High Desert Table

Your everyday guide to Southwestern cooking

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High Desert Green Chile Cheeseburger

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There is so much about cooking and eating in the Southwest that is special, including green chile cheeseburgers which top the list for me, especially during the grilling season. I think about burgers made in other places and all the care and effort that goes into coming up with the most creative combination of toppings, or signature burger patties, but at the end of the day it feels like we have an unfair advantage—we have fire roasted green chile. The best burgers I have ever had are in New Mexico and while they vary to some degree, they all have green chile in common. Over time, I have discovered that my favorite burgers tend to be the simplest. I love making this burger and eating it just as is, sometimes with a bun, sometimes wrapped in big pieces of lettuce, but always with melted cheese and a spoonful of poblano jam on top. And I can’t believe I’m saying this, but with this combination, I don’t even add my usual burger go-to’s of mayo, ketchup, and raw slices of onion. 

The cheese

I didn’t want to choose the cheese for you because this is such a personal choice. The day I made these, we melted blue cheese on top of the burgers because this is one of our favorite cheeses, but goat cheese, cheddar, and American would be great too. 

The patty

The most important thing for a good burger is a flavorful burger patty. Here, we accomplish this by adding two kinds of meat, half ground chuck and half-ground sirloin. The chuck brings the texture while the ground sirloin brings the flavor. Combined together with good seasoning and frozen grated butter for additional flavor and moisture, results in my favorite burger patty of all time. You’ll notice that we add a generous (1 tablespoon) of dried herbs to the burger. I have an affinity for the herb blend I make called High Desert Herbs, a combination of marjoram, sage, lavender, rosemary, chile, and thyme (available at stokli.com) but it’s also similar to Herbes de Provence and can be substituted with any or all of the dried herbs listed above.   

The jam

The jam can easily be made a few days in advance and can be adjusted with different chiles. If you want a spicier jam, instead of poblano, you might want to try a hatch, anaheim or even poblano chile. Or, you can create your own signature jam by combining more than one chile together. 

HDT Green Chile Cheeseburger - Poblano Jam
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High Desert Green Chile Cheeseburger

HDT Green Chile Cheeseburger - plated
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This New Mexico-inspired green chile cheeseburger combines the heat of green or poblano chiles with the creamy richness of your favorite cheese, creating a mouthwatering fusion that will leave your taste buds craving more.

  • Author: Marianne Sundquist
  • Prep Time: 30 mins
  • Cook Time: 30 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 8 burgers
  • Category: burgers
  • Method: grilling
  • Cuisine: New Mexican Inspired

Ingredients

Units

for the poblano jam:

  • 2 T. olive oil
  • 1 large shallot, sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 4 fire-roasted poblano chiles, peeled, seeded & diced
  • 1/4 c. sherry vinegar
  • 1/4 c. brown sugar, packed
  • Salt and pepper to taste

for the burgers:

  • 1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter
  • 1 lb. ground beef chuck
  • 1 lb. ground beef sirloin
  • 1 T. High Desert Herbs or Herbes de Provence
  • 2 t. kosher or flakey sea salt
  • 1/2 t. Black pepper

for everything else:

  • 8 buns
  • your favorite cheese and toppings

Instructions

Making the jam

To make the poblano jam, heat the oil over medium heat in a saucepan. Add the shallots and cook for around ten minutes, until they caramelize. Add the garlic and cook for another few minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Add the diced chiles, vinegar, sugar, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Let this mixture come to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer for around 10 minutes, or until the liquid has reduced by around half in the pan. You can leave this as is or transfer the mixture to a blender and pulse a few times to make a slightly smoother consistency. Check seasoning and add more salt and pepper as needed. Transfer the jam to a heat-proof jar and serve warm with the burgers or refrigerate if making in advance.

