We had sunshine all day yesterday which felt incredible, but it never got warmer than 40. We got out for the day and took a scenic ride over to the Mississippi river. We live about 40 minutes southwest of the river and it's very scenic, both driving over and the road that runs on the Minnesota and Wisconsin side. We started in Wabasha, home of Grumpy Old Men and The National Eagle Center. The river was running a little high and very fast. There was still some ice and snow on the shaded banks, and the back pools were still icy, but the main river was open. None of the trees were budding yet and the grass is still brown. We headed north to have lunch at Reads Landing Brewing Company in Reads Landing. It's a very picturesque, very old brick storefront that has been lovingly restored with painted tin ceilings, exposed bricks and beams and a beautiful oak bar. After lunch we hopped the railroad tracks and walked to the river's edge. There were bald eagles, white pelicans, ducks, geese and herons.
We drove up to Lake City and wandered around an antique store that had once been a shell-button factory. Did you know there is a lake on the river? At a very wide spot, the river slows and Lake Pepin was created. Then we drove to Red Wing, home of Red Wing pottery and Red Wing shoes. It was a lovely day out and nice to get a big dose of Vitamin D and some fresh air!
We stopped at the grocery on the way home and burgers on the grill really sounded good. Our grocery was out of my favorite Thousand Hills ground beef, so I decided to take a leap and grind my own burger. I really hate grocery store ground beef-it's either too fatty, too watery, too mystery meat or is full of bone flecks. You never know how or where it was ground, or what all was thrown into the grinder. I managed to find my Kitchen Aid meat grinding attachment earlier in the week and figured this couldn't be too hard. So I got a nearly 4 pound Angus bottom round roast, and came home and googled "grinding your own hamburger."
As predicted, it was almost too easy. I cut the roast into small pieces, laid them out on a parchment lined baking pan and put the pan in the freezer for 20 minutes to firm up the beef. I assembled the grinding attachment and started the grill. After 20 minutes, I spent less than 5 working the beef through the grinder. It was not messy (the freezing locks the liquid into the meat so there's nothing runny or juicy) and the beef was this beautiful bowl of light fluffy ground beef. I lightly molded three patties, pressing a depression into the middle of each (when the meat cooks, it shrinks. Creating a depression in the middle prevents hockey puck burgers) and seasoned them with kosher salt, pepper and a light dusting of garlic powder. The rest of the beef is waiting for Meatloaf Monday in the fridge.
Once the grill was ready, I popped them on, gave them 4 minutes, flipped them and let them finish. I lightly buttered a couple of split bakery buns, toasted those on the grill and when the burgers hit 145 (yes, I went medium) I pulled them and let them rest a few minutes while the cheese melted on them.
I sampled an unadorned bite first, and was really impressed with the lightness and tenderness of the burger. The flavor was incredibly beefy and rich and not greasy. The roast had minimal fat and I would say the ratio was close to 90/10. This was easily one of the best burgers I'd ever had. I particularly loved the control I had over the meat--knowing what went in, when it was made and how it was made.
I will be making my own ground meat from now on. I might even be tempted to make my own sausage--I can picture some pretty amazing homemade brat patties or breakfast sausage! While I'm not a food purist--I don't need to know every hill and dale my meat comes from, and I read labels and buy minimally processed foods, we do enjoy an occasional box of Kraft Dinner. I shop mindfully, Living in Minnesota, it's difficult for 5 months out of the year to buy only local produce, unless we want to live on potatoes and rutabaga. I support local farmers when I buy happy free range chicken and eggs, local small pork producers and organic grass-fed beef. It is more expensive, but the food tastes better and I would like to think the animals are happier and live more aligned to their nature. I've used CSA in the past, but with mixed result, the weather is unpredictable and it's an expensive investment in muddy under-developed produce. We tend to buy directly from the Farmer's Market instead where we can buy fresh meats and produce in one stop.
Looking out my back window, I'm reminded of the unpredictability of the weather. Since starting this post, we've picked up nearly an inch of snow. HB just got up, walked to the window and muttered, "what the fuck."
I think that's as good as any ending for this post.
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