Last updated on 19-Jul-2019

Hello VHPs (Viva Happy Peeps)! I’m always looking for good vegetarian burger recipes, as they are an easy way to have a satisfying vegetarian meal for #meatlessmonday or any other time of the week. Some recipes I tried in the past were good on flavour, but the texture was usually a bit too soft, and the patties would not hold their shape in the bun. They would get squished and spread out with every bite. Not ideal.

One reason that motivates my search is most vegetarian burgers you get at restaurants and grocery stores are soy-based. While that tends to improve the texture and make the patties suitable for the grill too, I prefer not to consume soy products very often, so I was deterred by that. But I’m a very persistent person, my fellow happy peeps, and I do love a challenge! 🙂

After some research, I came across a recipe online that looked promising and decided to try making it with some changes to suit what I had on hand and the flavours I was in the mood for. In the end of this test, the burgers tasted fabulous and had a texture similar to falafels, which are some of my favourite middle-eastern snacks, but without the deep frying. I put this down as a winner and hope you like it too!

Please do not get discouraged with the long-ish list of ingredients, that’s what makes these soooooo tasty! And these burgers are actually very easy to make. If you are trying to limit carbs / gluten, forgo the bun/potatoes and serve with big salad (a Greek salad works well here).

I’ll still experiment further and find other flavour profiles/combinations to share. If you have some ideas and suggestions, I’d love to hear them! But for now, here’s what I came up with:

Chickpea Burgers

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups cooked chickpeas (or 1 can drained and rinsed)
• 1/4 cup flaxseed + 1/4 cup water
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp tahini or peanut butter
• Juice from 1/2 lime
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 cup fresh parsley
• 2 Tbsp zaatar  (Middle-eastern spice blend)
• 1 small onion finely chopped
• 3/4 cup quick oats (gluten-free)
• 1/2 cup finely grated carrots

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 450 F. Place a sheet of parchment paper (or a silpat baking mat) on a cookie sheet.
2. In a small bowl, mix flaxseed and water. Set aside.
3. Add 1/2 cup of the chickpeas to the food processor and process until creamy.
4. Add the flaxseed mixture, olive oil, tahini, lime juice, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, and parsley and process until blended.
5. Add the rest of the chickpeas, zaatar, onions, oats, carrots, and pulse to combine, leaving the mixture a bit chunky.
6. Transfer mixture to a bowl and divide into 4 portions (or 5, depending on how large you want the burgers). Using wet hands, shape each portion into a burger patty and place on the prepared baking sheet.
7. Bake for 20 minutes, remove from the oven and turn the temperature down to 350 F. Flip the burgers, place them back in the oven and bake for another 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving.
8. Toast the buns, top one half of the bun with lettuce, tomato slices, and pickle slices (optional). Top the other half bun with tzatziki, hot sauce (optional), and the burger. Serve with a salad or fries/wedges.

For serving: Burger buns (optional), lettuce, tomato slices, tzatziki (optional, make your own with this recipe or buy at the grocery store), hot sauce and sliced pickles (optional).

Burger patties just out of the oven | Saindo do forno

Burger (no bun), salad & tzatziki