Best Veggie Burgers - Packed with Flavor (Vegan & Gluten-Free)

These veggie burgers are delicious—a little sweet, a little savory, a little spicy, and they're packed with nutritional goodness from quinoa, black beans, sweet potatoes, and oats. I found them in Cookie and Kate's cookbook, Love Real Food, and am sharing her recipe below with a few minor changes.

Making these yummy burgers is a bit time-consuming, unless you happen to have a lot of the main ingredients on hand as pre-cooked leftovers -- something that happened to me once and was awesome!, but they freeze well so I recommend doubling or tripling the batch to get more bang for your burger prep buck.

A few notes:

• I never have quick cooking oats so I followed Kate's note and pulsed a bunch of regular rolled oats (do not use steel cut oats here) in the food processor until they were chopped but before they turned into flour.
• I recommend using seasoned black beans instead of plain canned beans as the flavor of the burgers will be better. Seasoned black beans are another thing I like to make in bulk in the Instantpot and freeze in quart-sized mason jars to make future meals easy.
• I am a huge fan of Japanese yellow-fleshed sweet potatoes. In my humble opinion, they have the best flavor and texture and are not overly sweet. If you have access to this variety, I reommend using them over Garnets or yams. And I would not recommend using purple sweet potatoes for this recipe as they're a lot more starchy than they are sweet. 
• These burgers can be fried, grilled, or baked. I baked mine since it requires less oil and creates a lot less splatter. 
• Don't skimp on the toppings!

I hope you enjoy these toothsome veggie burgers which happen to be gluten-free and vegan.

-- print recipe --

Best Veggie Burgers
Makes 8 burgers

Ingredients

• 1 ½ pounds sweet potatoes (2 medium or 3 small)
• ½ cup quinoa, rinsed in a fine-mesh colander (or 1½ cups cooked quinoa)
• 1 cup water
• 1 Tbsp Better than Bullion vegetable broth
• 1½ cups cooked black beans (or one 15-oz can of black beans)
• ½ cup chopped red onion (about ½ small red onion)
• ⅓ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 3-4 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 2 tablespoons adobo sauce (I get mine from the sauce in a can of chipotle peppers)
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 tsps sriracha sauce
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ¼ cups quick-cooking oats (you can pulse rolled oats in a food processor until roughly chopped if you don't have quick-cooking oats, you'll need more than 1 ¼ cups but you can measure as you go)
• Extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing

Directions

1. Roast the sweet potatoes. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Rinse the sweet potatoes and slice them length-wise down the middle. Rub a little olive oil on the bottom of each and place cut-side down on a baking sheet and bake for 30-40 minutes until soft when you give them a little squeeze then set them aside to cool. Here's one of the ways my recipe differs from Kate's -- please do NOT use parchment paper! Not only is it unnecessary and wasteful, it's also not really paper but paper coated with a thin layer of silicone which is a type of plastic. None of us need more plastic or its thousands of chemicals in our food or bodies. You can clean the pan, instead.
2. While the sweet potatoes are baking, make the quinoa. In a small pot, combine the rinsed quinoa with the water and the Better than Bouillion and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat as needed keep the quinoa at a gentle simmer. Cook, uncovered until the water has been absorbed, 12-15 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let the quinoa steam for 10 minutes.
3. Once the sweet potatoes have cooled down enough to handle, remove the flesh from the skins and add to a large bowl, along with the quinoa, black beans, onion, cilantro, garlic, adobo sauce, smoked paprika, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, sriracha, and salt. Mix them with a potato masher to mix this all together well. Don't worry about the beans getting smashed as that is fine.
4. Sprinkle the oats over the mixture and then mix together with a large spoon until well incorporated and the mixture holds together well when you form a patty. If you're not going to be cooking the patties right away, cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate.
5. Shape the burgers using a half cup measure and shaping it into a patty, using your fingers to smooth the edges and flatten the patty. The mixture should make 8 good-sized burger patties.
6. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Brush the burgers with olive oil on top and bottom and place on a heavy metal baking sheet and bake until golden, flipping once, for about 35 minutes.  To fry, heat a tablespoon of grapeseed or peanut oil in a large heavy-duty skillet over medium heat until shimmering, then fry the patties for 3-4 minutes on each side, until golden.

You might also like:

Grilled Portobello Burgers

Socca: A Savory Vegan Chickpea Flour Pancake

Curried Lentil & Sweet Potato Stew

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Kale Caesar Salad with Garlicky, Lemony Tahini Dressing

This salad is a flavorful, nutrition-packed riff on a classic Caesar salad. I've swapped antioxidant-rich kale in for lettuce, fiber-filled whole grain croutons for white ones, and coated each bite in a rich, garlicky, lemony tahini dressing that's actually good for your heart.

The result is flavorful, filling, and packed with fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Best of all, you will feel full in a good way. I adore a classic Caesar salad but often feel pretty gross after eating one. This version carries none of the stomach cramps, bloating, sleepiness, or brain fog that can accompany a meal that's too rich. 

You can make the dressing in advance and store it in the fridge for a week or two in a glass jar with a screw on lid. My fridge is full of repurposed Bonne Maman jam jars holding a variety of dressings and sauces.

If you wish to make this salad vegan, replace the Parmesan cheese with nutritional yeast. 

If you want to turn this salad into a main, try adding roasted chickpeas (you can also use regular old cooked/canned chickpeas if you're in a hurry) or top with some ripe avocado slices.

Don't be intimidated by making the croutons. And if you have stale bread, so much the better as it's already dried out plus you're not wasting food. But if you're short on time, you can certainly use store-bought croutons in this salad, too.

