I don’t know about you, but after days and days of rich food (which I will get to later), I was ready for a simple meal when it came time for the last of our Christmas celebrations over the weekend! With New Year celebrations coming up this weekend, and everyone glued to the television watching football, I thought I would share my go-to meal (especially when your gathering involves children) for a casual gathering to inspire your own.

For our day-after Christmas celebration, I was fortunate to have a handy hubby who loves to grill year round, even in the snow, which made the burger buffet an even better idea.  Talk about your easy clean-up!

I can’t remember ever meeting anyone who didn’t like a good hamburger,  but for our holiday gathering we decided to go beyond your normal ground beef for our burgers.  We used ground lamb, bison, and sirloin for those who were not up to trying something new.

(FYI you can purchase both ground lamb & bison at most Publix or Whole Food markets)

Setting up for a burger buffet is quite simple.  We used an assortment of rolls for buns and made all of the patties small in the style of the popular sliders.

There are a variety of condiments for burgers, so pick your favorite and go with it.  Keep it super simple and serve them straight from the bottles, or dress up your buffet with speciality condiment jars.

condiment jars from Pottery Barn

Cheddar, provolone, baby swiss, & pepper-jack cheese

We also had a platter of assorted cheeses and basics for dressing a burger such as lettuce, pickles, and onions.

I served chips out of cute little baskets to round out our buffet.

 

buy your baskets at Michael’s after the holidays when they are on clearance for a great deal!

my nephew & daughter enjoying  dressing their own burgers

I also had one more condiment on our buffet (just because it’s my favorite), caramelized onions.

Take a large sweet onion and thinly slice it.  Pour a splash of olive oil in a sauté pan and add your onions.  Cook on medium heat until transparent and cut to low.  Let cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

 

 

With about ten minutes of cooking time left, add about 2 Tablespoons of Balsamic vinegar and cook until the vinegar has completely dissolved.

These are especially delicious on the lamb burger topped with blue cheese.

So, what does your easy entertaining menu look like?