veggie burger

Walnut, Sundried Tomato and Lentil Burger {v, gf}

I’m not shy about how I feel about vegetarian burgers… most are made with crap ingredients. Eating these types of burgers once in a while is fine, but it’s certainly not something you want to make a habit of.

One of the biggest challenges about a homemade veggie burger is keeping it together. This vegan burger holds together like a dream, I didn’t have a single burger fall apart.

The lentils provide plenty of protein to rival a beef burger while the walnuts and sundried tomatoes offer plenty of flavor. Give these a go and let me know how they turn out for you.
Happy eating,
~Monique

Walnut, Sundried Tomato and Lentil Burger

1 cup walnut pieces
3 cups cooked black lentils
¾ cup oat flour
2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
⅓ cup chopped sundried tomatoes in oil
1 tbls ghee or olive oil
1 cup finely chopped red onion
1 cup diced celery
3 garlic cloves, minced
¼ tsp chili flakes
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
½ tsp pink salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tbls tamari or coconut aminos
2 tbls balsamic vinegar
a handful fresh herbs (use a combination of basil, parsley, cilantro, chives, …maybe a bit of oregano, thyme and mint if you have them)chopped
Toppings: avocado, a sauce (like this red pepper cheese sauce) or simple Greek yogurt with a little sriracha or mustard mixed in, and some lettuce.

Saute the onions and celery in warmed ghee/olive oil in a saucepan for a few minutes to soften. Add the garlic, spices, salt and pepper. Saute another minute, remove from heat and let cool.

Pulse in a small food processor the walnuts plus 1 cup of lentils to break down, pour into a large mixing bowl. Add the cooked lentils and mash slightly with a fork. Add in the oat flour, flax seeds, sundried tomatoes, cooled onion mixture, tamari, balsamic vinegar and fresh herbs.

Form the mixture into 7-9 large patties. Cook immediately by frying in a cast iron or similar skillet in a small drizzle of oil or place on a sheet pan and bake for 30-40 minutes until crispy outside.

Top with fun toppings and enjoy!

NOTE:
I stored these in the refrigerator overnight before cooking and feel these would likely freeze well (though I haven’t tried it yet.)

Mushroom Grain Burger (gf)

Veggie burgers have a bad rap for being a nasty little tasteless piece of frozen cardboard. It doesn’t have to be.

I took a bunch of my favorite flavors, mixed them together and ended up this really great Mushroom Grain Burger. It’s packed with protein from the quinoa and good fat from the sunflower seeds.

As with most veggie burgers, you need to be gentle with these. They do hold their shape fairly well once cooked and but are delicate during forming. And probably not meant to eaten on a bun. I also froze a few uncooked patties to see how they would hold up – they pretty much fell apart in the pan while cooking. However, I dropped in a couple of eggs and ended up with super yummy hash scrambled eggs.

You try these deliciously healthy vegetarian burgers now, and I’ll keep working on a version that can withstand the grill!
Happy eating,
~Monique

Try these with my Pineapple Red Pepper Salsa.

Mushroom Grain Burger

1/4 cup diced red onion
1 1/2 cup diced shitake mushroom
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme
1/2 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup cooked quinoa
2 Tbls fresh parsley
3/4 cup roasted red pepper, diced
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
2 Tbls chopped jalapeno
1 tbls olive oil
1 egg
salt and pepper to tast

Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat, add the onion. Cook a few minutes and then add the mushrooms, toss well and continue to cook another 5-7 minutes. Add in the red pepper and garlic, toss well. Cook about 3 more minutes and remove from heat. Pour the mixture into a bowl and cool.

To the bowl add the brown rice, quinoa, parsley, Jalapeno, egg and thyme. Add a good pinch of salt and pepper, toss to combine. Place half of the mixture in a mini food processor, pulse to really mince everything up. Return the minced portion to the bowl and toss well with the unminced portion.
Note: You can skip this step but it does help slightly with holding the patties together.

Carefully form small veggie burger patties, the mixture will be wet and somewhat loose. Place the patties in a hot pan with a good drizzle of olive oil. Don’t move the patties until the bottom side has formed a crust. These will fall apart easily but once they are cooked they hold a decent shape. Carefully flip the patties to cook and form a crust on the 2nd side.
Remove from pan and enjoy! OR, scramble it up with an egg and call it hash- it works either way!

Walnut Veggie Burger with Mango Sauce

Boyfriend approved veggie burger… is there anything more that needs to be said? Oh- do make the mango sauce- it totally makes it!
Happy Eating,
~Monique

Walnut Veggie Burger with Mango Sauce

1/2 cup onion, diced
1 minced garlic
1 tbls olive oil
flax egg: 1 tbls flax + 3 tbls water
1/2 cup grated carrot
1/4 cup parsley
1/2 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 tbls tamari
1 tsp chili power
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp smoked paprika and ginger
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground turmeric

Mango Dipping Sauce
1 mango
1 tbls sriracha
juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 tsp mustard

Mix the ground flax in the water, set aside.

Heat the olive oil over medium heat, saute the onions and garlic until softened. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

In a small food processor or blender, blend together the cooked onion, garlic, walnuts and pumpkin seeds. Mix this with all the remaining ingredients including the flax egg.

Form into patties using about 1/4 cup. Cook over medium heat in a little drizzle of oil until browned on both sides. Serve with the mango sauce.

Mango Dipping Sauce
Peel the mango and dice. Place the mango, sriracha, lime juice and mustard in a blender; blend until creamy.