Enjoy.

-- print recipe --

Kale Caesar Salad with Garlicky Lemony Tahini Dressing
Serves 4

Ingredients

For the dressing

• 1/4 cup tahini
• 3 Tbsps fresh lemon juice (you'll need at least one lemon)
• 3 Tbsps organic olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 Tbsps water
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the salad

• 1 bunch of kale, rinsed and dryed, thick inner ribs/stems removed
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup roasted, salted pepitas (you can also used toasted almonds or pine nuts if you prefer)

For the croutons

• 2-3 cups of whole grain bread, cut into cubes
• 2 tsps organic olive oil
• Sea salt
• Dried oregano, thyme, and basil
• Garlic powder

Directions

1. Start making the croutons. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Lay the cubed bread out in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes until crispy but not burnt. Turn off the heat and remove from the oven to cool.

2. Make the dressing. If you have a mini food processor, whiz all the ingredients in it until smooth. If not, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until blended. Season with freshly ground black pepper to taste. If the dressing is too thick to pour, stir in a spoonful more of water.

3. Finish making the croutons. In a large bowl toss the toasted bread cubes with the olive oil and spices until well coated. Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat until shimmering then add the bread cubes and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.

4. Prepare the salad. Roughly chop the kale leaves and place in whatever bowl you plan to serve the salad out of. Sprinkle the kale leaves with salt and massage them with your fingers until the leaves have turned a darker green and the volume of the kale has shrunk by about a third. Drizzle with the dressing and stir to coat. Add the croutons and pepitas (and optional roasted chickpeas or avocado) and stir again. Top with grated Parmesan cheese and serve.

Hearty Salad with Mexi Green Goddess Dressing & Crispy Tortillas

As winter stretches on, I'm increasingly desperate for fresh veggies and herbs. This hearty salad 'ticks all the boxes', as Paul Hollywood is fond of saying on the Great British Bake Off. On that note, although I'm genuinely sad that Prue's leaving the show as I've grown to love her and will miss her wonderfully uppercrust accent, calm presence, and exceedingly ugly outfits, I'm very curious to see what Nigella Lawson will be like, aren't you?

But back to this delicious salad. I used some of the seasoned black beans that I make in large quantities in the Instant Pot because it magically imparts a lot of flavor with minimal effort (though you do have to plan ahead as it takes over an hour.) Every month or so, I'll cook up 5-6 cups of dried beans at a time in the Pot, then freeze the leftovers in glass quart jars to defrost when I need them. Very handy! But you can absolutely use a can of good old black beans here, too.

I had part of a bag of corn tortillas that were growing stale in the fridge which I cut into strips and fried to add a delicious crispy element and avoid wasting food. You could sub tortilla chips if you're not in the mood for frying things. A sprinkling of roasted, salted pepitas added even more crunch and a nice nuttiness.

Lettuce, grated carrots, chopped red onion, and some surprisingly sweet grape tomatoes made up the body of the salad. And, last but definitely not least, I tossed it all with a generous amount of this Mexican-Inspired Green Goddess dressing to coat each bite with creamy, rich, herby, garlicky goodness.

I first tasted green goddess dressing back in those hazy, hard-to-recall days before I had kids when my husband and I lived in northern California. It was love at first bite—so much flavor, so unusual. 

This Mexican-inspired Green Goddess dressing is a departure in many ways but has the same addictively herby, creamy punch of the original. I've subbed lime for lemon, roasted salted pepitas for anchovies, cilantro for tarragon, and avocado and Greek yogurt for mayo and sour cream. I've also added some smokey heat and a little sweetness by adding a charred jalapeño pepper and a splash of sriracha. The result is really tasty. 

As we've been running our woodstove non-stop for last few months, I charred the jalapeño on top of it, turning frequently with a pair of tongs but if you live somewhere warmer or have a different heating system, you can also blacken the pepper over a gas burner or char it under the broiler. A large ripe avocado is a must for this dressing/recipe. I hope you enjoy both the dressing and the salad. 

-- print recipe --

Black Bean & Tortilla Salad with Mexi Green Goddess Dressing
Serves 4

For the dressing

Ingredients

• 1 ripe avocado, skin and pit removed
• 1 large clove of garlic, roughly chopped
• Juice of 1 large lime (or 2 small)
• Plain yogurt
• Olive oil
• 1 Tbsp white vinegar
• 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves and stems, washed and dried
• 1/4 cup salted, roasted pepitas
• 1 charred or roasted jalapeño pepper, stem, seeds and ribs removed, roughly chopped
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup water to thin

Directions

1. No need for nit-picky prep here: add all the ingredients except for the water to the bowl of a mini food processor or blender and process until smooth, adding water to thin the dressing to your liking as you go.
2. Taste and adjust the seasonings, if needed. You can store this in a glass jar with a tight lid for a couple of days in the fridge.

For the salad

Ingredients

• 1 head of romaine or red leaf lettuce, washed, dried, and chopped or torn
• 1 large carrot, grated
• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 cupful of grape or cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered, depending on their size
• 1/4 cup roasted, salted pepitas
• 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans, drained
• 1 1/2 cups crispy tortilla strips or chips

Directions

1. Place the lettuce, carrot, onions, tomatoes and beans in either a large bowl or on a good-sized platter. Toss with several heaping tablespoons of the mexi green goddess dressing until all ingredients are coated. Top with the tortilla strips and roasted pepitas and serve.

You might also like:

Red Cabbage, Lime & Cilantro Slaw

Quinoa Salad with Corn, Lime & Jalapeño

Esquites Salad (aka Mexican Street Corn in a Bowl)

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