#Tortilla Smash Burgers with Guacamole & Pickled Onions

[crazyblondelife]

Tortilla Smash Burgers with Guacamole & Pickled Onions

Let’s just call these Tortilla Smash Burgers irresistible! If you love a regular smash burger, you’ll love these even more! A crispy tortilla replaces the bun so you can really taste what’s inside! Seasoned ground beef, melty cheese and delicious toppings give you a burst of flavor when you take a bite!

A traditional tortilla smash burger (if that’s even a thing) has more of a mayonnaise based sauce and is topped with American cheese, lettuce and tomato, but I decided to switch up the toppings and use one of my favorite combinations…pickled onions and guacamole! I used a Mexican blend cheese as well. The beauty of these is that you can make them different every time and try different flavor combinations. I even had someone ask if ground turkey would be good and I think it would be delicious! The recipe is below and you must make these soon! I promise you won’t be sorry!

Other than the guacamole and pickled onions, I chopped a fresh tomato and added jalapeno slices for a little heat!

I purchased these fun taco stands from Amazon (linked below) and it made serving the smash burgers so easy and made a nice presentation! If you want to feed a crowd, make these ahead, reheat and then add the toppings. I used my counter top griddle and decided that I definitely need an outdoor black stone griddle for next time!

These burgers cook up very quickly and they disappear just as quickly so be sure to make plenty!

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I’d love to know…have you had a Tortilla Smash Burger…what do you think? Leave a comment below!

Happy Weekend!

[havecats-willtravel]

a blue dot in a red state: austin, texas.

“are you doing anything fun this weekend?” everyone asked. “i have no plans, except i’ll be in austin.” “you’ll love it! go here... and here... and here.”

this was the conversation over-and-over as i started planning for my weekend getaway in this part of liberal texas. after four jam-packed days in austin, it’s everything they said it would be, and exactly what i wanted it to be. 

it’s one of the youngest cities i’ve been in, but the lularoe leggings were few and far between (thankfully!). austin brings to the table the booming tech industry and has a river that runs through it (win-win in my book). and no matter where you are in this town, they’ll be a bar and a dog. 

what i am glad i packed: comfortable shoes! austin is an active city (ok even if that means the activity is going to a bar) so you’ll definitely want to bring some footwear with support, like classic converses or trendy tom’s.

what i am sad i left at home: sunscreen and a raincoat! in a city where you are doing a bunch of on-your-feet exploring, the weather is going to dictate quite a bit of your plans. one day the severe thunderstorms made for a lazy morning, yet magically later that afternoon it was so sunny that my skin quickly turned pink. be flexible, but be prepared.

our recommendations:

we stayed at the uber luxurious jw marriott in downtown; a truly stunning hotel with gorgeous views of the city and the river. if i could have found a way to take that shower home with me, i would have. for a convenient, yet yummy, bite to eat, grab a seven-layer salad (romaine, adobo chicken, roasted tomatoes, corn, black beans, avocado, cheddar, smoked pepper ranch, $15 and on the late night menu too!) and a 10 span chardonnay from the central coast on the patio of the corner restaurant. 

staying on the food and drink train, second bar + kitchen just across from the jw marriott is an ideal place for rose with girlfriends or an after work beer to decompress. the swanky, modern interior still provides the cozy vibe, while the outside patio is breezy and refreshing, and always my recommendation. the avocado fundido (asadero, house chorizo, chipotle corn chips, $12) is a must!

after work, meet up with your friends on the rooftop of handlebar. this old school vibe hangout is guaranteed to be overflowing with young adults drinking fancy beers out of tall boy cans. but they have happy hour deals so cans up!

post work drinks or pre-game of late night, swing into irene’s cafe for tasty sandwiches in a diner-like atmosphere. we recommend the smoked turkey sandwich (bacon, havarti, bibb lettuce, poblano aioli on toasted white bread, $12) and the pulled chicken and avocado sandwich (smashed black beans, spicy cabbage slaw, pickled jalapeños on a milk bun, $12)

take a stroll down south congress street where shops and restaurants abound. the storefronts are all designed to showcase their own character (checkout farm to market grocery, uncommon objects for example), while low-hanging tree branches covered in white lights (i’m looking at you perla’s) complement the movie-like appeal of this area. stop in to apana’s coffee + beer while walking back toward downtown to grab one of their craft brews on tap or specialty coffees. or bring your laptop and setup your own office for the day.

