“Recycler” Patty Melt

There always seems to be one.

Whenever you grill burgers, it never fails. There’s one straggler than makes its way into the fridge because nobody can seem to cram any more food down their gullet after two burgers, at least one hot dog, chips and dip, fries and/or tots and/or onion rings, and no telling how many fizzy beverages. Oh, and don’t forget the baked beans. But the next day, who really wants to eat it? The microwave or toaster oven will just dry it out further, the oven and grill are both overkill, and even so, they just don’t have the same great flavor. What to do? Patty Melt.

Butter up a couple pieces of bread, throw one in a hot frying pan and add the leftover burger. If it has a leftover slice of American “cheese product” fused to its surface from the night before, tails wins the toss. Then cover the other side with another slice, but if you have it, mix it up a little with white American this time, or better yet, Swiss or mozzarella. For this one I used mozzarella.

Finish it off with the other slice, turning it a time or two until it’s golden brown like a grilled cheese sandwich. If you want to get fancy with it, A-1 makes a great dipping sauce for this one.