By Mike Thayer 

Can a person get tired of eating just burgers?  HECK NO!

In a celebration of summer, yours truly is celebrating with what is THE iconic food of summer, the burger.  For a week, lunch and dinner will feature some sort of burger, starting off with a classic cheeseburger and then going on an adventure from there.  The adventure will travel through flavors from around the globe, Mexican, Mediterranean, Asian and more!  There will be a variety in spices, toppings and meats!

For Day 4, it's lunch in the Mediterranean!  This burger features ground lamb and melds together all the classic flavors of the Mediterranean.  There's feta cheese, hummus, Kalamata olives and more in this great burger.   It was another dose of YUM!

The Mediterranean Burger

Ingredients:

• One pound of ground lamb
• One Tablespoon of Herbs de Provence
• One teaspoon oregano
• 3 ounces of crumbled feta cheese
• A pinch of table salt
• A few grinds of fresh ground black pepper
• Hamburger buns, sesame seed or kaiser
• Sliced tomato
• Sliced cucumber
• Sliced red onion
• Lettuce
• Ready made hummus
• Kalamata olive spread
• A few tabs of butter to toast the buns

Directions:
In a large bowl, mix the ground lamb, Herbs de Provence, oregano, feta cheese, salt and pepper until incorporated.  Do not overmix.  Form mixture into patties.  Grill the burgers over direct heat, about five minutes per side.  While the burgers are on the grill getting happy, put together the Kalamata olive spread and slice your veggie toppings.  Toast the buns in butter and then dress the bottom bun with the hummus and the top bun with the olive spread.  Assemble the burgers and enjoy!  

For the Kalamata olive spread:  In a blender or food processor mix together 1/2 cup of pitted Kalamata olives, a pinch of sugar, a pinch of dill, a generous pinch of parsley some fresh ground black pepper and about 2 Tablespoons of good olive oil (add slowly). 

This burger cost only about $3.00 to prepare.  Try spending just that at a fast food restaurant for all that Mediterranean deliciousness!

Stay tuned for more great burger recipes like the "Classic," "Idaho," "Meatloaf," "Pizza," "Thanksgiving," "Cajun," "Mediterranean" and more, it's the Burger Challenge!