Cheeseburger Day — Your Way!

{Did you know that today's Cheeseburger Day? To help you celebrate, we’ve got a guest blogger! Our Leisure Arts Food Editor, Celia Harkey, is offering up a new take on the traditional cheeseburger with a free recipe for Cheeseburger Salad!}
How does an everyday favorite food like a cheeseburger take on a new look and become an easy meal? When the Official Taster at my house came home bragging on his cheeseburger salad eaten at a sports bar for lunch, I just had to know all the details. In fact, I made him take me the next weekend so I could experience the transformation of a cheeseburger into a salad. Here is your chance to celebrate Cheeseburger Day with an easy meal that takes a topsy-turvy twist. Maybe we should call it Cheeseburger Salad Day!
All of a sudden, cheeseburger salad has reinvented the cheeseburger, including the bun and all of its “fixins” into a new presentation. But, when thinking about how to write the cheeseburger salad recipe so family and friends will have it their own way — I needed to approach this easy meal differently. First, we know our basic ingredient choices will be: hamburger meat, ketchup and/or mustard and/or mayonnaise, dill pickles, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, and a bun. Then we start getting a little picky from here and some of you will immediately start saying: mushrooms, Worcestershire sauce, grilled onions, special request cheese (including pimiento and blue cheese), jalapeño peppers, avocado/guacamole, barbecue or steak sauce, bacon, fried onion rings, chipotle mayonnaise or aioli, roasted poblano or red peppers, or topped with a fried egg. 
Okay, take a deep breath because we haven’t even considered what type of bun — sesame seed, brioche, whole grain, or even rye bread to honor the patty melt. Or, what type of salad ingredients. Please don’t make me name them; you know the varieties of veggies and greens are endless, so let’s leave it at that. 
Following is my way of building the Cheeseburger Salad. You will notice that I was looking for an easy meal and took some shortcuts with prepared foods. Remember, you are building this your way!
Building a Cheeseburger Salad – My Way!
1 pound hamburger meat
1/2 cup chopped red onion
Half a red bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 to 1/2 cup water
salt and black pepper
1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
Romaine lettuce, washed and cut into pieces
Dill pickle spears, cut into chunks
Plum tomatoes, sliced
Avocado, pitted, peeled, and sliced
Seasoned croutons
Salad DressingItalian or favorite salad dressing
Dijon-style mustard
Coarsely crumble hamburger in a skillet. Give it a chance to brown, and then turn gently. This helps to keep it in larger pieces. When the meat starts to brown again, drain excess grease from pan. Add onions and red pepper strips to hamburger; continue to brown giving the onion and pepper time to lightly cook through [I like them to still have a little crunch to them]. 
While hamburger is browning, combine ketchup, Worcestershire, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Add enough water to thin it out a little, then stir into hamburger mixture. Lower heat and stir to allow the sauce to cook into the meat. Continue to slowly cook and gently stir until the sauce is almost totally absorbed. 
Turn heat off and sprinkle cheese over meat; allow cheese to melt.
For salad dressing, combine 1/2 cup Italian dressing with 2 tablespoons of Dijon-style mustard in a medium bowl; stir until well blended. At this point, you can jazz up this dressing any way you want by adding apple cider vinegar, a little mayo to make it creamier, or dried herbs or spices for a little more zip.
Now, assemble your salad ingredients so everyone can build it their own way! What an easy meal and, knowing how everyone likes something different on their cheeseburger, this is a great way for everyone to get it just like they like it. In fact, if you prefer making items from scratch, consider making your own croutons with hamburger buns or making your very own salad dressing [ranch-style buttermilk dressing would be good].
Enjoy your Cheeseburger Day celebration. Now, just to clarify where I am going with this, please serve mine with a chocolate milk shake. It may not sound like the typical beverage to go with a salad, but we are talking cheeseburger here!!