Joe Zee Shares His Killer Paris-Inspired Cheeseburger in ‘That’s What Fashion Is’
Yahoo Style editor-in-chief Joe Zee is a fashion jack-of-all-trades — he’s styled Vanity Fair pictorials with Annie Leibovitz, album covers for Justin Timberlake, and fragrance campaigns for Celine Dion. He’s reported from the red carpet at awards shows, starred in MTV reality show, “The City,” and is now is a co-host and fashion expert on the Tyra Banks’ syndicated show, “FAB Life.” The magnetic fashion editor has chronicled his adventures in fashion in his latest book, “That’s What Fashion Is: Lessons and Stories from My Nonstop, Mostly Glamorous Life in Style,” and reveals the behind-the-scenes stories of his assignments, and fun fashion tips and tricks to help people achieve their best style.
Zee has spent ample time in Paris covering fashion shows and working for fashion magazines during his career as a stylist and editor. In his book, the jet-setting Zee includes a recipe for a cheeseburger inspired by one served at his favorite Parisian cafe in Paris, Le Castiglione. “My take on the Castiglione cheeseburger is, of course, not the same thing as eating the real thing while sitting at the Paris cafe, where you might also down a bottle of good French red wine, but it’s still worth a try,” he writes. His burger recipe calls for cheese, spicy sauce, and a beefy sirloin patty — no lettuce or tomato needed. Who says fashion people don’t eat?
Joe Zee’s favorite burger in Paris: the cheeseburger from Le Castiglione Cafe. Photo by Le Castiglione.
Joe’s Cafe Castiglione Cheeseburger
Makes 4 burgers
1 pound ground sirloin
Salt, pepper, and onion powder to taste
¼ cup finely minced shallots
½ cup finely minced onions
¼ cup finely chopped cornichons
1 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup ketchup
2 tablespoons sriracha
1 hard boiled egg
4 large sesame buns
16 slices organic American cheese
Loosely pack four meat patties so they are roughly ¼ pound each. Sprinkle generously on top and bottom with salt, pepper, and onion powder. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the shallots, onions, cornichons, mayonnaise, ketchup, and sriracha. Finely mince the boiled egg — try pushing it through a sieve — and whisk it into the mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Once all the ingredients are fully combined, let chill in refrigerator.
Lightly toast the buns and set aside.
Place the patties on avery hot grill or cast-iron skillet. Let sear for 2 to 4 minutes on each side, depending on how rare or well done you prefer your burger. Halfway through, place two slices of American cheese on top of each patty and cover with a domed lid (metal mixing bowl works perfectly) for 1 minute, to allow cheese to steam-melt perfectly.
While the burgers cook, spread a generous layer of the sauce on both cut sides of the buns. Add two more slices of cheese to the bottom of the bun. When the burgers are cooked to perfection, assemble the burgers. When you see the sauce run out the sides, you’ll know you’ve got the perfect Castiglione burger.
For more burger recipes, try these beefy recipes:
How to Make Good Burgers Even Better
10 Creative (and Healthy!) Burger Recipes You Haven’t Thought of Yet
Now and Zen Burger from ‘Homemade Vegan Pantry’
