Monstrous Burger

So, I follow this wonderful Instagram account @eattrainlove which features many paleo recipes.  Yesterday she posted a photo of portobello burgers and I absolutely HAD TO try it!

Here is my result:

YUM!  There are so many non-paleo foods that I don't miss but every now and then I crave a burger.  I am so excited to have found/created a non-bread burger!!  Here's how I put this together:

• Wash the portobello.  Take the stem and scales off the portobello, coat very lightly with olive oil & put it in the oven at 350 for about 10 minutes.  Use your judgment on this y'all - if your mushroom is large & thick you're going to have to leave it in there longer than if you pick a mushroom that's thin and flat.  I recommend using a thinner mushroom or thinning it out yourself so you get more of the juicy burger patty flavor without it being completely overtaken by mushroom flavor.  If you haven't had a portobello mushroom, I'm letting you know now - portobellos have their own rich strong savory smell & flavor so you're going to get some of that flavor on your burger no matter what.
• Prep the bacon.  I prepped mine in the grill side of my Cuisinart Griddler (yay wedding presents!).  
• Grill up your patties - yes, right there in that little bit of goodness left over from the bacon.  My griddler functions much like a George Forman where the grease drips out of what I'm cooking but the bit of bacon goodness that remained was sufficient.  I made my patties using grass fed organic beef, salt, pepper, and onions.
• Place your bacon and your patty between two of those mushroom caps!  Feel free to add whatever you like on your burgers.  I added avocado (because I love it and it is so good for you).  The hubby added ketchup. If you're not following the paleo diet (but you're using mushrooms in place of bread?), put some slices of cheese up on there.

There were a number of things I really liked about this recipe.  First, it has meat And the "meat of the vegetarian world" i.e. portobellos.  I put carnivore meat together with vegetarian "meat".  I'm not sure if that's brilliant or blasphemy but I really like the end result.  Second, this is a recipe I can really sink my teeth into.  It has more of a hamburger feel than something like the Mooyah burger that comes wrapped in lettuce.  I'm totally not dissing on lettuce burgers, but portobello burgers are a welcome alternative.

One last thought.  Be selective with what you put in your body.  One of the main reasons the paleo diet appeals to me is because it is based on eating what nature provides. There are no magic potions, no extreme calorie limitations, or tricks or gimmicks.  I try to keep that as the focus - I'm trying to eat what nature provides me and I'm trying to eat it in a more natural manner. I try to accomplish that by going free-range, grass-fed, cage-free, etc.  Does your meat look like this?

If you try this recipe, let me know how it turns out!