PP The Best Burger I've Ever Made
Chef: Caryn Dugan, STL Veg Girl
Makes: 12 burgers
Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 1 hr
Total Time: 1 hr 20 min
INGREDIENTS
2 lg beets, peeled and cut into 1 ½” pieces
2 lg sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 ½” pieces
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves removed
¾ c short grain brown rice
1 ½ c vegetable broth
1-14 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed
¾ c frozen, chopped spinach, thawed
1 yellow onion, diced small
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 T Liquid Smoke
1 T ground cumin
½ t sweet paprika
1 t salt
½ t fresh ground pepper
12 whole grain, no oil buns
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400-degree F.
Place the chopped vegetables onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet, add the rosemary and balsamic vinegar to taste.
Bake for about 25 min or until the vegetables are cooked.
Heat up the broth in a saucepan to a boil, add the rice, and bring to a boil again. Reduce heat, cover and allow to simmer for 50 min.
Thaw your spinach and set aside.
Dice the onion and mince the garlic and set aside.
Heat up a skillet over high heat. After you have tested it, add the onions, and bring the heat down to medium-high. You are doing dry (oil-free) sauté here. (For more information on how to do that, please check out this short blog post with videos included.)
Keep the onions moving around in the pan and add a little water if they do begin to stick. Once they are a little brown, add the garlic and only allow to cook for another minute. You do not want to burn the garlic as it will be bitter. Transfer the onion/garlic to a dish and set aside.
Add all the ingredients to a food processor set up with a steel “S” blade and pulse until well incorporated, put not pureed. (you may end up doing a few batches and if this is the case, mix all the ingredients into a bowl and then scoop out what you need for the processor.) Or, use your hands and mix everything up with your hands. Really get in there smashing the beans and incorporating the ingredients together. Taste for flavor and adjust to your liking.
Patty up the burgers and place on a lg parchment paper lined baking sheet. I make mine somewhere between a large slider and burger size. Press the middle of the burger slightly with your thumb, just so it cooks quickly to the middle. Transfer the uncooked burgers to the fridge and allow to chill one hour and up to overnight.
In a 375 degree-F oven, allow the burgers to cook for 20 min, flip and cook for another 18 min. As
As they cool, they will continue to firm up.
Enjoy!
Caryn Dugan is, "STL VegGirl", a prolific advocate of Whole Plant-Based Living hailing out of St. Louis, MO. In 2008, she lost her beloved dad to cancer and exactly ten weeks later, she too, was diagnosed and successfully treated for her own cancer. Caryn developed insatiable need to learn how the food we put in our body directly affects our health. During reading and researching, meeting with authors, instructors and medical experts in the field of nutrition science and health, Caryn adopted a plant-based whole food diet. The most asked question Caryn receives is, "How do I begin?". Her answer: "A Plant On Every Plate"! After years of traveling both locally and nationally to help others understand the irrefutable health benefits of a plant-based diet, Caryn opened the nation's first plant-based nutrition and culinary education center - the Center for Plant-based Living, where she holds plant-based cooking classes and programs. Share in Caryn’s healthful quest at STL Veg Girl, CPBL (Center for Plant Based Living), Facebook, Instagram, and the new PB Academy.