Making the burgers

To make the burgers, first, grate the butter into a bowl with a box grater and freeze the butter for around ten minutes. In a large mixing bowl, combine both types of ground beef, herbs, salt, pepper, and frozen butter until the mixture is well combined. Form into 8 patties and keep refrigerated. When you’re ready to grill, preheat the grill and cook the burgers to your desired temperature. When they’re almost done, top with cheese, close the grill, and cook the burger for another couple minutes, until the cheese is melted. This is a great time to place the buns cut side down on the grill to slightly toast them. To serve, place burgers on the buns and top with poblano jam. Enjoy with your favorite condiments and other toppings.

Red Chile & Caramelized Onion Dip

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In the last few weeks, I have found myself at birthday parties, block parties, and picnics at the park. So this week I wanted to make a homemade dip/spread that would be perfect for crackers, sandwiches, crusty bread, charcuterie, and all the vegetables you can think of. This creamy, red-chile spiked caramelized onion dip is even good with apples, and yesterday, I found myself smearing some on a piece of hot smoked salmon. 

Caramelizing the onions

The secret to a good homemade caramelized onion dip is all about the onions. After around fifteen minutes of cooking, the onions will change to a light caramel color. It’s only natural that one would think you have reached your cooking destination and turn off the heat. But let me assure you, there is far more caramelized traveling to be had. There are many shades of caramelized onions, just like there are many shades of butter turning brown and all of them mean various degrees of (heavenly) depth of flavor. As your onions continue to turn deeper shades of brown (at the lowest heat your stove will allow), you’ll also notice they lose more water and take up less space in the pot. Until, at last, you have a small amount of deeply caramelized onions packed with sweet and savory flavor.

The next step is adding High Desert Herbs or Herbes de Provence, some red chile, sour cream, and a brick of softened cream cheese. You’ll notice the recipe calls for a specific order for mixing everything together. This is so you don’t have any little lumps of cream cheese suspended in the dip, which isn’t too big of a deal since it doesn’t affect the flavor, but does alter the final texture and appearance. 

If you have a number of get-togethers coming up, if I were you I’d double or triple the batch (since caramelizing onions takes a bit of time) and freeze pints of the finished dip. The day before you need some dip, pull one out of the freezer and the next day you’ll be ready to roll.

plated caramelized onion dip ready for sharing
plated homemade caramelized onion dip ready for sharing
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Red Chile Caramelized Onion Dip

Red Chile Onion Dip with Appetizer Platter
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This creamy, red-chile caramelized onion dip is perfect for crackers, sandwiches, crusty bread, charcuterie, and all the vegetables you can think of. Made with New Mexico Red Chiles, this appetizer is perfect for any party, picnic, or southwest gathering.

  • Author: Marianne Sundquist
  • Prep Time: 25
  • Cook Time: 35
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 1 pint
  • Category: appetizer
  • Method: Caramelize
  • Cuisine: New Mexican

Ingredients

Units
  • 2 T. butter
  • 1 large yellow onion, sliced
  • 2 t. High Desert Herbs or Herbes de Provence
  • 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1/4 c. Mild New Mexico Red Chile puree
  • 1 1/2 c. Sour cream
  • 1 brick (8 oz) cream cheese, room temperature
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • minced chives, for garnishing

Instructions

In a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Add the onions, cover, and cook for around fifteen minutes. This allows the onions to steam and release a large portion of their water fairly quickly. While they are steaming, stir them every few minutes.

caramelizing the onions in a Le Creuset Dutch oven
caramelizing the onions in a Le Creuset Dutch oven

Uncover the onions and at this point, they will probably begin to look caramelized. Uncover them, stir, add the dried herbs, and turn the heat to low (as low as it can go). Let them continue to slowly caramelize for around 30 minutes, stirring every five minutes or so. Add the garlic and cook for another five minutes, stirring frequently.

Turn off the heat and deglaze with the red chile puree, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Carefully transfer this mixture to a blender or food processor and buzz just a few times and let it come to room temperature.

