VEGGIE BURGERS and “HEALTHY” COLESLAW

I usually don’t even buy veggie burger patties to make burgers at home because you have to buy all the fixings to go on them. It’s much easier to just go to Hyde Park Café, EZ’s or Phil’s to get a great veggie burger.  Then I saw this recipe for quinoa-based patties and thought that sounded interesting and unlike anything I'd had in a restaurant.

Dori and I were meeting at my place last Sunday so I asked Carl if he wanted us to make one for him.  He said yes!  He's actually not scared of quinoa, tofu, etc. but won't really eat any veggies. In the end, he covered his burger with Stubb’s BBQ sauce so he probably couldn’t even taste the veggie patty. :)

Well, the burgers were tasty, but I can sum up my thoughts on the experience in two words: BOCA BURGER!  There were just so many ingredients and the burgers came out pretty messy.  I will add this to my list of things I will not try to cook again. which includes any type of Indian food (just can’t get the spices right!) or white bean dip (nothing is going to come close to Vesapio’s!)

QUINOA VEGGIE BURGERS

Makes 6 burgers

INGREDIENTS
⅓ cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 small carrot, finely chopped
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
1 rib celery, finely chopped
2 cups baby arugula, blanched, shocked, finely chopped, and squeezed dry
1 (15-oz.) can chickpeas/garbanzo beans, rinsed, drained and mashed - (the recipe called for cannellini beans, but Dori and I love chickpeas)
2 cups cooked quinoa
½ cup breadcrumbs
2 tbsps. mixed fresh herbs such as basil, oregano, etc., finely chopped
1 egg or equivalent of Ener-G egg replacer to make it vegan
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

6 hamburger buns, split and toasted

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a 12" skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic, carrot, onion, and celery, and cook, stirring, until soft, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and add arugula, quinoa, breadcrumbs, oregano, egg, and mashed beans; season with salt and pepper and mix well to combine.

2. Divide mixture into six 5 1/2-oz. patties, about 4" wide x 1" thick; place on a plate and refrigerate for 20 minutes or until ready to use.

3. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a 12" skillet over medium-high heat. Add 3 burgers, and cook, flipping once, until toasted on each side and cooked through, about 6 minutes. Repeat with remaining oil and burgers. Divide burgers between toasted buns, top with relish and serve.

Note: Individual veggie burgers can be formed and then frozen, sealed, for up to one month. Thaw in the refrigerator and cook as needed.

We also made some coleslaw to go with the burgers.   I went the easy route and bought a bag of coleslaw mix which consists of shredded green and red cabbage and carrots.  I certainly didn’t want to use mayo or anything else fattening so I looked online for “healthy” coleslaw recipes and found this great article on the Livestrong site.  It provides a base recipe using non-fat plain yogurt and cider vinegar and suggests what to else to add to make either a savory or sweet coleslaw. I tried a bit of both.  We definitely liked the sweet version better. 

SWEET AND HEALTHY COLESLAW
1 cup non-fat plain yogurt

1 1/2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

1 tbsp. orange juice

Poppy seeds

Adjust above ingredients to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and refrigerate.  You could also add raisins or pineapple.