The Accidental Homemade Hot Pocket

Stuck somewhere between "I still haven't unpacked from Seattle and really haven't gone grocery shopping" and "I'm still clinging to the last bits of summer flavors", I wanted to create a simple spicy spin-off of a cheeseburger, but in a wrap form (actually it was in Lavash form, but I'll get to that in a minute).  I started my recipe like I start most, not really having any idea what I'm going to do and just going with my instinct.  Of course I had somewhat of a general idea on the direction my dinner was headed, but in terms of what the end result would be?  I didn't have the foggiest.  But isn't that the beauty of creating in kitchen?  You just don't know what you'll end up with, and for that, I love it.

Cheeeeese

Cumin, Chives, Tomato Paste and Diced Jalepeno Peppers

So there I was, in a mess of excited creativity, hunting for the components of my dish, clapping cupboards open and shut and swinging the refrigerator door open repeatedly, hearing gentle little puffs of air trying the escape with each close.  The I hovered around my little hunk of beef and shook a little of this into it, tossed a little bit of that into it and then I used my hands to blend it all together, allowing the cool meat to slide through my fingers until everything was mixed together.  Then, I cooked up the beef in a pan until it was nice and browned.  I tasted, I salted to adjust.  I laid out my Lavash (if you're not familiar with Lavash, it's a type of flat bread that crisps up, yet still remains flaky when you bake it). Then I dusted shredded cheese onto the top.  Running some of the beef down the center of the rectangular piece of bread, I topped it off with some diced heirloom tomatoes and folded everything up, burrito style.  Once this was accomplished, I leaned back to admire my work and I discovered one very important detail: my wrap had a striking resemblance to a Hot Pocket.  Like a serious resemblance.

Accidental Homemade Hot Pocket

 "A Hot Pocket?!" I accusingly yelled at my creation that sat in front of me.  Then, I broke out into giggles, laughing at myself for having these grandly glorified idea of dining on an amazing cheeseburger when in reality, unbeknownst to me, I ended up with a recreation of a popular frozen food item.  Who knew?  But you want to know what?  My little hot pocket seemed to totally hit the spot.  The Lavash yielded a nice flaky crust that gave way to seasoned beef, fiery jalapeño peppers, melted cheese and fresh heirloom tomatoes.  It was exactly what I was looking for and didn't even know it.  Don't you just love it when that happens?

Homemade Cheeseburger Hot Pocket
- 1 Lavash flatbread
- 1 giant handful of ground beef (I used a lean, all-natural ground beef)
- 1 palm-full of cumin
- About a tbs of tomato paste
- As many pickled jalepeno slices as you dare, chopped up
- A handful of cheese
- Salt and pepper
- 1 heirloom tomato, diced
- 1 palm-full of dried chives

Mix the meat, cumin, tomato paste, peppers and salt and pepper together.  Fry on high heat until browned.  Lay out the Lavash bread and sprinkle the cheese on top.  Place the beef and then the tomatoes on top.  Fold up the Lavash, burrito style and bake it in the oven until it starts to crisp up.  Take it out of the oven, laugh at how it looks like a Hot Pocket and then serve it immediately, humming along to that annoying little Hot Pocket tune.