Once the onions are cooled to room temperature, add the cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment and whisk for about a minute until it’s light and airy. Add the sour cream and mix again. Now add the onion mixture and mix until everything is distributed. Check seasoning and add salt and/or pepper as needed. Transfer to a bowl and garnish with chives.

Rhubarb, Lavender, and Red Chile Crisp

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Aside from the perfectly ripe nectarine or plum, my favorite fruit for any baked good is rhubarb. It’s naturally tart and easily transitions into a perfect combination of sweet & sour with the addition of something sweet, in this case, brown sugar. If the idea of rhubarb on its own is too pucker-inducing for you, feel free to add strawberries, blueberries, apricots, or a sweet apple variety to mix it up. 

fresh rhubarb

There are a handful of flavors that go exceptionally well with rhubarb, so I would encourage you to think about what sounds exciting to you. Flavors like lemon, black pepper, ginger, rose, coconut, cardamom, cinnamon, and caramel are some of the first that pop to mind. In this version, I love bringing in elements of the Southwest in the form of lavender and red chile powder to the crisp topping. The floral notes from the lavender and the slight heat from the chile bounce off the bright fruit that has mellowed and melted into a decadent, slightly caramelized saucy delight.

fresh rhubarb
fresh rhubarb chopped and ready to go

Because the window for growing rhubarb outdoors is short, when I see it at the grocery store or the market it’s hard for me to pass up. It’s a fruit celebration of early spring and a reminder of the bounty of summer fruits ahead when rhubarb days will be a distant memory. When I make this at home we usually have it for dessert the first night with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream. As if that is not wonderful enough, the next morning we pull the leftovers out of the fridge and have it for breakfast with a spoon of greek yogurt and a drizzle of raw honey. I still can’t decide which is my favorite.

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Rhubarb, Lavender and Red Chile Crisp

Rhubarb Lavender Red Chile Crisp with whipped cream
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The floral notes from the lavender and the slight heat from the chile bounce off the bright fruit that has mellowed and melted into this decadent, slightly caramelized rhubarb crisp.

  • Author: Marianne Sundquist
  • Prep Time: 25 mins
  • Cook Time: 50 mins
  • Total Time: 1.25 hours
  • Yield: 6 servings
  • Category: dessert
  • Method: baking
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Units

for the filling:

  • 1 T. butter
  • 2# rhubarb, cut into 2” pieces
  • 1/2 c. brown sugar
  • 1 orange, zested

for the crisp:

  • 1 c. flour of your choice (All Purpose, coconut flour or almond flour)
  • 2 t. ground cinnamon
  • 2 t. New Mexico mild or medium red chile powder
  • 2 t. ground dried culinary lavender
  • 1 c. brown sugar
  • 1 c. rolled oats
  • 1/2 c. almond or pecan pieces
  • 1/2 c. melted butter

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Butter a 9-10” baking dish, cast iron, or other oven-safe skillet.

In a large bowl mix together the rhubarb, brown sugar, and orange zest. Transfer this mixture to your buttered pan.

Rhubarb Lavender Red Chile Crisp - Dry Ingredients
Dry Ingredients

With your hands or a wooden spoon, stir together the flour, cinnamon, red chile powder, lavender, brown sugar, oats, nuts, and melted butter. With your hands, crumble this evenly over the top of the fruit.

Rhubarb Lavender Red Chile Crisp - pre baked
The rhubarb lavender red chile crisp prepped before baking

Bake the crisp for around 50 minutes or until the fruit is bubbling and the top is golden brown. Let it cool for ten minutes before spooning it into bowls and serving.

Rhubarb Lavender Red Chile Crisp - Baked
The crisp cooling in the skillet after baking

Molten Chocolate Chile Cakes

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When it comes to dessert making, I have one thing on my mind: ease. Many variables are at play so let’s be honest, a lot can go wrong. There’s time, temperature, humidity, elevation, not to mention texture and stability to keep in mind. I think the key is to make desserts you love, make them often enough so it doesn’t feel like an invasive species has descended upon your kitchen, and try to do as much preparation in advance as you’re able. 

