Hello! Well friends, I’m back from Europe safe and sound and can’t believe how quickly those couple weeks flew by. Steve’s on vacation next week so I’m still “out of the office” so we can spend some QT together. I think a trip to the Finger Lakes was planned by Steve (he’s being very secretive about it) and then back to Buffalo for a friend’s wedding. But today, I’ve got an awesome dietitian, Abby Langer, on the blog sharing her delicious veggie burger recipe just in time for the 4th of July weekend! Abby lives in Toronto and although we’ve never met in-person, I admire her work and philosophy from afar. Hoping that our paths will cross one of these days! Thanks so much Abby for hanging out on the blog with us today.
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I’m so excited to be guest-posting on Kara’s blog while she gallivants around Europe, hopefully buying lots of shoes and drinking wine. Lucky girl!
Kara’s recipes are my go-to when I’m counseling clients who ask me about plant-based meals! In honor of Kara and all that she does, I’ve developed a plant-based Mediterranean-style burger that is top notch. It took many different renditions and a heck of a lot of beans, but the finished product is super yummy. My small-town, beer drinking, meat-eating husband, who I call The Critic on my own blog, absolutely loved them. Actually, he ate two last night for dinner. When The Critic endorses anything plant-based and says ‘you can make these ANYTIME!’, I know I’ve hit on something good.
When researching veggie burgers, I got a bit frustrated. Most of the recipes had a ton of ingredients in them, and even though they were probably very yummy burgers, I can’t stand fussy recipes with 18 ingredients that need ½ a teaspoon of this and ¼ teaspoon of that. I tried to keep ingredients – especially the small-amount ingredients – to a minimum in these burgers and I think I achieved that, with a spectacular outcome. Yay me!
The recipe is gluten free if gluten free panko is used; you can also substitute gluten free breadcrumbs for the panko
Pan-frying the burgers in a bit of oil creates an addictive, crispy outside that is super yummy. The quinoa in the recipe creates a crust that’s not unlike falafel.
I served these with my chipotle mayonnaise, and have included that easy recipe too. But don’t say I didn’t warn you – that mayo is addictive.
This recipe makes a lot of burgers, but the cooked burgers can be put into the freezer for those nights you don’t feel like cooking.
It’s best to reheat the burgers in the oven, so they retain their crispy crust.
PrintBlack Bean Quinoa Burger
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- Yield: 10 burgers 1x
Ingredients
- 2 19-oz (540ml) cans of black beans
- 1/3 cup cilantro
- 2 cups cooked quinoa (I cook in broth for more flavor)
- 1t cumin
- 1 large clove garlic
- 1/8t salt
- 1/2t harissa
- 3/4 cup onion, sliced
- 1t dried oregano
- 1 cup gluten free (or regular) panko crumbs
- 1 lightly beaten egg
- 1/2 cup finely crumbled feta cheese
- 4–5 sun dried tomatoes, chopped
- Oil for frying
For the Chipotle Mayonnaise:
- ½ cup full fat mayonnaise
- 1/2t chipotle chili powder
- 2t lemon juice
- 1 large clove garlic, crushed
Instructions
- Rinse the beans and dry them by spreading them on paper towels and blotting them.
- In a small frying pan, fry the onion in 1T olive oil at a medium-low heat until well-browned and caramelized.
- Put the beans, onions, quinoa, cilantro, cumin, oregano, garlic, salt, and harissa in a food processor and process until ingredients are mostly smooth but some small chunks remain.
- Place the mixture into a large bowl. Gently add the remaining ingredients – the panko, egg, feta, and tomatoes – to the processed mixture and (I used my hands, actually) mix to combine thoroughly.
- If you have the time, refrigerate the mixture for a few hours. It will be easier to handle when it’s chilled. If you don’t have the time, not to worry. It’s still going to be great.
- Using your hands, form patties from the mixture. Try not to make them too thick – ½” is best – otherwise they’ll be more difficult to heat through.
- Heat 1-2T olive oil in a large frying pan. Fry the burgers over medium-high heat, flipping when browned, until both sides are crispy.
- Serve with chipotle mayonnaise, avocado, and whatever other yummy toppings you want.
Chipotle Mayonnaise:
- Mix all the ingredients together well. Use on eggs, burgers, sandwiches, with fish, with meat…you get the idea.
Notes
Recipe Courtesy of Abby Langer
Check here for another delicious veggie burger:
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To make this Recipe Vegan and healthier I would use ground flax seeds for panko breadcrumbs. For the egg I would use 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds and 3 tablespoons water. For the feta cheese I would use crumbled cauliflower. It could be made without frying the onion. if you chop and wet with olive oil they get transparent. And ideally these patties can be dehydrated not fried!
Thank you for the suggestions!