grill pork burgers until fully cooked. As each one is finished cooking, add it to the marinate pan and let simmer for a 5-10 minutes. Remove marinated pork burgers from the pan to a serving dish as needed to make room the remaining burgers. Cover with foil until ready to eat. Enjoy marinated pork burger on a bun of your choice. 

Along with a side of steak fries and fresh cucumbers, we can call it a complete meal. YUM!!

COST - 

Pork Burgers - $6.23

Buns - $1.50

Honey - about $1.25

Open Pit - about $0.75

Cucumber - $1.01

Steak Fries - $1.80

TOTAL - about $12.50 for complete meal

Feeding Capacity - 4 adults and 4 kids 

Homemade Grilled Meatloaf

I'm at kind of a standstill in the bathroom while I am using up what I have already made and waiting on more ingredients. I have also branched out into the household area but am not thrilled with some of what I have tried, so I have decided on these "off" days I might as well be sharing some of our favorites around here that I am usually making anyway!

How to Grill Your Meatloaf

Another summertime, well actually anytime, favorite as long as we can fire up the grill. This is another one of those restaurant inspired meals that we have recreated at home and it is SO GOOD! Weber Grill is an absolute must if we are near one, there's three in Chicago and it's surrounding areas and one in Indianapolis ... and I am just now seeing one is coming to the St. Louis area. 

The recipe I have tweaked is by Jamie Purviance from Weber's Way to Grill. The primary reason for tweaking is due to the fact ground pork is something we generally don't have on hand, so I just have always double the ground beef it calls for in his recipe. Still great, but I would love to try making it with the pork sometime. 

Grilled Meatloaf

Meatloaf

2 pounds of ground beef (yesterday's ground steak is even better!)

2 cups bread crumbs

1 large egg

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Sauce

1 cup barbecue sauce

1 cup ketchup

1/2 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Gently combine all the meatloaf ingredients in a large bowl. (I prefer to use my hands, but have used my kitchen-aid mixer also.) Divide the meat mixture in half and form two loaves. Place on a jelly roll pan or cookie sheet with edges. Set aside. Whisk sauce ingredients together in a bowl. Use about 1/4 cup or less of sauce to cover each loaf. Reserve the rest to baste while grilling (be careful not to double-dip after touching the raw meat). Bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes or internal temperature is 160 degrees. Remove from oven and allow to cool. (This would be a great stopping point for a make ahead recipe. Freeze or refrigerate until ready.) Preheat grill. Cut meatloaf into 1/2 thick slices. Place meatloaf slices on grill and baste with reserved sauce. Flip and baste. And repeat. And repeat until sauce is gone or you have reached your desired sauciness. 

The grilling process really doesn't take long, about the time you have them all basted it's time to go back to the beginning and start flipping. I have made this the day (or a few days) ahead as well as sliced it and then wrapped it up, zip-locked it, and thrown it in the freeze! If you do freezer meals, this would be a great addition. I have made the sauce ahead and froze it, but it is so simple I would rather make it fresh and then freeze any leftovers if need be.