Recipe: Boursin Burger

We all know Boursin is an essential addition to anyone's cheese board, but it's so much more versatile than that. Here's a brilliant summer recipe that uses Boursin in a totally different but utterly delicious way... We present, the Boursin Burger! 

What you need: 

80g Boursin® Cheese Garlic & Herbs

1 rasher of smoked bacon, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

100g field mushrooms, finely chopped

1 tsp. fresh thyme, finely chopped

1 tbsp. butter

1 tsp. English mustard

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

500g beef mince

Half a white onion, finely chopped

Vegetable oil for cooking

Salt & pepper to taste

What you do:

Place the beef mince in a blender, along with mustard, thyme, mushrooms, onion, garlic, bacon and butter. 

Take the Boursin Cheese Black Pepper and shape into four individual balls. Push the balls into the middle of each of your burger patties, ensuring you seal around the cheese to keep it in the middle. Set aside until cooking.

Place a griddle pan or a heavy based frying pan on a high heat, alternatively, get the barbi nice and warm.

Pulse until combined. Split the mixture into four equal portions and shape into burger patties.

 Add a little oil and then immediately add the burger patties, cooking evenly for approximately 3 minutes on each side. 

Once cooked, remove from the pan and allow to rest for two minutes before serving.

Place the burgers into a warm bun, garnished with sliced gherkins and tomatoes.

Enjoy with a dollop of Heinz Barbecue Sauce or 50% Less Sugars Ketchup!

Where are we? - Week 2

We had so much fun in Kent for week 1, and we're not even getting warmed up yet... There are 8 stores that stand between us and Gastro glory this week! Check the list below to see if we're visiting your local store:

Thursday - Banbury Tesco Extra & Rugby Sainsbury's

Friday - Witney, Oxford Sainsbury's & Northampton Tesco Extra

Saturday - Abingdon & Milton Keynes Tesco Extras

Sunday - Watford & Barhill, Cambridge Tesco Extras

To see where the RoadShow is heading over the next 10 weeks, visit gastro-alfresco.co/roadshow.

What ya got cookin'? - Mission Deli Wraps

Meet our chefs, Scott & Andy... Nawww, aren't they cute. These handsome chaps will be preparing all of the food being served across the stores this summer; from sausages to chicken to Mission Deli's wrap filling, it's their splendid concoction. Here's a step by step guide on how you make a Mission Deli stir fry wrap.

1 - The quality of any great dish is in the detail. We start with Clover Cooking Spray, a healthier option with 86% less saturated fat than cooking with butter, but it still tastes great!

2 - We've got sooooo many tasty ingredients in this stir fry. Bean sprouts, cabbage, carrot, pak choi, spring onion and mushrooms to name a few. Get those sizzlin' in a hot pan Scott!

3 - Fry until it's all nice and cooked, yet still crispy. Spoon the mix into the middle of a Mediterranean Mission Deli wrap and (like the great philosophers Limp Bizkit once said) keep rollin'. Once it's wrapped up, cut into equal portions.

4 - ...and that's it! A simple, delicious and incredibly healthy deli wrap that's good to share at any summer alfresco party! Alternatively, scoff the lot yourself.

On the road again... Just can't wait to get on the road again...

Where better to begin our 11 week alfresco journey across the UK than in the garden of England? That's right, we're kicking off the 2015 RoadShow in Kent; 2 teams, 5 stores.

For those of you who don't know, our RoadShow is a foodie festival on wheels; basically, imagine Optimus Prime decided to go into the catering business and you'd be halfway there. Loaded with 9 of this years sponsors (currently being announced over on Facebook), our chefs and Brand Believers will be pulling up to your local store from 11am - 7pm, serving up freshly cooked summer food & drink!

Trust us when we say, there is something for everyone on this RoadShow. All ages. All tastes.

If free food & drink isn't enough for you (sigh) we'll be doing daily giveaways where you're able to win a Gastro GoodiBox, packed with sponsor product! Look how happy it's made these people...

