Cuban Burgers

Cuban Burgers are a beefy play on the Cuban sandwich. With a spicy mayo and thinly sliced ham, and Swiss cheese on a ciabatta bun, this burger gets thoroughly smashed. Add pickles if you like. Unwrap and enjoy.

Do you like pickles? My husband and I both thoroughly detest them. If a pickle sneaks its way onto my burger, it ruins the whole experience. And considering that cheeseburgers are my favorite food, this is deeply troubling.

I know I'm a picky eater and there are lots of things I don't like, but I don't feel like such a freak with this one. Lots of people hate pickles. Yet, other people seem to love and actually crave them. Personally, I think there's something wrong with those other people, but I'll agree to let them go on making things disgusting if they must.

In case you couldn't tell. I'm totally kidding. Eat what you want.

I confess, these Cuban Burgers should really have pickles. I considered buying pickles just for the photo, but they would never get eaten, and I just couldn't bring myself to waste that much food just for a blog photo. Whether you like pickles or not, you should still make this burger because it's damn tasty.

How to make Cuban Burgers

To make these, first you'll cook up some burger patties. Here's a quick tutorial on how I make my own basic burgers from scratch. We're also going to mix up a spicy mayo mixture with mustard and cayenne. When we're ready to assemble, we'll slice open our ciabatta rolls and spread each one liberally with the spicy mayo. Then add a burger patty, followed by some thinly sliced ham, and a slice of Swiss cheese. Oh, and those damn pickles if you need them. Then put the lid on and wrap the whole thing in foil.

Then this is what makes it awesome. Put the foil-wrapped burger back into a pan over medium low heat. Then put something heavy like a brick or a skillet on top of the burger. Let it smash and toast for about three minutes per side. When you open up your foil package, you have a bun that's crispy on the outside, and the cheese is perfectly melted on the inside holding the whole thing together in a savoury little bundle of flavor.

Everybody loves something a little bit different, which means we are all supremely lovable. Get together and eat some Cuban Burgers exactly as you like them. It's gonna be awesome.

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