LOCAL REPUBLIC’S PEPPER JACK LOVES FRAGGLE ROCK SMASH BURGER

To make a smash burger, you need a griddle or a big cast-iron skillet, a sturdy spatula and a great ventilation system. There’s a lot of splattering and smoke involved. The patties cook so quickly that you can turn out burger after burger in short order.

For Gwinnett’s Burger Week this year, Local Republic paired their smash burgers with pepper jack cheese, house-pickled cucumbers and caramelized onions. They accompanied the burgers with Cajunseasoned fries.

2 (3.5-ounce) patties 80/20 ground beef, rolled into balls

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons Burger Sauce

(see recipe)

2 teaspoons thinly sliced

yellow onion

2 (1-ounce) slices pepper jack Hamburger bun, toasted Dill pickles, for garnish

Heat large, dry cast-iron skillet over high heat until small puffs of smoke begin to appear.

Place ground beef balls in hot skillet. Top each with a square of parchment paper and use a heavy spatula to press down on each ball, making as thin a patty as possible. Remove parchment paper and discard. Sprinkle patties with salt and

pepper and top each with 1 tablespoon burger sauce and 1 teaspoon onion. Cook until patty has browned on the bottom, about 2 minutes. Carefully scrape the patty from the skillet to keep all the browned bits and turn to brown the second side. Immediately top each patty with a slice of cheese and continue cooking 1 minute. Move 1 patty on top of the other, then move the stacked patties to the bottom of the burger bun. Garnish with pickles, add the top of the bun and serve immediately.

Serves 1.

Per serving: 850 calories (percent of calories from fat, 62), 54 grams protein, 24 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 59 grams total fat (26 grams saturated), 202 milligrams cholesterol, 1,024 milligrams sodium.

The Pepper Jack Loves Fraggle Rock Smash Burger comes oozing with tasty pepper jack.