Spicy Firehouse Guacamole Burger

I wrote this burger recipe for my husband, who has spent many years in the fire service. He and his crew always cooked together, ate together, and loved a great spicy burger with spicy but cool ranch and guacamole! On days off, some of our favorite haunts included In-N-Out and Fuddruckers.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Add 2 jalapenos to the baking sheet. Bake until jalapenos softened about 10-12 minutes. This is a spicy burger, if you want to dial down the heat, remove the seeds and membranes of the jalapeno with gloved hands. Allow the jalapenos to cool once they have cooked, then slice them into rings. You can also leave the jalapenos raw if you like.

Make chipotle ranch dressing. In a bowl combine 1/2 cup of Ranch dressing and 1 teaspoon of chipotle seasoning. Set aside.

Allow ground beef to come to room temperature, this will help them cook evenly. Form ground beef into 1/4-pound patties. Make an indention in the middle of the patties, this will help them to not puff up during the cooking process. Make the burgers slightly bigger than the bun as they will shrink during cooking.

Cook them however you like whether its grilling, skillet or griddle, I used a griddle this time. Preheat to medium high heat. Add a touch of oil to the device so the meat doesn't stick. Salt and pepper if desired.

Cook undisturbed for a few minutes before flipping so that the burgers have time to get a good sear and develop a perfect crust. Hamburgers should cook until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.

Slice tomatoes and make guacamole. Guacamole is one of those things you need to make just before you're going to eat because it turns brown. If you need a guacamole recipe, we have an excellent recipe here: Guacamole Recipe.

Just before the burgers are ready to come off of the griddle add cheese and buns cut side down. Cook until buns are toasted and golden brown and cheese starts melting.

Assemble the burgers. Add guacamole to the bottom bun, then add beef patty, tomato slice, jalapeno slices and slather top bun with chipotle ranch sauce.

Enjoy!