Heidi over at 101 Cookbooks has an amazing recipe for Banana Chip Cookie Recipe that you will want to check out this summer.

If you have travelled to Australia, you may have already experienced these hamburgers-with-the-works. Stacked high with sliced beets, bacon, egg, cheese, onions and more, this is a meal-in-a-bun!

• Cooking oil | 1 tbsp.
• Medium onions, thinly sliced | 3
• Large eggs (optional) | 6
• Finely chopped onion | 3/4 cup
• Fresh bread crumbs | 1/3 cup
• Large egg, fork-beaten | 1
• Barbecue sauce | 2 tbsp.
• Salt | 1/4 tsp.
• Pepper | 1/4 tsp.
• Lean ground beef | 1 lb.
• Hamburger buns, split | 6
• Barbecue sauce | 1/3 cup
• Can of sliced beets (12 - 18 slices)
• Cheddar cheese slices | 6
• Medium tomatoes, sliced | 2
• Bacon slices, cooked almost crisp |
• Green leaf lettuce leaves | 6

1. Preheat barbecue to medium. Heat cooking oil on griddle or in large cast-iron pan on barbecue. Add onion. Cook for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until softened. Remove onion to medium bowl. Cover to keep warm.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low. Break 3 eggs onto same griddle. When eggs start to set, add about 1 tbsp. (15 mL) water. Cover. Cook for about 1 minute until egg whites are set and yolks reach desired doneness, adding more water if needed. Remove eggs to plate. Cover to keep warm. Repeat with remaining 3 eggs.
3. Combine next 6 ingredients in large bowl. Add ground beef. Mix well. Divide and shape into 6 patties, about 5 inches (12.5 cm) in diameter. Increase heat to medium. Cook patties on greased grill for about 6 minutes per side until no longer pink inside.
4. Place buns, cut-side down, on greased grill. Toast until lightly browned.
5. Spread second amount of barbecue sauce on bottom half of each bun. Top each with patty, onion, beets, cheese, egg, tomato, bacon and lettuce. Cover with top half of each bun. Makes 6 burgers.

1. Chili sauce | 1 1/2 cups
2. White vinegar | 1 cup
3. Brown sugar, packed | 1 cup
4. Mustard seed | 2 tsp.
5. Celery salt | 1/2 tsp.
6. Worcestershire sauce | 1 tbsp.
7. Liquid smoke | 1/2 tsp.
8. Minced onion flakes | 1/4 cup
9. Fancy (mild) molasses | 1/2 cup
10. Water | 1/2 cup
11. Cornstarch | 3 tbsp.

Put first 9 ingredients into medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Stir water into cornstarch in small cup until smooth. Gradually stir into chili sauce mixture. Heat and stir until boiling and thickened. Cool. Pour into jars with tight-fitting lids. Keep in refrigerator. Sauce can also be frozen. Makes 4 cups.

Ingredients:

• 5 avocados - peeled, pitted, and mashed
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3/4 minced green onion
• 1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Stir together the avocado and lemon juice in a serving bowl; add the green onion and cilantro; mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately or store covered in refrigerator with avocado pits in the bowl to keep from browning.

Ingredients

• 2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - chopped
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 1 (12 ounce) package corn tortilla chips, or as needed 1 (8 ounce) package shredded Mexican-style cheese blend
• 1 (7 ounce) can diced green chilies, drained

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, stir together the chicken, vegetable oil, and cayenne pepper. Let stand for 15 minutes, or longer if desired.
2. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken mixture, and fry until chicken is no longer pink. Remove from heat, and set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Spread a thin layer of tortilla chips in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle 1/4 of the chicken, 1/4 of the chilies, and 1/4 of the cheese over the chips. Repeat layers ending with cheese on the top.
4. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until the cheese is melted and everything is heated through. Serve with your favorite nacho toppings.

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 lb. Gruyere cheese, shredded (or 1/2 lb Gruyere + 1/2 lb Emmental cheese
• 3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• A splash or two of kirsch (opt)

Toss the cheese with the flour. Rub the interior of a medium saucepan with the peeled garlic. Place over medium heat and add the wine. Bring to a simmer and add the cheese mixture, one handful at a time. Stir in the nutmeg.

Stir over low heat until smooth and cheese is melted and bubbling. Add a splash or two of kirsch (opt). Continue stirring until it starts to bubble just a bit. Transfer the cheese mixture to a fondue pot and you are ready for dipping. Continue to stir frequently.

To dip

• Fruits: sliced bananas, apples, pears, peaches, or pineapples, orange sections, strawberries, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, or grapes.
• Breads: crusty French or Italian bread, pita wedges, fresh tortillas, tortilla chips, croissants, breadsticks, naan, mixed-grain bread, focaccia...
• Blanched vegetables: broccoli, asparagus, green beans, snow peas, or snap peas. Blanch in a pot of lightly salted boiling water for a minute or two to soften them up just a bit.
• Raw or roasted vegetables: cherry tomatoes, red bell pepper slices, celery sticks, roasted potato wedges, roasted sweet potatoes, or roasted mushrooms.

Heidi at 101 Cookbooks has a great recipe for garlic bread over on her blog.

Keith Law has some excellent cooking tips.

Salt. The food police have everyone running scared of good old sodium chloride, but it’s incredibly important from a culinary perspective as a flavor in and of itself and as a flavor enhancer. Salt intensifies other flavors in every dish by hitting the fifth taste known as umami; without salt, most foods will taste bland, flat, or even stale. Salting foods early in the process allows you to use less salt in total because you can often infuse your foods with salt by dissolving salt in the cooking liquid. Pasta water should always be heavily salted, and the cooking liquids for small grains like rice, barley, or quinoa should also have salt. Seasoning the exterior of meats helps prepare the surface for the Maillard reaction that occurs during the application of direct heat on a grill or on a stovetop pan, producing that brown crust that, for me, is the #1 argument against vegetarianism. I prefer kosher salt for most applications because it doesn’t dissolve too quickly and is easily pinched due to the coarse grain size, but I use table salt for baking because kosher salt will not integrate evenly in most doughs and batters.