First I want to say, “I’ve been a really good girl for the past 90 days!”

I’ve been eating fresh fruits, fresh veggies and proteins. No carbs to speak of, almost no fat [mayo, butter and the like] and very little sugar. It’s paid off. Big time!  My jeans bag along behind me like they belong to someone else—someone about three sizes bigger than me today.  Yay!

But… sometimes ya gotta have a burger!

So today I made my famous
Blue Cheese Dressing

THE ORIGINAL: (enough for the restaurant) 1/2 gallon Mayonnaise 1 1/4 pounds Blue Cheese 1 1/4 pounds large curd Cottage Cheese 1 1/4 pounds Sour Cream 1/4 cup Lemon Juice 1/4 Tablespoon Garlic Powder 1/4 cup Sherry 1/3 cup Sugar 1 teaspoon Salt 1/2 Tablespoon Tabasco Sauce 1/8 cup Worcestershire 1 raw egg

HALF: (about two quarts) 1 quart Mayonnaise 10 ounces Blue Cheese 10 ounces large curd Cottage Cheese 10 ounces Sour Cream 3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice 1/8 Tablespoon Garlic Powder 2 Tablespoons Sherry 8 teaspoons Sugar 1/2 Teaspoon Salt 1/4 Tablespoon Tabasco Sauce 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

QUARTER: (enough for the two of us) 2 cups Mayonnaise 4 ounces Blue Cheese 6 ounces large curd Cottage Cheese 6 ounces Sour Cream 2 Tablespoon Lemon Juice 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder 2 Tablespoons Sherry 1 Tablespoon Sugar 1/4 teaspoon Salt dash Tabasco Sauce 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

Just in case you wondered – Bill and Chris Yeager closed their restaurant in the 80’s and retired. So far as I know there is absolutely no reason not to share their recipe freely and it’s just too wonderful to remain a secret anymore.

And I also baked a batch of
Homemade Hamburger Buns

Wonderful, and so easy

1 cup warm water
1 egg
2 Tablespoons butter
3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
3 teaspoons active dry yeast

Dissolve the yeast & 1 Tablespoon of the sugar in 1/3 of the warm water. Let it proof for about 5 minutes or until it’s very bubbly. Meanwhile whisk the egg and soft butter into the remaining 2/3 cup water.

Measure the flour and salt into a mixer bowl and stir to combine.  Add the remainder of the sugar and stir again.  Add the liquid mixtures and, using a dough hook, knead for at least 10 to 15 minutes. It will be sticky, but that’s not a problem.

Cover with a damp cloth and allow it to rise in a warm place for about an hour or until it is doubled in bulk.

Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and knead it by hand for a minute or so, until it looks smooth and the air bubbles are gone.

Divide the dough into eight equal portions and form very smooth, round balls. Place the buns on a greased sheet pan and brush them with an egg wash. (1 egg beaten with about a tablespoon of water)

If you like seeded buns, now would be the time to sprinkle on sesame or poppy seeds, or perhaps a little kosher salt.  Put the pan in a warm place and let the buns rise until they are doubled in size. About 25 – 30 minutes.  At this point pre-heat the oven to 375° F.  Bake  for 17 – 20 minutes or until golden.

Now while all of this sounds like a ton of work…it really is not. And it is so worth the time and effort. When the rolls came out of the oven, I fried up two nice big hamburger patties, cut the buns in half, toasted them slightly, slathered them with the dressing, added slices of home grown onion and tomato, a leaf of lettuce and a pickle. You can not buy a burger anywhere that I know of that tastes this amazing.

About the time we were half way through the meal, I suddenly remembered I was gonna tell you about it, so here’s the best burger anywhere, minus half. Sorry about that….it’s just been so long, and it tasted so.o.o good.

I hope you won’t be put off by my half eaten burger. I hope you’ll give these old fashioned favorites a try in your kitchen.

You won’t be sorry you did.  I promise.