I ran my second half-marathon of the year this past weekend. It’s been a few years since I ran a half, let alone two in one year, and in my mind, that means we deserved an indulgent, delicious dinner to recover.

We headed straight to the farmer’s market after the race, intent on hitting up my favorite pork and beef rancher for a steak. Maybe a ribeye. We wandered about, picking up a few other things – honey, and the last of the Thomcord grapes (this in particular makes me sad). I mentioned to Larry that we had ground beef in the freezer; maybe we should just have burgers? Sometimes a burger just sounds better than steak. He agreed.

I didn’t want to make just a plain burger. Neither one of us eats cheese on our burgers, for the most part, but I also knew I didn’t want to make something complicated or something that had so many flavors going on that the beef flavor got lost.

These BLT burgers fit the bill perfectly. It’s just a plain burger, grilled and topped with arugula (the lettuce component). The bacon and tomato components are added in the form of a mayonnaise. It’s got garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, chipotle chile… and bacon. And it’s really good.

We loved these burgers. Having great beef – local, well-raised, pastured – helps. I normally don’t like bacon burgers, but it’s perfect when mixed into the mayo.

• BLT Burger with Garlicky Mayonnaise (Food & Wine, June 2005)
• Spicy Salad with Mustard and Balsamic Vinaigrette (Cook’s Illustrated, January 2008)