As strange as it sounds, I find hamburger patties to be a highly practical component to make with meal prep for the week ahead. If you can push past the memories of sweltering summertime barbecues with greasy overdone meat, I promise there's a way to make hamburger patties so that they're extremely appetizing and nutrient-dense. 

Beyond nutrients and taste, ground pastured pork and grass-fed beef are relatively inexpensive. Keep in mind that unlike cows, pigs are not grass eaters and therefore their meat should be labeled as simply "pastured". This means they were raised in the fields but hopefully were given high-quality, organic feed. 

You could go with all grass-fed beef here but the two meats are incredibly flavorful blended together work in a diverse range of meals. I throw these hamburger patties on top of salads, alongside roasted vegetables, and sometimes I crumble them into a filling for tacos. 

Ingredients

patties 

• 1 lb pastured pork, ground

• 1 lb grass-fed beef, ground

hamburgers 

• sprouted bread, I used homemade gluten free sprouted sourdough

• avocado

• raw broccoli sprouts

• shiitake mushrooms, sliced

• a few dashes of coconut aminos

• 1/2 of a lime

• celtic sea salt + pepper

Method

Blend together the two meats in a medium bowl until evenly incorporated. I like to measure out the patties to 4 oz. on a scale to ensure evenness before shaping and pressing to 3/4" thick. 

Heat an 8" cast iron skillet over a medium/low flame, cook 3 patties at a time. Cook 4 - 5 minutes on each side. If using as meal prep for the week ahead, cool before storing in glass containers. 

If making into hamburgers, sautée mushrooms in a few dashes of coconut aminos until they begin to sweat. Slice sprouted bread and toast if desired. Next, slice the avocado and remove broccoli sprouts from their roots. Assemble hamburgers with a squeeze of fresh lime juice, season with celtic sea salt + pepper.