Disney Gals: Food & Wine Festival at Home

So tasty, I had to make it at home!

Although the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival ended earlier this week, that doesn't mean the party can’t live on in our hearts and our stomachs. Probably one of the easiest dishes to make at home was the Grass-fed Beef Slider at the Florida Local booth. It was served up with Monterey Jack cheese and Sweet and Hot Pickles. You can make these sliders at home with any ground beef you have available, but eating grass-fed, rather than grain-fed beef, is what makes these sliders stand apart from your every day mini burger.

Costs a bit more, but worth it.

I could take a tangent here and explain the difference, and why my family eats grass-fed over grain-fed meat, but then I’d never get to the recipe. Skip on over to my blog if you really want to know why I eat the way I do. If you’re looking for grass-fed beef, nix the supermarket and head to the nearest butcher; even better, visit the butcher at your local farmer’s market. Grass-fed meat is usually more expensive, but is totally worth every penny. For burgers, opt for meat that has a higher fat content and you’ll get a more flavorful, juicy burger. If you are as lucky as I am, there’s also a cheese counter at our farmer’s market, so I picked up Monterey jack cheese, sliced just for me there, too.

Here’s the scoop…

1 lb. grass fed ground beef (makes about 8 sliders)
2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
¼ tsp. Fresh ground black pepper
½ tsp. Granulated garlic
¼ tsp. Lawry’s seasoned salt (optional)
Monterey Jack Cheese
Small dinner rolls
Sweet & Hot pickles
Whatever else you want to add!

Quickly mix all ingredients by hand with the beef. Be careful not to handle the meat too much, as it makes tough burgers.
Form patties just a bit larger than the bread because they will shrink. I like to make mine into little squares so they cover every inch of the bread.

Patties in progress...
Cook the patties over medium/high heat, in a cast iron skillet or outside on a grill. Only turn them once. Repeated turning dries out your burger.
Avoid over cooking. A great burger is usually medium/well. Cook them to the temperature you prefer.
After you flip the burger, add a slice of cheese on top so it melts as your burger finishes cooking.
We picked up dinner rolls from the bakery at our farmer’s market and sliced them in half. At the Food & Wine Festival, sweet and hot pickles served as garnish. You can pick those up from your local grocer. Sliders are highly customizable. Pile on whatever you want! Remember, a thin layer of mayonnaise or lettuce on the bottom will keep your slider’s bread from getting soggy.

Yummity, yum yum!