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September 18th is National Cheeseburger Day, and October 18th is National Meatloaf Appreciation Day. So how about combining them into a Cheeseburger Meatloaf recipe (photo #1)?
It’s the creation of Beverly Goldberg, author of The Goldbergs Cookbook (photo #2). Inspiration came when she was contemplating new comfort food recipes.
“Once I discovered I could combine cheeseburger and lasagna, I started to wonder what other dishes I could mash together in the name of dinner science,” she says.
One of the results: this delightful Cheeseburger Meatloaf. It’s one of the meaty recipes in the cookbook below.
For those who might like a Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf, we’ve added a couple of extra steps.
> 15 yummy cheeseburger recipes
The history of the cheeseburger is below.
> The history of hamburgers.
> The history of cheese.
RECIPE: CHEESEBURGER MEATLOAF
Ingredients For 8 Servings
For The Meatloaf
Vegetable oil for greasing
2½ pounds ground beef
½ cup diced onion
½ cup plain breadcrumbs
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1½ tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
To Make It A Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf
2 slices thick cut bacon diced for the mixed beef
4 slices thick cut bacon for garnish
For Finishing
10 slices American cheese
1/3 cup ketchup
5 frozen onion rings, baked
Preparation
1. MAKE the meatloaf. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a loaf pan with oil.
2. COMBINE in a bowl the beef, onion, breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, eggs, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper, and optional diced bacon. Press the beef mixture into the loaf pan. Top vertically with the 4 slices of thick cut bacon.
3. BAKE for 70 to 80 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 160°F. Don’t overcook; it will dry out the meatloaf. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes; then cut the meatloaf into thirds, lengthwise.
If using bacon: Bake for 50 to 60 minutes and test for an internal temperature of 165°. If the bacon isn’t crisped on top, turn the oven to broil and carefully broil the bacon until crispy.
4. FINISH the meatloaf. Using a serving platter, place 5 slices of cheese on top of the bottom layer of meatloaf. Stack the second layer of meat, add 5 more
slices of cheese, then top with the last layer of meat.
5. SPREAD the ketchup on top and add the onion rings to serve.
THE HISTORY OF CHEESEBURGERS
Adding cheese to hamburgers first became popular in 1920, with several competing claims as to who created the first cheeseburger.
The original. Lionel Sternberger of Pasadena, California is reputed to have created the cheeseburger in 1924. At the tender age of 16, he was working as a fry cook at his father’s sandwich shop, The Rite Spot. On a whim, he “experimentally dropped a slab of American cheese on a sizzling hamburger.” It delighted customers, and was named “The Aristocratic Burger.” It’s the first recorded instance of a hamburger with cheese served to a customer. While The Rite Spot is long gone, the site is now home to the L.A. Financial Credit Union. On January 5, 2017, the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce and the Credit Union unveiled a plaque commemorating the invention of the cheeseburger.
The chili cheeseburger. A chili cheeseburger is listed on a 1928 menu for O’Dell’s restaurant in Los Angeles.
A pretender. Kaelin’s Restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, established in 1934 (and still operating), claims to have invented the cheeseburger, calling itself the “birthplace of the cheeseburger.” While that’s not likely, it does have some authenticated culinary fame: A cook named Harland Sanders made what would become his famous chicken at Kaelin’s. What became KFC was first served at Kaelin’s [source].
Trademark. In 1935, a trademark for the name “cheeseburger” was granted to Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Barrel Drive-In in Denver, Colorado, who claimed to have invented it. The restaurant is long gone, but there’s a granite marker where it once stood. He never enforced the trademark, allowing “cheeseburger” to become a generic term. But, he did hang a sign on the restaurant reading “Home Of The Original Cheeseburger” [source]. The trademark has since expired.
Bacon cheeseburger. An A&W Restaurants franchise in Lansing, Michigan, is credited with inventing the bacon cheeseburger in 1963, putting it on the menu after repeated requests from customers [source].
According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Americans consume an average of 2.4 burgers per day, which is about 50 billion burgers per year [source]. That number includes cheeseburgers, but it isn’t broken out.
According to GrubHub, the most eaten and most popular burger in the world by far is the cheeseburger [source].
According a survey by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, the cheeseburger is indeed the winner, with regular and large sizes and the bacon cheeseburger totaling 72% of burgers consumed. The percentages are:
Regular Burger: 13%
Regular Cheeseburger: 20%
Large Cheeseburger: 39%
Large Burger: 15%
Bacon Cheeseburger: 13%
Who eats the most burgers? Oregon tops the list, followed by Arizona and Utah a close second and third, and Utah, New Mexico, and Michigan rounded out the top five.
The top three states at the bottom, starting with the lowest, are D.C., New York, and Massachusetts [source].
ABOUT THE GOLDBERGS COOKBOOK
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[1] The Cheeseburger Meatloaf (photos #1 and #2 © Universe Publishing).
[2] Get the book.
[3] More cheeseburger creativity: two types of cheese, bacon, bacon jam, and a large jalapeño garnish (photo © Dave Spataro | Aussie Grill).
[4] Combine breakfast and lunch with this ham-and-egg cheeseburger (photo © Chad Montano | Unsplash).
[5] A cheeseburger topped with sauteed mushrooms and onions (photo © Good Eggs).
[6] A cheeseburger with Swiss cheese, sliced onions, and pickles (photo © Truffle Melbourne | Facebook).
[7] Another yummy option: a cheeseburger with Jarlsberg cheese, Cheddar, jalapeño slices, and onion rings (photo © Jarlsberg USA | Facebook).
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