Hot Dog Cheeseburgers - Better than Bacon Cheeseburgers & Low Carb

Today was a busy day. As much as I was hoping to sleep in today, my eyes were wide open before 6:30 this morning! Why is it that I have to drag myself out of bed during the work week...but when I finally have a chance to sleep in, I'm wide awake??? Ugh! As soon as my eyes opened, I began thinking about all the things I needed to do...and as much as I tried to go back to sleep, I couldn't. We got up and out of the house early this morning and stopped at Einstein Bagels for breakfast. I brought 2 slices of my grain free bread and just bought a side (or as they call it a schmear) of cream cheese and their Vanilla Hazelnut coffee. I even brought a cup of Fage yogurt, too! It felt just like "the old days" -- as in before I went grain free. I honestly enjoyed it just as much as I used to. Hubby and I headed to Costco afterward and did our weekly shopping. We always take a cooler with us just in case we want to make other stops on the way back home so we can keep our perishables cool (like the wild salmon we bought). We stopped and did a bit of grocery shopping on our way home. 

As soon as we got home, I began working on my next project...cleaning out our pantry! I have a walk in pantry...or, shall I say I am "supposed" to have a walk in pantry. I have not been able to walk into it for a long time! LOL I proceeded to remove every single item from it and check the dates on everything. I tossed more stuff than I kept. What I realize is that I don't need as much pantry space these days...well, not for food anyway. What I really need is refrigerator and freezer space since almost everything I buy is fresh or made from scratch. I spent a good part of the afternoon working on that project. I'm almost finished...I just need to sort through and organize all my storage containers...but that will have to wait until tomorrow. We ran a few more errands and then it was time to get started on dinner.. 

Since it was so hot and muggy this afternoon and I was exhausted...we made a quick and easy dinner that didn't require heating up the kitchen at all. I decided to make "Hot Dog Cheeseburgers" with a side of coleslaw and fresh grape tomatoes that I quartered and tossed with olive oil, Pomegranate vinegar, fresh fresh thyme and basil and some sea salt and pepper. What are "Hot Dot Cheeseburgers" you ask? Think "bacon cheeseburger" only the bacon is replaced with a sliced hot dog instead.  I made simple ground sirloin burgers (seasoned with Montreal steak seasoning) and then grilled the burgers and hot dogs (Applegate's organic uncured). I served them on my Sesame Seed Buns that I split in half and then topped with a burger, sharp cheddar cheese, a hot dog sliced lengthwise (and placed criss-cross on top of the cheeseburger)...added a squirt of yellow mustard and then finished it by adding the top half of the bun. Voila..."Hot Dog Cheeseburger"! It was SO good. I actually like it better than a bacon cheeseburger. I absolutely love the coleslaw, too. The tomatoes were our own homegrown as well as the fresh herbs. It was such a simple meal and perfect for a hot summer evening. 

I can't tell you how much I enjoy these Sesame Seed Buns that I created. They have made mealtime this summer so much more enjoyable for me than my last 2 grain-free summers. While I don't mind not eating bread...there is just something satisfying about sinking your teeth into a simple sandwich once in awhile. And if you can do so by making a simple and delicious grain-free bun...why not enjoy it? These buns have about 4 to 4.5 net carbs each. If you miss eating a burger on a bun or a simple sandwich...these buns are definitely worth trying! You can find the recipe here: Sesame Seed Buns. Of course, if you prefer not to have the sesame seeds on top...just leave them off. I've included the basic simple recipe for my coleslaw below. Coleslaw dressing is such a personal taste kind of thing in my opinion. I've given you the combination and amounts I used -- feel free to tweak it to your own taste by tasting it as you go. It is so simple that you'll wonder why you haven't always been making your own dressing before! Enjoy!

Easy Coleslaw

Ingredients:

16-ounce bag of coleslaw mix (shredded green cabbage, red cabbage and grated carrots)

Heaping 1/2 cup of mayonnaise (olive oil based or home made), or to taste

1 rounded tablespoon confectioner Swerve Sweetener, or preferred sweetener

3 tablespoons of "sugar free" bread and butter pickle juice (I used Mt. Olive brand), or to taste

2 to 3 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, or to taste

Few dashes of celery salt

Couple dashes of ground dry mustard

Directions:

In a large bowl, whisk mayonnaise, sweetener, pickle juice, vinegar, celery salt and dry mustard together. Taste dressing and make adjustments as desired, to taste. Add coleslaw mix and toss until evenly coated. Refrigerate for several hours until chilled. Toss before serving.