BASIL BURGERS OR BIFTECK HACHE AU BASILIQUE
(GROUND BEEF PATTIES WITH BASIL)

The following recipe for the ground beef patties came from The Washington Post Food Section years ago. These freeze well. I freeze the extra sauce and the patties separately. We refer to them as Basil Burgers.

1 1/2 pounds ground beef or sirloin (I use ground sirloin.)
1 Tbsp. butter
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup fine fresh breadcrumbs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 Tbsp. coarsely chopped fresh basil (or up to 2 Tbl., or to your liking. I have also used 1 to 2 tsp. dried basil leaves if I don't have fresh, but use fresh if you can.)
2 Tbsp. cold water
1 tsp. canola oil
Fresh Tomato Sauce with basil (recipe below)

Put the meat in a mixing bowl.

Heat butter and add the onion; cook until wilted, then let cool briefly.

Add onion to the meat; add the crumbs, salt, pepper, basil and water. Divide the mixture into 4 portions and flatten into round or oblong shapes, about 1 inch thick.

Place hamburgers on a grill or heat a lightly oiled skillet and add hamburgers. Cook until nicely browned on the bottom. Turn and cook until browned on the other side. Continue cooking to the desired degree of doneness.

Spoon the hot tomato sauce on a platter and arrange the hamburgers on top, or serve the sauce in a sauce boat or dish. Yield: 4 servings

TOMATO SAUCE WITH BASIL

4 large, ripe, unblemished tomatoes (about 1 3/4 pounds) (I have also used a large, 28 oz, can of Hunts whole tomatoes, drained and sort of crushed into large chunks or pieces - especially in the winter when it is hard to find good fresh tomatoes.)
3 Tbsp. butter
1/2 - 1 tsp. finely chopped garlic
1/4 c. finely chopped onion
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp. (or more to taste) coarsely chopped fresh basil

Peel and core the tomatoes and cut them into 1 inch cubes (there should be about 4 cup).

Heat 2 Tbsp. butter in a skillet or saucepan and add the garlic and onion; cook until wilted but don't let either burn).

Add the tomatoes, salt and pepper and cook 5 minutes.

Swirl in the remaining butter and stir in the basil.

Yield: 4 servings