There's nothing that tastes more like summer than a nice juicy, flavorful, grilled burger. This Caprese burger with homemade pesto mayo is extra flavorful with pesto and Parmesan added to the ground beef mixture. The chargrilled burger is added to an olive oil grilled bun and topped with mozzarella, a homemade pesto mayo, fresh basil, and a thick slice of tomato. Serve with your favorite summer side dish for the perfect summer meal!
THE INGREDIENTS
Ground Sirloin Beef - I love a good meaty patty made with ground beef, but you can certainly substitute any ground meat such as turkey, chicken, pork, or even make it vegetarian and vegan friendly by using impossible meat and vegan and vegetarian ingredients.
Pesto - Make your own or get store bought. I've been on a tight schedule lately, so I used store-bought. If you do get store bought, make sure to check the label and ingredients to make sure you are familiar with all the ingredients.
Parmesan - Freshly grated - always. Not only does my parmesan cheese block last me a long time, I get to save the rind for soups, and there are no preservatives added to the shredded cheese to keep it from sticking together. Honestly, I recommend you buy all cheese in block form and shred it yourself. Oh and it's cheaper!
Salt & Pepper - I like to season to taste and since you probably aren't going to taste test your raw meat, you can measure with your heart, or just use about ¼ teaspoon of each. Another trick is to make a small piece of the raw meat and cook it on the grill or in a pan and taste then adjust.
Mozzarella - So true story...my husband hates cheese. It's a conversation for another day...I know it's slightly unbelievable. Anyways....he does our grocery shopping and I had a ball of mozzarella on the grocery list. I went to make this recipe and the ball of Mozzarella was slimy and smelled strange. Turns out it was EXPIRED!!!!! Luckily, I had some leftover shredded mozzarella. So if you don't have a ball of mozzarella, shredded will work just fine. It did for me and it was delicious! But next time, I'll do my own cheese shopping and I'll make sure the ingredients I intend to put in my recipes are not expired.
Mayonnaise - I'm a big fan of reading the labels and I will always recommend you buy organic mayo. I haven't found a non organic mayo that I know every single ingredient. One day I'll make my own mayonnaise (I know it's really simple.) For now I'll just make sure my ingredient list is small and familiar.
Olive Oil - The olive oil is drizzled over the buns to help add an earthy flavor that also catches all the extra grilled flavor when charred on the grill.
Hamburger Buns - I used hamburger buns for this recipe, but you can use any bread (or no bread!) that you like. These burger would be delicious served on focaccia or ciabatta.
Heirloom Tomato - My favorite kind of tomato! Not only do they seem to have the best flavor, they typically have the least amount of seeds which makes them perfect for burgers that won't make the bread soggy.
INSTRUCTIONS
For the burgers, place a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Combine the beef, pesto, Parmesan, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Refrigerate the patties for at least 10 minutes or up to 1 hour. Form the mixture into eight 4-inch-diameter patties, each about ¾-inch thick. Grill for 5 minutes. Turn the burgers over and place a slice of mozzarella on top. Cook for about 5 minutes longer until the burgers are cooked through and the cheese is slightly melted. Allow the burgers to rest for 5 minutes.
For the Pesto Mayonnaise, In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise and pesto until smooth.
To assemble, drizzle the cut side of the bread with olive oil and grill until lightly toasted, 1 to 2 minutes. Spread the pesto mayonnaise over the bottom halves of the grilled bread. Place the burgers on top and add tomato slices. Add the top halves of the bread and serve.
TIPS
If you feel like the meat mixture is too wet or not sticking you can put it in the fridge to firm up for about 30 minutes. Alternatively you can add an egg and ¼ Cup bread crumbs to bind the mixture together. I recommend the fridge method though so the flavor of the burger isn't changed.
If you don't have a ball of mozzarella feel free to use shredded mozzarella.
You can use store-bought or homemade pesto for this recipe.
📋 Recipe
Caprese Burgers with Pesto Mayo
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Ingredients
Burgers:
- 2 ¾ pounds ground sirloin beef
- ¼ Cup fresh or store-bought pesto
- ⅛ Cup grated Parmesan
- 1 teaspoons kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- One 8-ounce ball fresh mozzarella
For The Pesto Mayonnaise:
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup fresh or store-bought pesto
- Assembly
- Extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling
- 6 Hamburger Buns
- 1 Medium Heirloom Tomatoes sliced into ¼-inch rounds
Instructions
- Burgers
- Place a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Combine the beef, pesto, Parmesan, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Refrigerate the patties for at least 10 minutes or up to 1 hour. Form the mixture into eight 4-inch-diameter patties, each about ¾-inch thick. Grill for 5 minutes. Turn the burgers over and place a slice of mozzarella on top. Cook for about 5 minutes longer until the burgers are cooked through and the cheese is slightly melted. Allow the burgers to rest for 5 minutes.
- Pesto Mayonnaise
- In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise and pesto until smooth.
- Assembly
- Drizzle the cut side of the bread with olive oil and grill until lightly toasted, 1 to 2 minutes. Spread the pesto mayonnaise over the bottom halves of the grilled bread. Place the burgers on top and add tomato slices. Add the top halves of the bread and serve.
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