A fantastic burger recipe that’s far from the norm

Scottish Field’s taste of America week of recipes continues today with another lip-smacking creation from Christina Conte.

Originally from Garrowhill in Glasgow, Christina emigrated to the States when she was 9, and now lives in Los Angeles where she publishes food and travel posts on her site, ChristinasCucina.com.

She is this week sharing some American favourites with the folks back home.

Christina said: ‘This brie and truffle burger with mushrooms, arugula and crème fraîche is based on one of my favourite pizzas with the same toppings. The flavours are just as brilliant on a burger!

‘I’m not a burger girl. It’s not that I don’t eat beef or meat, there’s just something about a traditional hamburger. It’s just not that exciting to me, and my taste buds feel the same.

‘Unless you’ve been following me for over five years, you probably don’t remember my recipe for a mushroom, brie and arugula pizza with truffle crème fraîche. Well, you guessed it: I used the pizza as an inspiration for this burger and it’s brilliant!’

Scottish Field asked Christina what our American cousins have in common with Scottish palates.

She said: ‘I think the biggest commonality between Scottish and American cuisine is  simply the use of meat. A lot of typical American food centers on  barbecue, pot roasts, meatloaves, etc. Scottish fare has steak pie,  Scotch pie, mince and tatties, and more meat-centred fare. Besides  that, I think the two are quite different from each other.’