Serves 2-4 | Prep 10 min | Cook 10 min | Whole30 compliant
USWM Shopping List: Sugar-Free Bacon, Ground Beef, Seasonings
The Elvis Burger is one of the “You Know How You Could Do That?” variations included in the SB&J Burger recipe in Well Fed 2.
In case you’re not familiar with the wonder that is the Elvis, allow me to enlighten you. It’s a grilled peanut butter, banana, and bacon sandwich with an optional drizzle of honey. We committed to that thing like Elvis zipping up his spangle suit: squishy white bread, Peter Pan peanut butter, thick bacon, plenty of honey, and tons of butter in the pan for frying. It was glorious — and a once-in-a-lifetime event.
We ate a life-changing peanut-butter-and-jelly burger at the 26 Beach restaurant in Venice, California, and when we got home, I invented the SB&J Burger — made with Sunbutter and strawberries sautéed with ginger. Last year, when I started testing recipes for Well Fed 2, I revisited the SB&J Burger, and in a blinding flash of inspiration (and dare I say “rock-n-roll genius”), I realized I could combine the SB&J with the Elvis.
As my sweet friend Summer has been known to say, “Awesome kicked me in the face.”
Ingredients:
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4 slices sugar-free bacon
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2 medium bananas, peeled and diced
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1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
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1 pound ground beef
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3/4 teaspoon salt
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1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
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1/4 cup sunflower seed or almond butter (no sugar added)
Directions:
1 Preheat a gas grill with all burners on high, lid closed, 10-15 minutes.
2 Mix the ground beef with salt and pepper and shape into four patties. Gently press down the center of each patty until it’s about 1/2-inch thick to make a slight depression; this will prevent them from turning bulbous when you cook them. Grill patties, uncovered and without pressing down on them, until they’re seared on one side, about 3 minutes. Flip the burgers and continue grilling to desired temperature: 3 minutes for rare, 4 minutes for medium, and 5 minutes for well-done.
Note: You can also pan-fry or bake the burgers. On the stovetop, cook in a nonstick skillet, 5 minutes, then flip and continue to cook: 3 minutes for rare, 4 minutes for medium, 5 minutes for well-done. In the oven, bake at 400F for 20-25 minutes.
3 While the burgers are cooking, cut the bacon into 1-inch pieces. Place in a cold, nonstick skillet, then turn heat to medium-high and cook until browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon to a paper towel to drain. Pour all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat out of the pan. Add the bananas and ginger to the pan and sauté until soft and lightly browned, about 3-5 minutes. Set aside.
4 Place the sunflower butter in a microwave-safe dish (or saucepan) and heat until thinned, about 40 seconds in the microwave.
5 When the burgers are good to go, top each with 1 tablespoon of melted sunflower butter and a few tablespoons of the bananas, then sprinkle with bacon. Feel free to sing your favorite Elvis tune while you chow down. I like this one because this burger is a hunka hunka burnin’ yum.
Our thanks to Melissa Joulwan for this outrageous recipe. Melissa is the author of the best-selling Well Fed cookbook series and the blog www.MelJoulwan.com, where she writes about her triumphs and failures in the gym, in the kitchen, and in life. Her newest cookbook is Well Fed Weeknights: Complete Paleo Meals in 45 Minutes Or Less (November 1, 2016).
