I’ll keep this as short and sweet as I can and quickly get down to the details of the recipe because this veggie burger was that good–it was perfect. But first I just have to give a little background as to why I even made this veggie burger.
Last year around this time, Nate and I along with some friends headed up to Hudson Valley for the weekend to indulge in some relaxation and good eating. Of course they took us to the best burger joint in town called the Grazin. Nate was on the Daniel Fast last year and I was practicing a modified version where I wasn’t eating meat. We both anxiously scanned the menu and decided to go for their veggie burger. It had white beans,beets, carrots, onions and cashews. It sounded like an interesting blend so we figured we had nothing to lose.
When the burger came to the table the color alone made it look like a real juicy beef burger our friends were eating. The beets gave it this beautiful magenta, pinkish color that was so bright and inviting. After the first bite we were sold and devoured it in minutes. Ever since that experience we have been looking at ways to emulate this recipe. Nate tried it shortly after returning home but came up short on the texture.
This year while on the Daniel fast I kept remembering this burger and wanted to give the recipe a try. Our first veggie burger attempt of the fast was a solid try. I thought it was just OK and Nate really liked the flavor. It was a simple black bean burger. I felt it was lacking in the texture as the burger was crumbling apart in the pan.
In our final days of the fast I realized we had all the ingredients for me to try my hand at that famous Grazin veggie burger. I still felt like I didn’t know the details of the recipe to actually make it as well as the restaurant did so I had to do some supplementary research to ensure that no steps were missing. I came across this veggie burger recipe on Ohsheglows.com and decided to marry the ingredients of the Grazin burger with the process mentioned in her “Our perfect veggie burger recipe“. The result was outstanding–the perfect veggie burger.
Here’s what you’ll need:
3 tablespoons ground flax
1/3 cup warm water
1(14-ounce) can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 cup finely chopped shallot
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 cup grated carrots (about 2 or three long carrots)
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
2 small beats (pulsed in food processor)
1/2 cup cashews (pulsed in food processor)
1 to 2 tablespoons soy sauce, to taste
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup rolled oats, processed into a coarse meal
1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1 to 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
1.Preheat the oven to 375°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or non stick foil.
2.Whisk the ground flax and water in a small bowl and set aside for about 5 minutes so it can thicken.
3.Into a large mixing bowl, add the drained white beans. With a potato masher, mash the beans until 2/3 of the mixture is a bean “paste” while leaving about 1/3 of the beans mostly intact.
4.In a medium skillet, add the oil and increase the heat to medium. Stir in the shallot, garlic, and a pinch of salt. Sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, until the onion softens. Transfer the onion mixture into the bowl with the mashed beans.
5.Stir in the flax egg, grated carrots, beets, cilantro, cashews , soy sauce, chili powder, oregano, and cumin until thoroughly combined.
6.Now, stir in the coarsely chopped oats, bread crumbs, and flour until the mixture comes together. It should be easy to shape the dough into patties. Stir in the salt and pepper, to taste.
7.Shape the dough into 8 patties (roughly 1/3 cup of dough per patty). Pack the dough together tightly as this will help it stick together. Place onto the baking sheet.
8.Bake patties for 15 minutes, gently flip, and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes until patties are firm and golden.
9.Cool the patties on a cooling rack for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. This helps them firm up a bit.
10.Once burgers are cooled, I seared them on the stove top in a skillet in olive oil for a couple minutes on each side to get that real burger affect. *This step is optional.
Tips:
* To coarsely chop the oats, add 1/2 cup rolled oats into a food processor or magic bullet. Process the oats until a coarse meal forms (the chopped pieces will be a mixture of powder and chopped oats just smaller than rice). Be sure not to process too long or the oats will turn into flour.
Thank you to Ohsheglows.com for coming up with this method, it was the perfect accompaniment to what I knew of the veggie burger at the Grazin and I have to say it was almost a direct duplication of it. Soooooo delicious and filling. If you are looking for a vegan veggie burger recipe you have to try this!
We enjoyed our burgers on a whole wheat wrap with plenty of chipole mayo and siracha sauce. I served it with a side of sweet potatoes and sautéed cabbage, kale and Brussel slaw from Trader Joes.
Dinner was bomb! Would you try this recipe? Let me know down below in the comments section.
