Since a smattering of home chefs reacted positively to an earlier Instagram about Chock-Fulla Burgers, I figured now would be as good a time as any to publish the recipe. Like all good recipes that parents can make for their kids, it's quick, easy, and as nutritious as your kids will let you get away with. For the Three French Men, it combines a boy's love of carnage with a father's love of Please Eat Something.
First of all, my boys don't eat a lot of red meat at home. We love getting burgers out for French Fryday, but in our kitchen, we're all about the turkey. And since turkey is the blandest thing ever, I spice it up with garlic powder, soy sauce, thyme, and a little Worcestershire.
The other important thing about this meat is that it needs to hold together well during the re-adhesion phase. So I throw in an egg and follow up with as much breadcrumb as is needed. How much is enough? You'll know.
Separate the meat into patties, then divide each patty in half and lay them opposite each other. Now the fun part begins, because the stuffing is limited only by what your kids will eat. In keeping with their wants, tastes, and outlooks, my sons have grown diametically opposite in terms of their tastes. The 7yo is still a sport and will eat mostly anything; his favorite combo is the Super P because 1) it contains pickles, parmesan, pepper, and potato chips, and 2) it has the word "PEE" in it!
His older brother keeps it simple with a liberal dollop of ketchup, which he likes to call "Disaster at the Ketchup Factory." (I proposed adding ham and calling it "Ham-Fisted Heart Surgery," but he wrinkled his nose.)
Lay the goodies in the patties as shown, leaving half an inch or so of meat-border. Place the goodied half in your palm, lay the second patty on top, and work your way around to attach them, being careful to smoosh the meat together firmly. Burger leakage is a no-no, because if you can't stab it later and watch the guts ooze out, why did you bother exactly?
From there, fry or grill your CFBs as you normally would, but be sure to let them rest under foil for a while after you remove them from the heat. This makes sure the innards are all heated through--especially if you've got super-gooey runny cheese happening in there.
Once you get your first batch under your belt, the real joy is in the experimentation. Not too long ago I perfected sneaking a little finely chopped raw spinach into the meat, and the next frontier will be to create mini-turduckens. Because boys will eat anything with the word "turd" in it.
