Pepperoni Sausage Burgers ~ Guy Fieri

I recently purchased Guy Fieri Food ~ Cooking' It, Livin' It, Lovin' It Cookbook.  I have tons of recipes bookmarked to try, so I will share of few of them this week. 

The first recipe is for these flavorful Pepperoni Burgers.  Guy's son could not decide between a burger and pizza at their family's restaurant, Johnny Garlic's, so this is what Guy came up with.  This is the first meal recipe in the cookbook that jumped off the page screaming "make for hubby ASAP!"  Needless to say, it's his favorite cheeseburger to date.  I adapted the recipe slightly to take these burgers over the top, as Guy would say.

Ingredients:

1 lb 80/20 ground beef
1 lb ground Italian sausage
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp Italian seasoning
2 T olive oil
1/4 lb pepperoni matchsticks
1/2 yellow onion, cut into one inch strips
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
pickled jalapenos (optional)
6 - burger buns, lightly toasted until warm
6 - slices cheddar/mozzarella cheese (Sargento)
6 - slices provolone cheese
Ketchup or marinara for buns

In a medium bowl, use your hands to combine the beef, sausage, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.  Divide into 6 equal size portions and form into patties.

In a cast iron skillet over medium high heat, add the olive oil.  When it's shimmering, add the pepperoni matchsticks.  Cook until just crisp, about 5 minutes.  Transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

In the same skillet, add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, then add the garlic and cook another minute.  Transfer mixture to same plate as pepperoni.

In the same skillet, add the burger patties and cook for 5 minutes on the first side.  Flip over and cook another 3-5 minutes.  Top each burger with and a slice of both cheeses.  Add a few ice cubes to the pan and cover with a lid for 3 minutes.  This will allow the cheese to melt.

Note:  You can obviously use an outdoor grill, indoor grill pan, or flat top to cook the burgers.

Toast the buns, spread some marinara or ketchup on each side, then place a burger on each.  Top with onions, pepperoni, cherry tomatoes, and jalapenos.  Enjoy!

Serve with Oven Baked Fries and Buttermilk Garlic Dressing.