PESTO PORK BLENDED BURGERS WITH AVOCADO PESTO MAYONNAISE, GRILLED ONIONS, PICKLED CUKES, AND BACON

Pickle your cukes! Combine the cider vinegar, water, sugar, and salt in a sauce pan and bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves.  Place the cukes in a large jar and pour the hot liquid over them.  Shake vigorously so all of the cukes are coated.  Let sit at room temperature, shaking occasionally while you prepare the rest of the burger components.  They will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

To make the pesto, place the basil, garlic, parmesan, and pistachios in the bowl of a food processor and pulse 4 or 5 times until everything begins to break down. Then, turn the processor on low speed and drizzle in the olive oil until a paste forms.  Scrape down the sides and pulse until everything is evenly incorporated.  Place the pesto in a bowl, tightly covered with plastic wrap and set aside.

To make the avocado pesto mayo, put ¾ cup of the pesto back in the food processor along with the avocado, mayonnaise, zest, lemon juice, and salt and puree until smooth.  Place in a small bowl in the fridge until ready to assemble burgers.

Preheat your grill to 400 degrees.

To make the patties, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add the mushrooms and wine to the pan and cook the mushrooms are soft and all of the moisture has cooked off, about 4-5 minutes.  Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and continue cooking for another minute until it is absorbed and mushrooms begin to lightly brown.  Remove to a small bow and cool to room temperature.  You can place the small bowl in a larger bowl filled with ice to speed up the cooling process if desired.

Place the cooled mushrooms, ground pork, salt, pepper, and pesto in a large bowl and massage everything together with your hands until well combined.  Form this mixture into 6 equal patties.  Drizzle the patties with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and turn to coat to help prevent sticking on the grill.

Place the onions on a cutting board and drizzle with olive oil and season with the salt and pepper.  Rub with your fingers to evenly coat the onions.

Place the burgers and the onions on the preheated grill and close the lid.  Cook for 2 minutes and turn the onions over with tongs.  They should have nice grill marks on the first side.  Leave the burgers as is and close the lid again and cook for 2-3 more minutes.  The onions should now be tender and nicely grilled.  Gingerly remove them from the grill with tongs to a plate, holding the slices together as much as possible.

Flip the burgers and cook for 4-5 minutes more on the other side until cooked through and internal temperature measures 160 degrees.  Top each burger with a slice of cheese and close the lid until just melted, about 1 minute.  Remove and tent with foil to keep warm.

Brush the insides of the buns with olive oil and toast for 1 minute on the grill until lightly browned.

To assemble the burgers, spread 1 ½ tablespoons of the avocado mayo on the bottom of one toasted bun.  Top with a burger and one of the grilled onion slices.  Cut a strip of bacon in half and place in the form of an ‘x’ on top of the onions.  Top with 3 or 4 pickled cucumber slices.  Spread another tablespoon of the mayo on the top bun and place on the burger.

Pesto palooza!  These yummy pork burgers have mushrooms and basil-pistachio pesto woven throughout the patties and an avocado pesto mayo that will rock your taste buds.  The juicy patties are topped with melty provolone, smoky grilled onions, tangy pickled cucumbers, and salty bacon.  It is all encompassed between a soft brioche bun (with that pesto mayo slathered on both the top and the bottom)!! A flavor bomb explosion in every bite!!