Ingredients:
4 slices Italian bread, 1/2 inch-thick cut on the diagonal
olive oil, for brushing the bread
1 clove garlic, halved
2 large shallots, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2/3 cup dry red wine
2 teaspoons softened unsalted butter
2 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
1 1/2 lbs ground chuck
fresh ground pepper
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Directions:
Make the toasts: Toast the bread on a baking sheet under a preheated broiler about 3 inches from the heat until it is golden.
Brush it with oil and turn it.
Toast the other side of the bread until it is golden.
Brush it with the oil, and rub it with the cut sides of the garlic.
Make the sauce: In a small saucepan combine the shallots and the vinegar; bring the vinegar to a boil, and boil it until it is reduced to a glaze.
Add the wine and boil it until it measures about 1/4 cup.
Remove the pan from the heat, swirl in the butter and the blue cheese until the mixture is smooth, and keep the sauce warm.
Make the hamburgers: Handling the meat as little as possible, shape it gently into four 1-inch-thick oval patties and season the patties with the pepper.
Heat a large cast-iron skillet over moderately high heat until it is hot, sprinkle it evenly with the coarse salt, and in it cook the hamburgers, covered, turning them once, for 6 minutes for medium-rare meat. Set each hamburger on a toast on a plate and spoon the sauce over the hamburgers.
Servings: 4
Time preparation: 20 min.
Time total: 45 min.