if you’re like me and you can never get enough mexican food, do not miss a chance to dine at torchy’s tacos, which will satisfy your craving while keeping your budget in mind. get there early for the breakfast tacos (we didn’t, sadly), but if you can’t, you can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. we recommend the baja shrimp taco (hand-battered fried shrimp with cooked cabbage slaw topped with pickled jalapeños and onions, queso fresco, cilantro and a wedge of lime; served with chipotle sauce on a corn tortilla) and dirty sanchez taco (scrambled eggs with a fried poblano chile, guacamole, escabeche carrots and shredded cheese, served with poblano sauce on a fresh flour tortilla.) do not skip on the queso (served with homemade chips, this delicious green chile queso is topped with guacamole, queso fresco, cilantro and diablo hot sauce!)

for brunch, dine at swift’s attic for dollar mimosas and the best french toast (called the “tcb” it is brioche french toast, peanut butter, house cured bacon, salted caramel, bananas, $12.) others at the table were dining on shrimp remoulade (frisee, lardon, roasted potatoes, poached vital farms egg, hot sauce, $16) and the turkey hash (holy trinity, house-smoked turkey, roasted tomatoes, homefries, dos lunas “chee-zee” egg, $12.)

just downstairs from swift’s attic is this hole-in-the-wall jazz club called the elephant room. it’s the perfect date night place, keeping jazz cool way before before la la land did. order a cool in the basement lemonade signature cocktail and cozy up to the one you love under the flickering lights of the red candles.

another unique spot is a little speakeasy called firehouse lounge hidden in a hostel. once you figure out how to get inside, the dark and cozy interior invites you to melt into its leather seats and enjoy live music while sipping on fancy cocktails. treat yourself and order the jack rose (applejack, lime, house pomegranate syrup, $12) or the moscow mule (vodka, lime, touch of simple, ginger brew, $8.5.)

for late night, head over to sixth street where the roads get blocked off to bring the city’s hottest entertainment area to life. there are so many bars/clubs to choose from that you’re bound to have one that fits your vibe. take an ID, but leave the cash at home -- zero covers! grab some grub at one of the many food trucks or swing into p. terry’s burger stand for a late night cheeseburger ($2.65!) and fries ($1.75!)

for sunday fundays, hit up rainey street where rows of houses have been transformed into individual bars oozing of character and charm. like much of austin, there is a house-turned-bar that fits every need. we soaked up the sun over hops at craft pride, bar 96 and bungalow.

our shoulda, coulda, wouldas:

the colorado river is constantly populated with paddleboards, kayaks, paddleboats, etc. you can rent one from several places, just get outside and get in the river.

speaking of the river, just before dusk, hundreds of people gather on the congress avenue bridge to watch the bats rise in the summer. apparently this bridge is home to the world’s largest bat colony, with some suggesting there are approximately 1.5 million bats living under this bridge in the hot texas summers! it’s weird and creepy and touristy and yet i wanted to experience it. we saw people lining the bridge waiting on the bats, but our fasten driver said it was too cool out so they were wasting their time. silly tourists.

while not unique to this area, i heard nothing but good stuff about these massive donuts at voodoo doughnut based out of portland. unfortunately, i didn’t have the time to grab one to taste for myself. i’ll be back for them (i’m looking at you old dirty bastard doughnut: raised yeast doughnut with chocolate frosting, oreo's and peanut butter) because in my world, calories don’t count on vacation.

apparently there’s this beautiful spot about thirty minutes outside of austin called lake travis with wineries (bent oak winery for example), breweries (oasis texas brewing company for example) and some other cool shops and restaurants. do a car share with car2go, pack a picnic, let down your hair and enjoy the drive. 

grab barbecue at salt lick. unfortunately, i didn’t have the time to get to the actual restaurant, so i picked up a pulled pork sandwich (romaine lettuce, sliced tomato, purple onions, special sauce, $9.95) with potato salad at the airport. still worth it and certainly makes me want to get out to the real deal.

final tips and tricks:

there’s no uber or lyft in austin (i know!) but don’t panic. we recommend an app called fasten or ride austin.

still want one more good cocktail? slip into the vietnamese cafe and french bakery of elizabeth street cafe and order a shady blonde (sparkling wine, lillet blanc, grapefruit and thyme, $8.) you made it this far through the austin blog, you deserve some bubbly for crying out loud!

and finally, head next door to criquet shirts. if you’re into polos with a solid business model, you won’t be disappointed by their office-meets-retail shop. and give a shout out to our new friends here that welcomed us as strangers into their final four party and can throw a kick-ass frat party that even makes a thirty something feel young again. 

from boozy bungalows to sunset bats, this blue dot in a red state has everything and more for any type of traveler. if you’re a frequent visitor or lover of asheville, north carolina you’ll fall in love with this part of texas as quickly as i did. so if you’re heading to austin any time soon, let me know and i’ll happily share a google doc with you that has all of this information and more in an easy-to-access file for your smartphone. and if you need a traveling buddy, let’s go!

until the next adventure, cheers to a life well traveled!