Monday Menu ~ Stuffed Burgers & Peach Pie

I've been a bit on the "too busy" side lately. Busyness drives me nuts. And sometimes "too busy" is more of an attitude and habit than a reality. Some unfortunate times it is a reality. It's been a bit of both for me lately, and I'm screeching it to a halt as much as I can. The rest I'll just deal with. One of my symptoms of "too busy" is becoming indecisive. I think it's my brain trying to force itself to go into a pause mode. I also get very random, which is why I've just rambled an entire paragraph without even addressing a recipe. But it does relate, I promise. How? I couldn't decide which recipe to post today, and since I've been a general slacker at this over the summer, I decided to just do two! I have no picture of the burgers, because that's tomorrow night's dinner. And I really dislike a recipe without a picture...so the peach pie picture will have to do. It's round, like the burger. So put on your imagination and create a great mental picture of this super yummy burger!

Feta Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Burgers

(this is adapted from a Food Network burger cook off a couple years ago)

3/4 cup mayonnaise

8-10 basil leaves, chopped

6 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup drained & chopped sun-dried tomatoes (oil packed)

2 pounds ground sirloin

2 medium eggs, slightly beaten

1 TBSP Tabasco pepper sauce

2 TBSP dried Italian seasoning (crushed)

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs

1/2cup freshly grated Parmesan

12 sandwich-sized focaccia bread squares, about 1/2-inch thick, or 6 ciabatta rolls

romaine lettuce

red onion

In a small bowl, mix together mayo and basil. Set aside. In another small bowl, combine the feta and tomatoes. Divide mixture into 6 equal portions, forming balls. In a large bowl, combine ground sirloin with eggs, Tabasco, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, garlic, bread crumbs, and Parmesan. With hands or a large spoon, gently combine all ingredients; do not over mix. Form mixture into 12 patties. On 6 of the patties, place a feta/tomato ball, pressing down lightly. Place remaining patties on top, press and seal edges to totally enclose filling, forming 6 total patties.

Brush a preheated grill rack with vegetable oil. Place patties on grill and cook over medium-hot heat for 4 minutes. Flip and cook for another 4 minutes, or until cooked through.

During last few minutes of grilling, place focaccia or sliced ciabatta rolls onto the grill to lightly toast.

Spread basil mayo over rolls, top with burgers, romaine lettuce and red onion rings and roll top. Yum, yum. Can't wait for dinner tomorrow...

Streusel-Topped Peach Pie

1 egg white

1 unbaked pie shell (9-inches)

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces

6 cups sliced, peeled fresh peaches

Beat egg white until foamy; brush over the bottom and sides of the pastry. In a small bowl, combine the flour and sugars; cut in butter until mixture looks like fine bread crumbs. Sprinkle 2/3 of the mixture over the bottom of the crust; top with peaches. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top. Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes, or until filling is bubbly and the peaches are tender. This is really good with vanilla ice cream. It's especially good after the kids have gone to bed and you don't have to share any...Enjoy!