Hay Stacks

Directions

1. Peel potatoes, boil until fork tender, and then mash with plenty of butter and some warmed whole milk or cream. If you don't have either any, STOP, grab your keys and get to the store. Salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
2. Mix the ground beef, onion soup mix, and egg. Form into patties and fry in a cast iron skillet. And, yes, you do need to use a cast iron skillet. It just doesn't taste like Mom's otherwise.
3. When patties are nearly done, top each one with a hungry-man dollop of mashed potatoes and a generous handful of shredded cheese. Mom always used mild cheddar. Cover loosely with aluminum foil until cheese is melted.
4. Serve with fresh green beans or peas and carrots.
5. VARIATIONS
6. You can turn this into a more sophisticated dish if you must. Here are some ideas:
7. * Use equal parts ground sirloin, ground pork, and ground veal (beefy, flavorful, and good texture, respectively). I suppose you could try ground turkey, but it just won't taste right. Don't overmix; use a folding action to blend your ingredients.
8. * Omit the Lipton Onion Soup Mix and use something more culturally relevant to you for seasoning.
9. * Add some roasted garlic and fresh basil chiffonade to your potatoes at mashing time. A chiffonade of herb is created by stacking the leaves neatly, rolling them tightly, and the slicking across the rolled leaves to create fine herbal ribbons.
10. * Substitute gruyere or asadero in place of the mild cheddar. If you go with asadero, use Crema Mexicana in place of whole milk in your mashed potatoes. Come to think of it, toss in some oregano and chili powder.
11. * As you can see for the variations, this dish blank canvas. Make it your own! Your kids will love you for it.