Memorial Day Veggie Burger Challenge

Most of you know that I love a good challenge.  That's why I love Melissa's Hot Yoga challenge, training for events, and trying new things.  I'm always asking myself:  How fast can I run?  How heavy can I lift?  How far can I push myself?  How good is my best?  Being born with drive can be a blessing, but it can also be a curse.  Because you could always run faster.  You could always have lifted more.  You might be able to push harder.  But is all that striving worth the effort?  If it's worth doing, it's worth doing well.  In the physical realm, it's also a race against time.  Inevitably, we won't be able to push harder, run further, go faster.  Eighty-year-olds don't win marathons.  Priorities have a way of changing.  That's just a part of growing up, maturing, and hopefully gaining wisdom.

On Memorial Day, I was faced with a challenge, but it wasn't a physical challenge (thankfully).  It was a culinary challenge.  Late Saturday evening, the Husband had a grand idea.  Let's have a Memorial Day barbecue and invite anyone who might not have plans.  We NEVER have Memorial Day plans, so we thought there might be a few other people out there who might enjoy a last minute invitation to a barbecue hosted by someone who loves to cook.  Knowing that we had commitments for most of the day on Sunday, I knew I'd just committed to cooking for 24 hours, but that was all part of the challenge.  The other part of the challenge...

What do you think of when you envision a barbecue?  Hot dogs with ketchup and mustard, hamburgers topped with lettuce and tomato?  Marinated steaks and chicken slathered in barbecue sauce?  Maybe beef and chicken kabobs or possibly even ribs?  I'm sure your picture is a carnivore's heaven.  Unless you're a vegetarian. 

Funny, the majority of the guests on our invite list were known vegetarians.  But it was Memorial Day, and we have a beautiful deck and a Weber grill.  We had to grill out.

The Challenge:  Could I make gluten-free veggie burgers that would hold together on a grill, satisfy my vegetarian friends, and create enough visual appeal to make even my carnivorous friends curious enough to try them?

The Husband and I had a late dinner on Sunday night with two different kinds of veggie burgers.  I'd never made veggie burgers before, aside from opening a box of Bocca Burgers and popping them in the toaster oven, and there was no way that I was going to present my vegetarian friends with untested recipes.  "But you always try new recipes when we have guests," the Husband reminded me.  Although I love the confidence that he has in me, this time I needed a trial run.

With a little googling, and modifications based on the inventory of my cupboards, I came up with two great veggie burgers.

Spicy Black Bean Burgers

Ingredients:

- 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed

- 1 small chopped green bell pepper

- 1/2 cup chopped red onion

- 1/2 cup chopped mushrooms

- 3 cloves of garlic

- 1 egg

- 1 T. chili powder

- 1 T. cumin

- 1 tsp. chili garlic sauce

- 1/2 cup gluten-free bread crumbs

- grapeseed oil

Directions:

1.  Preheat grill to high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil with grapeseed oil.

2.  In a food processor, finely chop the bell pepper, onion, and garlic.  Then add the black beans.  Pulse until the mixture is well-mixed, but chunky.

3.  In a small bowl, stir together the egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.

4.  Combine the egg mixture with the bean mixture.  Then stir in the bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together, and divide it into 6 patties.

5.  Turn the grill down to medium heat, place the patties on the greased foil, and grill them for about 6 minutes on each side.

These black bean burgers looked just like beef burgers.  They were a little flatter, but one of our vegetarian guests asked me if they were the veggie burgers just to be sure.  They are also spicy.  Not just a little bit spicy, but REALLY spicy.  If you prefer a milder burger, you may want to omit or lighten up on the chili garlic sauce.

The next burger had a completely different taste and consistency.  It actually held together better than the black bean burger and had a light, summery flavor.  I'd equate this burger with a light turkey burger.  It was delicious with avocado, lettuce, tomato, and brocco sprouts.

Summer Veggie Burgers

Ingredients:

2 cans of chic peas

4 eggs

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

1 small onion

zest of one lemon

1 cup of brocco sprouts

1 cup of gluten-free breadcrumbs

grapeseed oil

Directions:

1.  Combine the garbanzos, eggs, and salt in a food processor. Pulse until the consistency is thick and slightly chunky.

2.  Pour the bean mixture into a mixing bowl and stir in the cilantro, onion, lemon zest, and sprouts. 

3.  Add the breadcrumbs, stir, and let it sit for a couple of minutes so that the breadcrumbs can absorb the moisture.  

4.  Make about 12 patties, place them on piece of aluminum foil coated with grapeseed oil, and preheat the grill on high heat.

5.  Turn the grill down to medium and place the burgers on the grill. Flip the patties after 5 minutes.  Cook the second side for about 7 minutes, or until they are golden brown. 

