JBug's Kitchen Antics: Bluegrass Beercheese Melts with Bourbon BBQ Sauce

05/02/2010

Bluegrass Beercheese Melts with Bourbon BBQ Sauce

Kentucky Derby Day is certainly worth celebrating even if you're just watching on the telly like we were yesterday. I love all the pomp and circumstance of the whole event, although I'm thinking weather wise we were in a lot better shape here than they were there. Yikes - what a messy track.

We ate an early dinner yesterday afternoon, right after all the hoopla was over. The big guy and I prepped everything in advance so we could just fill a tray and take it outside to cook. Everything in that outdoor kitchen is "big guy sized" including this flat top where he grilled up the most fantastic sandwiches we've had in a long time! The flat top's so big, you're only seeing about half of it right now.

I found the recipe for these Bluegrass Beercheese Melts with Bourbon BBQ Glaze online at Food Network and they are some good - really a super glorified patty melt if you want to know the truth. Barbecue sauce fortified with bourbon (hey it is bourbon day after all isn't it?) mustard, brown sugar and ketchup goes on top of ground beef patties (we used sirloin) which in turn go onto grilled Texas toast that's dressed up with beer cheese and topped with caramelized onions, poblano peppers and green bell peppers.

This patty melt on steroids could have been complete just with the aforementioned, but that's not all ...it should be but it's not. Added to the whole taste sensation is nice crisp bacon - and did you notice how the big guy cooked it. He cut the rashers in half and wove six pieces together just like you'd weave a rug, then cooked them flat. They hold together perfectly on a burger or in a BLT. He saw the technique on television and he's been doing it this way ever since. Pretty cool isn't it?