There are only eleven steps standing between you and this glorified burger! And most of them go into recreating the Special Sauce that gives the Big Mac its essence.

Read more about seduction food (and why the Big Mac exerts a particularly beguiling power over me) here!

INGREDIENTS

The Special Sauce: This will make you enough sauce for at least 10 patties (or 5 Big Macs); adjust accordingly.

• 2 cloves of a large shallot, minced
• 1 cup extra virgin olive oil, used separately as two ½ cup portions
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, separated
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup sugar
(granulated or powdered will work)
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons sweet onion relish
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice, separated
• sea salt
• 1 tablespoon paprika

The Double Patty:

• ground beef; get as much as you need for the number (and size) of hamburger patties you want to make
• salt, pepper, olive oil and minced shallot to taste
• romaine lettuce, shredded
• pickles or fresh cucumbers, sliced thin
• sesame-seed hamburger buns
• mild cheddar cheese, sliced thin

DIRECTIONS 

To make the sauce:

1 In a large bowl, beat together egg yolk, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1 teaspoon lemon juice and a pinch of salt.

2 While whisking, add half a teaspoon of olive oil. Keep on whisking, add another teaspoon of olive oil, and another. (About 3-4 minutes.)

3 When your sauce begins to thicken and bubbles appear on the surface, add the rest of the olive oil in a very slow stream, whisking constantly until the rest of the oil is incorporated into the mixture. (About 3-4 minutes more.)

4 Add in the last teaspoon of lemon juice and mix it into the sauce.

5 In a separate bowl, mix together the ketchup, sugar, minced shallots, 1 tablespoon of the sweet onion relish, 1 tablespoon vinegar, paprika and a pinch of salt.

6 Slowly pour the remaining ½ cup of olive oil in and whisk the mixture until it is uniform.

7 Slowly add the ketchup mixture to the egg yolk mixture. Stir to combine and taste as you do so; feel free not to use all of the ketchup mixture, depending on your personal preferences.

To make the meat:

1 Season your chopped meat with salt, pepper, olive oil and the minced shallot; separate into the desired number of hamburger patties.

2 Heat olive oil in a thick-bottomed frying pan at medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, start frying the patties for a few minutes per side. Once cooked to your preference, remove the patties from the frying pan to a clean plate, immediately topping them with slices of cheese so that it melts a bit.

To assemble the Big Mac:

1 Start with the bottom bun: add a layer of shredded romaine and then pile on the special sauce, a hamburger patty and a few pickle or cucumber slices.

2 Cut the bottom part of another bun in half and use it for the thin middle layer of bread. Then, add another burger, special sauce and some more lettuce, pickles and/or cucumbers. Top it off with the top bun, and you are ready to seduce me.