I LOVED these burgers.  Two of my non-vegetarian friends enjoyed them as well.  My favorite sight of the evening was that of a double-decker carni-veggie burger created by a meat-eating friend.  That said it all.

My challenge was successful!  The vegetarians were happy, grilling was easy, and a few carnivores had a pleasant surprise.  And I'm glad there are leftovers.

Do you like a challenge?  What challenges you?

Loving Vegetarian Food...and Cake

I am not a vegetarian, but I've had some great vegetarian experiences this week, both in my kitchen and out.  I love animals, and I believe that they should be treated well.  But I am not opposed to eating meat or animal products.  I just think that we should be aware of where our food comes from and support those who provide animal products from hormone-free, well-cared for animals.

This was the last week of school, so there was very little cooking in the Whiskers' home.  There was a lot of blending.

The one night that I did cook, I made a vegetarian meal.  I was surprised at how time efficient it was.  Chopping and cooking a package of tofu is much faster than dealing with slimy chicken breasts.

I had one more CSA veggie in the fridge and decided to make an Asian dish.  Pak Choi is a Chinese green with a mustardy, spicy flavor.  It's tender spoon-shaped leaves sit atop celery-like stalks.  Chopped up, it makes for a delicious stirfry, and I was craving orange.

Asian Orange Tofu Stirfry

Stir Fry Ingredients:
1 head of pak choi
1 small head of broccoli
8 oz package of extra firm tofu
1 bell pepper
1 T grapeseed oil

Orange Sauce:
3/4 c water
1 T orange juice
2 T lemon juice
2 1/2 T gf soy sauce
3 T brown sugar
1 1/2 T orange zest
1 1/2 T minced ginger
2 garlic cloves minced
dash of cayanne pepper
1 T cornstarch
1 T water

1.  Make the sauce first, and then set it aside.  In a medium saucepan on medium-high heat, combine all of the sauce ingredients except for the cornstarch and water.  Once the sauce boils, turn off the heat and let it sit.

2.  Mix the cornstarch and water together in a small bowl until it's smooth.  Set it aside.

3.  Heat the oil in a wok on medium-high heat.  Add tofu, fry for 5 minutes, and remove it from the pan.  Place the vegetables in the pan, fry for a minute or two, and then add the orange sauce.  Return the tofu to the veggie mix along with the cornstarch slurry.  Cook for a a few minutes until the sauce has thickened.  Serve over brown rice.  Who needs takeout?

This recipe definitely gets printed and filed in the over-stuffed recipe box.  Thanks, Wheat Free Meat Free for the orange sauce recipe.  It's perfect.

This week the Husband happened to be in East Nashville and remembered my post about Aunt April's Bakery as he saw The Wild Cow.  April supplies The Wild Cow, a vegan restaurant with an extensive gluten-free menu, with their gluten-free bread and assorted yummy desserts.  Because I have the best husband in the universe, he stopped in to pick up a slice of April's gluten-free Chocolate Heaven Cake for me.  Considering that this was the last week of school, coming home to chocolate cake was an incredible treat.  Kitchen happy dance moment.

This cake was beautiful.

This cake was moist and light.

This cake was...wait!!!  Now, I trust my husband implicitly, so I'm not sure why I had to ask this.  It just sort of popped out of my mouth after I recovered from the first delicious bite.  "Are you sure this is Aprils' gluten-free cake?"  There wasn't anything about this cake that said, "I'm gluten-free."  The texture was perfect.  The plate didn't weigh five pounds.  The cake itself was light and airy.  The frosting.  Oh, the frosting.  Excuse me while I take a moment here...



Yes, of course it was April's gluten-free cake.  Of course, the Husband peppered the poor Wild Cow employee with questions about the cake, gluten, and cross-contamination issues.

The cake didn't last long.  I'm lucky to have this picture.

On Saturday, I had vegetarian experience number two.  We actually went to The Wild Cow for lunch.  I loved that I got an entire laminated menu of gluten-free meals.  No little star designating the three items on the menu that could be made gluten-free if I requested modifications.  This menu was covered with options from front to back!

I highly recommend the Prince Fielder on April's gluten-free flax bread - marinated and grilled tempeh, avocado, tomato, sprouts, cucumbers, shredded carrots, onions, Vegenaise, and spicy mustard.  Even the Husband ordered his sandwich on April's bread.

And the cold quinoa salad was fantastic.  The dried cranberries, toasted almonds, and parsley made the quinoa taste like a picnic at the park.

So, am I becoming a vegetarian?  No.  But I have to say I sure felt clean and satisfied after my vegetarian experiences this week.  There's just something about eating food from the earth that makes you feel alive and healthy.  Now that school is out, maybe it's time for some vegetarian experimenting.

What are your favorite vegetarian meals?