leftover grain veggie burgers

Right about now, I'm probably cruising down one of the picturesque side highways in New Brunswick or I've set up camp around the Bay of Fundy and dipping my toes into its muddy banks. Or maybe I'm sucking face with a lobster in Maine. Who knows, but whatever it is that I'm doing, I'm sure that I've got a huge grin on my face. I'm sure my face had a similarly stupid grin when I ate this sandwich. This is one of those stupid simple recipes. Correct that, it's not even a recipe. Rather it's a list of ingredients that is more of an idea than a step-by-step process. I think a lot of people use recipes as a guideline rather than following things to a tee...it's what I've been doing since I was a kid. If you like to follow things to the letter of the law, then shake things up! Play with your food!

So often I have leftovers in the fridge....small amounts of grains, leftover veg and bits and bobs hiding in corners. I hate wasting food, so I try to use up as much as I can without anything going into the trash. This veggie burger was a result of thinking I had nothing in the fridge for our meal. So wrong! When I looked closer at our fridge fixin's, I found that I could try making some veggie burgers. Into a bowl went the Trader Joe's mixed grains that I had cooked up for a soup the day before. I also threw in some leftover chopped vegetables and a few squares of forlorn tofu. Heck, I didn't even have buns, so I just used whole wheat toast but upped the ante with a slice or two of brie. What started out as nothing, turned into something pretty dang tasty.

leftover grain veggie burgers
1 egg, beaten
cooked grains
cooked vegetables
tofu cubes
salt, pepper & whatever spices look appealing
ground almond meal
dijon mustard

Add in your leftovers and spices to a bowl, toss with a beaten egg, a plop of dijon, and add in some almond meal to help bind the mixture. Too dry? Add in another egg or some broth or milk. Too wet? Add in some more almond meal. The mixture should start clumping well and holding together. Make patties and put in the fridge for 15 minutes or so to let things meld. Fry in a little olive oil until both sides are golden. Serve in buns or on toast with your favorite condiments.

veggie burgers & green fries

Last week I wanted burgers but I also wanted to use up stuff we had around our kitchen, so that meant no going to the grocery store for new items. I had to use what was around the house. Luckily I stumbled across this veggie burger recipe over at My Food Geek and with claims that this was the best veggie burger ever, I was definitely intrigued. The recipe originally comes from The New Laurel's Kitchen: A Handbook for Vegetarian Cookery and Nutrition and while it seems strange to add broth to the cooking burgers, it works! The burgers are delicious and hearty and I might just have to second these as the best veggie burgers ever. We ate them on toasted hamburger buns spread with a dollop of homemade chipotle mayo, some organic ketchup, a slice of melted cheddar cheese and a few slices of cucumber. Delcious! We didn't server these with fries, but we ate them with my favorite lemony green beans which have bite, contain the perfect amount of salt and are the perfect summer substitute for hot and greasy fries.

walnut oatmeal burgers
burger mixture:
2 c walnut pieces
2 c rolled oats
½ c breadcrumbs
3 eggs, slightly beaten
½ c skim milk
1 onion, chopped fine
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 t sage
1 t salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

for cooking burgers:
oil to brown patties
3 c vegetable stock*

1. Grind walnuts in blender and combine with the rest of the burger mixture ingredients. Let the mixture rest in refrigerator for about an hour to let the flavors meld together.

2. Form the mixture into patties. The entire mixture will make 8-12 burgers depending on the size patty formed. It is recommended to use half of the mixture now, and reserve the rest for use in another recipe or for more burgers later.

3. Brown patties on both sides in a lightly oiled skillet, then pour the stock into the skillet and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 25 minutes. Serve on buns with all your burger fixings.

* If you are only cooking up half the mixture now and half later, be sure to also half the amount of stock. So use 1 ½ c of stock per half batch.