Tuscan Burgers

Ingredients

• 600 g beef mince or 19 ounces ground beef
• 100 g pancetta, rind removed, chopped or 3 ounces pancetta, rind removed, chopped
• 1/3 cup basil pesto (90g/3oz)
• sea salt, to taste
• fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 small red onions, thickly sliced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 50 g rocket or baby spinach leaves (11/2oz-2oz)
• 2 small tomatoes, thickly sliced
• 1/2 cup whole-egg mayonnaise
• 3-4 bocconcini, sliced
• 4 italian bread rolls, split

Directions

1. 1

   Place the beef, pancetta and 2 tablespoons of pesto in a processor; season with salt and pepper; pulse until just combined (do not over-process); form the mixture into 4 patties and chill while you cook the vegetables.

2. 2

   Preheat the oven to 160°C/325°F/gas mark 3; heat a chargrill pan or cr barbecue over a medium heat; toss the onion in a little oil and grill for 1 minute on each side or until just cooked; place the onion in the oven to keep it warm; brush the tomatoes with a little oil and season them with salt and pepper , to taste; then grill the tomatoes for one minute on each side; place the tomatoes in the oven to keep them warm; mix the remaining pesto with the mayonnaise.

3. 3

   Brush both sides of the patties with oil; cook the patties on the chargrill for 2-3 minutes on each side or until they are cooked through; top the patties with bocconcini and place them in the oven for 1 minutes or until the cheese melts.

4. 4

   Spread the bread-roll bases with some of the mayonnaise mixture; top with rocket, patties, onion and tomato; drizzle with the remaining mayonnaise mixture and top with the remaining bread-roll halves.