Of course, it’s fun to try new things. I am reminded of this every year when my boys announce their birthday cake requests. At some point very early on in parenthood (I think we thought it was cute?) I’d ask the kids what kind of cake they wanted. Then we started getting their answers and by then it was too late to turn back. “An ocean with fish”, “a volcano with lava”, “a 3-D droid”, etc. We have tried, and we have failed, but by some miracle, according to their delighted faces we have always managed to succeed. There is a time and place for all of that. But this isn’t it.

Here is one of the simplest desserts to make. This isn’t one of those dessert recipes that cuts a bunch of corners so regular folks can do it. This is a true pastry triumph. Not only is it easy to make, but it’s perfection lies in its simplicity. For chocolate lovers and valentine lovers, you can’t go wrong. My favorite thing about this recipe is that you can make the batter in the morning, and pull it out of the fridge an hour before you want to bake it. Then when everyone is finishing dinner, you throw them in the oven for 12 minutes or so, and voila! You’re suddenly transported to a French bistro for dessert.

This recipe launches off the sturdy foundation of the classic molten cake recipe from world-renowned French Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. The story goes that his wife fell for him when she tasted his Molten Chocolate Cake. The only variation here is the addition of cinnamon and red chile to give it that Southwestern high desert touch.

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Molten Chocolate Chile Cakes

Molten Chocolate Chile Cake Plated
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  • Author: Marianne Sundquist
  • Prep Time: 45 mins
  • Cook Time: 12 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 4 individual cakes
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking

Ingredients

Units

For the cakes:

  • 1 stick, 4 oz. unsalted butter
  • 6 oz. bittersweet chocolate
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1/4 c. sugar
  • 1 t. Salt
  • 2 t. ground cinnamon
  • 2 t. ground red chile powder, depending on heat level
  • 2 T. All-Purpose Flour

For the ramekins

  • 4, 6 oz. ovenproof ramekins
  • 1 T. softened butter
  • 1 T. AP flour

Instructions

The batter can be made any time during the day and kept in the fridge until an hour before you are ready to bake. To make the batter, the first thing we are going to do is set up a double boiler. A double boiler is a medium saucepan filled with a couple of inches of simmering water. Then place a heat-proof bowl in the pot. You want to use a bowl that is small enough to slightly sink into the pot, but it should be 2-3 inches above the simmering water. You also don’t want to choose a bowl that’s so big it just balances precariously on top. The idea here is that we want to heat the bowl with steam.

Once your double boiler is ready to go, add the butter and chocolate to the bowl until melted. Whisk this melted mixture until smooth.

Molten Chocolate Chile Cake Folding Step 1

In a separate bowl beat the eggs, egg yolks, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and red chile vigorously with a large whisk, or at high speed with an electric mixer until the mixture is thick and pale. Turn off the heat, carefully remove the bowl from the double boiler and fold the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture, along with the flour.

Molten Chocolate Chile Cake Folding Step 2 and 3
Carefully folding the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture

The batter should be baked right away, or if made ahead of time, brought to room temperature before baking. They only take around 12 minutes to bake, so you will want to throw these in the oven towards the end of a meal.

Preheat the oven to 450 F. Prepare 4, 6 oz. oven-proof ramekins by spreading butter on the inside of each and dusting with flour. Tap out any excess flour. Set the prepared ramekins on a baking sheet. Spoon the batter evening between the four ramekins and bake for around 12 minutes, or until you see the sides of the cake start to firm up, but the centers still look soft. Let them cool for a minute and cover each one with an inverted dessert plate. Carefully turn them over, let them stand for 15 seconds and unmold them. Serve with fruit, whipped cream, or ice cream on the side.