Denver has a rich burger history. Although several restaurants across the country may claim to have invented the cheeseburger, the first trademark for the name “cheeseburger” was awarded to Louis Ballast of Denver’s Humpty Dumpty Drive-in in 1935.

Recently, and much to the delight of Denver locals, the burger has been at the forefront of Denver dining. Gourmet burger joints have been popping up everywhere– Smash Burger has expanded and seems to be everywhere, Larkburger (which originated in Edwards) now has a Denver location; Park Burger, H Burger, and Deluxe have all opened within the last year. On August 17, there’s actually going to be a Denver Burger Battle for the best burger in town.

I recently visited two of the restaurants on the list: Park Burger and H Burger.

I was pleased to find Park Burger to be worth my visit, “Bon Appetit” actually just included it in their July issue on their list of the best new burger spots in the country. Their menu includes angus beef, buffalo, turkey, and veggie burgers with a build-your own burger option as well as several unique specialty burgers.

They claim to use high-quality, fresh ingredients, which I noted to be true. I had the “Frenchy” with brie and ham. I thought the combination of the salty ham with the smooth brie was a nice compliment to the angus beef, which could have also stood very well on its own. I was there with Finn, who had the “El Chilango” with cheddar, jalapenos and guacamole. It was excellent as well.



We indulged in a basket of “the works,” sweet potato fries topped with ranch, bacon, cheese sauce and scallions. Like the burger, the sweet potato fries would have been great on their own, but the toppings were incredible. The simplicity of their menu was nice – burgers, one hot dog option, fries, side salads, and milkshakes. They also have a nice beer, wine, and cocktail selection.

H Burger is located in LoDo in the Sugarcube building. The atmosphere is contemporary, a totally different feel than Park Burger. While the burgers were good, it was their sides and drinks that stood out to me. I could definitely see myself going back for a drink and appetizer without feeling the need to order a burger.

Their list of sides is extensive, including grilled asparagus, wings, fried artichokes, zucchini fries, and sweet potato and regular potato fries with multiple different toppings. I had the zucchini fries. Finn had the sweet nectar gravy fries, which came with a side of a brown gravy. The waiter had warned us that some customers find the sweet nectar flavor to be too much but we actually wanted more of this!

On to the burgers. Finn had the “H Burger,” which I found to be amazing. It included Angus beef, a green chili pepper, smoked cheddar, bacon, bibb lettuce, tomato, onion and a very tasty red pepper-tomato jam. They don’t reveal what the “H” stands for– but it should be for “huge.” I had the lamb burger with feta, spicy aioli (on the side for dipping, I ended up using it for my zucchini fries), beefsteak tomato and greens.

For dessert we split a strawberry mint milkshake. It came out split in two glasses smoking with liquid nitrogen. The menu explains that, in addition to an impressive presentation, the nitrogen creates a more dense and creamy texture, it was a new one to me. The mint was a perfect complement to the strawberries. They also have Nutella marshmallow and chocolate peanut butter fudge shakes that I’m sure are equally amazing.

We couldn’t leave without trying something from their extensive cocktail menu. I had the “Basil Basil.” It was basil hayden, canton ginger liquor, maple syrup, and a splash of soda with fresh basil leaves– a great summer cocktail. They also have an interesting cocktail called “The Brooklyn Breakfast,” a combination of bacon-infused bourbon, maple syrup, egg white,

and orange juice. Amazingly, it did taste like breakfast. I was able to pick out each of the flavors.

Each of these dining experiences inspired me to be more creative when grilling burgers at home, like adding a nontraditional cheeseburger cheese and trying sauces other than ketchup and mustard. I will also be experimenting with sweet potato fries very soon.

Mark Bittman’s cookbook How to Cook Everything is my go-to cookbook when I need inspiration. I look up an ingredient in the index and Mark never fails me. He has thousands of recipes and at the end of each of them he includes variation ideas. Brilliant. Tonight it was shrimp. I found his recipe for “The Simplest and Best Shrimp Dish” with a variation that included all ingredients I had at home–tomatoes from the farmer’s market on Sunday and fresh cilantro from one of my friends’ gardens. I had mine with a salad of mixed greens, extra virgin olive oil, and rice vinegar on the side, but what I really wanted was a nice chunk of French bread to soak up all of the amazing garlicky sauce. I admit that I didn’t really measure any of the ingredients, I just added the amount that looked right to me (a handful of shrimp, one large tomato, 3 cloves of garlic, etc). I included his recommended quantities.

Shrimp with Tomatoes and Cilantro

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
6 gloves garlic, cut into slivers (I like to use a cheese grater to grate the garlic directly into the pan)
About 1-1/2 pounds shrimp, 20 to 30 per pound, peeled, rinsed and dried
Kosher Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 plum tomatoes, diced (My tomatoes were not plum, they were huge home-grown tomatoes)
Chopped fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

1. Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over low heat. There should be enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Add the garlic and cook until it turns golden, a few minutes.
2. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the shrimp, some salt and pepper, and the tomatoes. Stir to blend and continue to cook, shaking the pan once or twice and turning the shrimp once or twice, until they are pink all over and the mixture is bubbly, 5 to 10 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve immediately.

I finally went to Little Man Ice Cream this weekend when Natalie and Ryan were visiting. I had tried several other times, but always after a late dinner in the Highlands when they were closed.

