Build a Better Burger: Celebrating Sutter Home's Annual Search for America's Best Burgers

I bought this for my father who heard about it on NPR. It has inspired him to make gourmet burgers that everybody loves!

I'm a sucker for cookbooks that accompany each recipe with a color photo of the end result. I saw this book for six bucks at the bargain section, so I thought it was a steal. However, when I got home to actually read some of the recipes, I was very intimidated and discouraged. I had never shopped for, nor heard of the majority of ingredients that the recipes were calling. What I eventually realized, was that this book is listing nothing short of award-winning burgers. Thus, the contestants who were vying for a spot on this cookbook had to be extremely creative. All of these burgers would take at least an average of 30 minutes to prepare and build, not to mention tons of money spent on locating foreign ingredients that you'll probably never use again until you make the same burger in the future. Furthermore, you will not find these gourmet burgers anywhere, other than perhaps upscale restaurants that would probably ring up tabs in the $100 range for two. It's just not practical from an average restaurant's perspective, due to the cost, time and effort required to construct one of these things. Perhaps this is the kinda book that I'll come to appreciate several years down the road, as I hone my cooking skills and expand my culinary IQ. But currently as a self-teaching, novice chef, operating out of a small apartment kitchen, these recipes are way over my head.

Fabulous book - I ran a burger restaurant in Dublin, Ireland for sixteen years in the 70's and 80's and thought I knew it all 'till I saw this. Takes the humble burger to new heights. I haven't had a chance to try the recipes but they sound absolutely delicious. Tell me, how do I become a judge?

I was lucky enough to be a finalist in the 2003 Build A Better Burger Contest in the potato contest. The book features my name. There are lots of wonderful recipes in the book. I am sure you can adapt them for indoor cooking. And, you can mix and match---a burger from one recipe with the toppings from another recipe. As a plus, Chef Star (the head chef at Sutter Home Wine) gives a wine paring for each burger. You will get a year's worth of burgers from this book.

Interesting burger recipes. most are not that difficult. Great ideas to spice up your bbq!