for the bacon jam:

Over medium heat in a heavy saucepan, add the bacon and cook–stirring often with a wooden spoon while scraping up all the lovely bits that get stuck to the bottom of the pan–until the bacon begins to brown and crisp up (about 20 minutes). Keep all the bacon fat in the pan. Now is not the time to discard the fat; the fat is flavor. The fat is beautiful! It is what elevates the ordinary into the extraordinary! Allow it to work its magic and enjoy it, shamelessly!

Lower the heat to medium and stir in the onion and shallot. Continue cooking until onion and shallot are soft and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the maple syrup, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar and Worcestershire sauce. Season with salt and pepper and add the water, then stir to combine well.

Raise the heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil. As soon as it starts to boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring only occasionally, if needed. Simmer until the jam has a glossy appearance and syrupy consistency, 45 minutes – 1 hour.

Remove from the heat and allow the jam to cool for 30 minutes. Using a spider strainer, remove the jam from the pan and place it into a bowl, leaving the majority of the fat (it served us well) in the pan to be discarded and allow the remaining mixture to cool completely. The jam should be thick and chunky, with little crispy bits throughout. Set it aside to cool a little bit. This can be made up to 3 days ahead. Store covered in the fridge. This is slap your mama good!

for the caramelized shallots:

Heat the butter in a pan set over medium heat. Once melted, add the shallots and stir to coat in the butter. Cook, stirring frequently, until onions are soft and beginning to turn golden-brown, 5-8 minutes. Add the brown sugar and black pepper and stir well to combine. Cook until the sugar melts and caramelizes onto the shallots, about 5 minutes. Be careful not to overcook, as the sugar will burn. Remove from heat and set aside.

Place a skillet over medium heat. Butter the insides of the split pretzel rolls. Press, buttered side down, onto the pan and toast lightly, 1-2 minutes. Set aside.

for the burger:

Preheat your grill to medium-high heat, or 375 degrees F. Shape four 7oz. patties. To get perfectly shaped patties like the ones in the pictures, place a large cutter onto a cutting board, place the portioned beef into it and press down evenly. Press your thumb into the center of the patties to keep them from shrinking while cooking. Sprinkle the kosher salt over the patties and place them on the grill. Cook the burgers to your liking. For me personally, anything more than medium-rare is too much, but hey, different strokes for different folks! When you flip the burgers halfway through cooking, top with the blue cheese so that the cheese melts as the burgers finish cooking.

Evenly spread 2 tbsp. of the warm bacon jam over the four bottom halves of the pretzel rolls. Place the blue cheese burgers on the bottom buns over the bacon jam, top with the caramelized shallots, drizzle the balsamic glaze over the burgers and top with the spring mix. Finish with remaining bun halves, serve and watch your family and friends freak out over how beautiful and delicious these burgers are. And don’t skimp on the fries, a burger’s natural mate!