It has been wonderful to see my good friend Natalie, who grew up across the street from me in Beatrice and is now living in Michigan, twice in two weeks. First in Beatrice for our ten year high school reunion and now in Denver, as she is here for a wedding this weekend. She made this salad in Beatrice to enjoy with burgers and homemade french fries at my parents’ home and again in Denver to side with Ryan’s famous homemade pizza. Both times, I could not get enough of it. It is a great salad for summer. The dressing is light and the combination of the crunchy salty almonds with the chewy sweet apricots is perfect. I actually made it for myself for dinner tonight as the main dish.

My friend Emily and her husband just got back from San Francisco and raved about the quinoa her friends made while they were there. I had been wanting to make quinoa recently so I picked some up at the store on the way home from work without checking her recipe to see what else I would need. Of course I didn’t have a thing on hand tonight to make her recipe, which included spinach and smoked gouda, but I was able to throw something together without another trip to the store. I have long been intimidated by this grain for some reason and was pleased to discover that it’s actually quite quick and easy to make. You could really add just about any fresh vegetable to it to make a delightful summer meal; personally I thought my combination was perfect. It would also make a great side dish or bed for grilled fish, shrimp, or chicken. I served mine as the main dish, pairing it with a glass of white wine.

A few weeks ago I went to the annual ACOG (American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology) meeting in San Francisco. It was an incredible experience…I learned a lot, made some wonderful friends, and was away from the hospital for a few days. The conference was great, but my schedule was so full that there was absolutely no time to explore the city. Fortunately I was able to take a few days off afterwards to spend some time in Napa Valley and San Francisco. Finn, always up for a vacation, met me in San Francisco. We spent the next 4 days indulging in some of the most amazing food and wine I have ever had.

We started in San Francisco with a late brunch. Finn did his research and discovered Dottie’s, a little diner famous for brunch. Although it was a short walk from the Hilton where I had stayed for the conference, I was glad I wasn’t alone, as the neighborhood was a little shady. We had read online reviews of people waiting in line for 2 hours to just get into this tiny diner. There was even a sign on the window outside telling customers “if you are pressed for time please join us when you are not rushed” and “please don’t tell people to vacate when they are finished eating” among other things. We found this quite amusing. Fortunately we were there on a Wednesday afternoon and we had no wait.

Although I rarely describe diners as cozy, this one definitely was. There were different antique salt and pepper shakers on every table that reminded me of my Grandma Butler’s house. There were snow globes on the counter and souvenir postcards on the fridge. The artwork was a bit eclectic, including a few photos of topless women. Our waiter was actually a little gruff in my opinion, a sharp contrast to us in our relaxed vacation modes. The food made up for this. Choosing from the long list of specials was incredibly difficult. I had the lamb-fennel sausage, roasted garlic, tomato, spinach and goat cheese omelet with homemade sourdough-dill toast. Good choice. I especially liked the sausage. Finn had the smoked whiskey-fennel sausage, mushroom, and baby spinach scramble with grilled cornbread. Also very good. We shared a pancake too – totally unnecessary but worth it – whole wheat buttermilk with ginger and cinnamon. The subtle spices were incredible in this very fluffy pancake…I think I will try this at home.

Go here.

We served the dressing over a salad with mixed greens along with thinly sliced radishes, chives, dill, granny smith apples, and peas. All but the apple and peas were from Sunny Slope. We topped it with grilled chicken.

Strawberry Vinaigrette Dressing

1 cup sliced strawberries

4 tsp vinegar (white or rice; we used rice)

4 tsp lemon juice

1 tbsp sugar

1 ½ tsp honey

¼ tsp salt

1/8 tsp each: garlic powder, onion powder, dried basil leaves, parsley flakes, pepper

¼ cup olive oil

Puree strawberries in blender. Add remaining ingredients except oil. Blend, then gradually add oil while blending on low speed.

Add Happy Cakes to my list of my favorite cupcake spots, which until now included just Magnolia Bakery in NYC and Sprinkles in L.A. Fortunately, Happy Cakes is in Denver, in the Highlands, one of my favorite neighborhoods. I have to admit that I was never really a cupcake fan until Sarah introduced me to the fact that cupcakes were ‘in’ a few years ago (It was with her that I discovered Magnolia Bakery and Sprinkles….she’s also been known to lead NYC cupcake shop tours).

Sprinkles in L.A.: After thinking of this, I had to find this photo….great trip.

I started the night shift this week. For 5 weeks, I will start work at 5 pm on Sunday and 6:15 pm Monday-Thursday and get off a little after 8. My eating schedule is very weird on nights….I have a hard time deciding what and when to eat. My body is very confused. When I wake up, I don’t know if I should have breakfast or dinner. The other day, for instance, I woke up and had a bowl of kashi cereal. This wasn’t quite enough so I followed it with some chicken. It seemed like such a wrong combination. Today I planned on having scrambled eggs with some chicken sausage that was thawing in my fridge. Unfortunately, I only had one egg. I struggled to find something to eat that did not involve going to the store. I came up with this recipe for blueberry pancakes with almond butter. They were actually some of the best pancakes I’ve ever made. I use a recipe from Better Homes and Gardens for buttermilk pancakes as a base and then tweaked it based on the ingredients I had to work with. I partly came up with it after reading an article in some magazine on labor and delivery about foods that reduce belly fat….not sure to believe it or not, but blueberries, almonds, and oatmeal were all on the list. So consider it healthy.

This month I was the host of cooking club. This was a big deal for me, as it was my first time to host as well as the first time for several of my friends to see my new apartment. Though it is