So, there's not much left to be said... See you at one of the following stores:

- Friday 5th, Whitstable Tesco Extra
- Saturday 6th, Broadstairs Tesco Extra & Tunbridge Wells Sainsbury's
- Sunday 7th, Canterbury Sainsbury's Superstore & Ashford Bybrook Sainsbury's

BBQ tips you should know

As it's National BBQ Week, we thought we ought to share a few little tips & tricks that may help you reach gastro grillin' glory! If you think we've missed something out, comment or tweet using #NatBBQWeek.

1 - Hold your hand 6" from the grill to test the heat. If you feel you can hold it there for...

- under a minute, the grill is too hot
- 2-3 minutes the heat is high and ideal for searing
- 3-4 minutes is a medium temperature for normal grilling
- 4-5 minutes in fairly warm and good for heating food

2 - Marinated food tastes great and grills better, right? The longer the soak, the better the taste, right? Cut marinating times in half by placing marinated food in a sealed bag and placing in the fridge.

3 - Low & Slow! BBQing is not a race against time. Sear on high and then take it slow to retain all of those juices whilst cooking all the way through.

4 - Now you can buy a gas BBQ for under £40, there's a real argument for what's best, gas or charcoal. Follow this simple rule... Gas for ease, charcoal for taste.

5 - Shake up a barbi party with a theme. Food, clothing & drinks can all match a country's theme.

Caribbean = jerk chicken & dreds
Australian = Kanga steaks & cork hats
British = Soggy hotdog & a raincoat?

6 - Throwing wood chips and herb branches onto the coals can add great smoky flavour.

7 - Create barbi theatre by pressing meat on the grill with a spatula. The release of natural fat will create flames and make you look like a pro. (health warning: BBQs are fun. BBQs aren't toys. Be careful and treat them with respect)

8 - Introduce colour to BBQ food with flame roasted red, yellow & green peppers.

9 - Achieve criss crossed lines like a pro by searing on a high heat, quickly wiping the grill and placing back at 45 degrees.

10 - Safety first. Place the BBQ on level ground away from overhanging shrubbery. Only use bbq lighter fuel and NEVER use petrol. If a gas barbi doesn't light, turn off the gas and leave for a minute before returning and trying to relight.

Recipe: Marvellous Miso, Mustard & Sesame Aubergines

As if it needed to be proved, here is a superb and simple example of a vegetable that’s just great on the grill. Aubergine is, in our opinion, vastly underrated; the miso and sesame add a wonderfully oriental flavour, balanced by the Dijon and honey!

What you need

Ripe aubergines x 2

1 tbsp Miso paste

1 tbsp honey – runny

1 tsp creamy Dijon mustard

1 tsp grated ginger

1 x crushed garlic cloves

1tbsp mixed soy sauce & cider vinegar

20g toasted sesame seeds

What you do

o  Mix Miso paste, honey, mustard, ginger, garlic, soy, vinegar & ½ sesame seeds.

o  Cut aubergines length-wise then cross-cut flesh; brush scored side with ½ Miso mix.

o  Place on medium grill, cut face-down to sear then turn and baste with remaining Miso mix, turn frequently until charred all over, about 15 minutes.

o  Set aside to cool, for around 5-10 minutes.

National BBQ Week

You may have seen across social media (Facebook & Twitter for those not in the loop) that we're running National BBQ Week this week. BBQing sits at the very core of our alfresco ethos and there are few better ways to enjoy a communal mealtime than gastro grillin'.

National BBQ Week is one of the UK's biggest awareness weeks and has changed consumer BBQ attitudes and usage from just 9 million in 1997 to over 120 million last year! Now in its 19th year, National BBQ Week sees friends, families, pubs and hotels come together and embrace the BBQ culture, whatever the weather.

We want you to get involved! Whether it's just having a simple BBQ in the garden with the family, or sharing an alfresco afternoon with the whole of the village, we want to see your pics, tips and recipes.

Send them over on Twitter using #NatBBQWeek and we'll share the best ones.