I’m a huge fan of Adam Richman, the host of “Man vs. Food” on the Travel Channel (my brother gets the credit for telling me about the show), and a couple weeks ago I saw him eat something that has not been able to leave my mind. It’s a burger called the Juicy Lucy that was invented in Minneapolis. The cheese is stuffed inside the burger instead of melted on top, so that when you bite into it a font of gloriously melted cheese comes rushing out. Genius. Behold, my version of the Juicy Lucy.

I made some changes to make it a somewhat healthy meal, the sweet potatoes as a side dish and spinach inside the burger helps to up the nutritional value a little.

(Sorry in advance for the lack of pictures, this has been a crazy week and I was making dinner in a hurry!)

The Cheese-Stuffed Burger

• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 2 cups raw chopped spinach
• 1/2 onion, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 slices cheese (I used cheddar)
• 2 t. salt
• 1 t. pepper
• olive oil
• 1/4 c. ketchup
• 1 T. mayonnaise

-Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and sautee the garlic and onion in a little olive oil until they are soft and lightly brown. Add chopped spinach and cook a few minutes longer. Remove from heat.

-While the spinach mixture cools, combine the beef, salt, and pepper in a large bowl using a wooden spoon. Add the spinach to the beef and mix well.

-Divide the beef into four balls. Each ball will become a burger. Split each ball into two thin patties. To assemble each burger, first lay one thin patty on the cutting board.

-Fold a cheese slice over twice to make a small square of cheese. Place it in the center of the patty.

-Take another thin patty and place it on top of the cheese. Pinch the edges of the two patties together.

-Heat a large grill pan or skillet to high heat while you assemble the burgers. Grill the burgers to desired doneness (well done takes about 10 minutes).

-Combine ketchup and mayonnaise in a small bowl to make a “special sauce” to top the burgers. Serve on toasted whole wheat buns. Makes 4 quarter pound burgers.

Sweet Potato Wedges

• 3 sweet potatoes
• 2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. turmeric
• 1/4 t. paprika
• 1/4 t. cinnamon
• 1/4 t. black pepper
• 1/4 c. olive oil

-Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Wash the sweet potatoes thoroughly and cut them into wedges.

-Add the rest of the ingredients to the sweet potatoes and toss to combine well.

-Arrange the wedges in a single layer on a cookie sheet.

-Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until tender and golden brown. Remove from pan and drain on a paper towel over a plate.

Serve potato wedges and burger together while warm with ketchup or whatever else you like on the side!

Thanks for reading!