Tailgate Sliders

Fall is just around the corner, I'm convinced of it. The weather has cooled slightly here in Texas - meaning it is 60-something degrees in the morning, and in the 90's in the afternoon, instead of 105. And a big part of Fall, in Texas is - FOOTBALL!! I'm not a big fan myself, but if it's on the TV I will stare at it and pretend that I understand what the hell is going on. But mostly, I look forward to the get-togethers and preparing cute little finger foods for them. In preparation for the season, I started thinking up recipes and decided to try out a new slider concoction for NFL opening night!! I must say that I wasn't disappointed. The Creamy Red Pepper Sauce that I created for my Grilled Chicken Sammich was a great addition to this little burger. I have a feeling that sauce is going to be making many appearances in the future. For your next tailgate/football party, you should add these little babies to your menu - they might just steal the show!!

Tailgate Sliders
A Sweet Beginnings' Original Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 lb extra lean ground beef
• 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder
• Salt & Pepper, to taste
• Hawaiian Sweet Rolls (or other slider buns)
• 2 plum tomatoes
• Green Leaf Lettuce
• 4 Cheddar cheese slices
• 2 avocados (for guacamole – recipe below)
• Creamy Red Pepper Sauce (recipe below)

Preparation

1.   Place ground beef into a medium-sized bowl, and mix in Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt & pepper. Separate ground beef into 8 golf-ball sized balls and mash down to ½ thick patties.

2.   Heat your grill, pan or griddle to a medium-high heat and lightly coat with cooking spray or olive oil. Cook patties to your desired doneness, about 3 minutes per side for medium well.

3.   Meanwhile, prepare the red pepper sauce and guacamole, slice tomatoes, tear lettuce into smaller pieces to fit slider buns, and cut cheese slices into smaller squares.

4.   Just before the patties are done, put the slider buns on the grill or separate skillet to toast.

5.   To build slider, slather red pepper sauce on the bottom bun, place meat patty, cheese slice, tomato slice, lettuce, and put guacamole on top bun to complete!

**Note**

The red pepper sauce and guacamole can be prepared ahead of time, as well as seasoning the meat and cutting your veggies in case you are traveling to tailgate or attend a watch party. These sliders are easy to assemble and packed full of flavor!! For an added kick, you can also cook bacon and mix that (and cheese) into your beef patties!

Creamy Red Pepper Sauce

• 4 Tbsp Cream Cheese
• 3 Tbsp Reduced-fat mayo or miracle whip
• 3-4 roasted red peppers from 7 ½ oz jar, drained well 
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ¼ tsp black pepper

Mix all ingredients together in food processor until well-blended.

Guacamole

• 2 avocados
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1-2 Tbsp lemon juice (depending on your taste)
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Peel avocados, remove seed, and place in small bowl. Mash until mostly smooth, and then add garlic powder, lemon juice, salt & pepper. Taste, and add additional seasonings if needed.