The It Burger

Quick, before the air turns irreparably brisk and cravings for slow-simmering, meaty roasts set in, you must make this burger.

Image by Romulo Yanes for Epicurious.com

Now that summer has passed, I realize that this was the It Burger–– and my go-to summer dish. I'm normally a sucker for sweet corn, tomatoes, and garden-fresh sugar snap peas. But this year I craved this burger, hot off the grill, more than anything else. It's the Chipotle Pork Cheeseburger, compliments of Gourmet circa June 2009. Sure, chipotle chiles are one of the most over-hyped ingredients of the last five years (and the eponymous burrito chain didn't help matters), but in this recipe you can forget about all of that. Its genius lies in its simplicity: ground pork (so much juicier than ground beef) + 2 teaspoons chipotle chiles and some adobo sauce + 2 pressed garlic cloves + salt. The recipe calls for you to grill the burgers with the cover on for a few minutes, which brings out the inherent smokiness of the chiles. You melt a slice of Muenster cheese on the patty and then top the burger with a generous dollop of mayo, a wedge of avocado and a bright, crisp slice of tomatillo. We made this cheeseburger tonight, almost by instinct, not noticing that some of the leaves are already turning red. It was one last hearty, and oh-so-satisfying, goodbye to summer.