Perfect Vegan Burgers!

 Dan found this recipe and it has become our family favorite!  He usually makes it on Sundays and extras we freeze and enjoy throughout the week.  These burgers are so easy to warm up.  I pull them from the freezer and pop them in the toaster and they are ready!  My kids love them and take them for school lunches.  I enjoy them wrapped in lettuce or cabbage, but they are super yummy in a whole grain, dairy free hamburger bun with all the fixin's too!  I found this recipe from Oh She Glows and made just a few alterations.  One quick note about these burgers and I will add this reminder at the end as well...my kids like "no chunks" in these burgers, so I ground everything extra fine using my food processor.

Perfect Vegan Burgers

Adapted from Oh She Glows

1/2 cup onion, very finely diced

1 large garlic clove, crushed

3 Tablespoons ground flax and 1 cup water, mixed in bowl, set aside

1 cup oats, processed into flour

1 1/2 cup whole grain bread crumbs

1 cup finely grated carrots

1 cup cooked white beans, mashed

1/4 cup fresh herbs (any variety)

1/3 cup almonds (ground fine using food processor)

1/2 cup sunflower seeds 

1 Tablespoon Braggs Liquid Aminos or soy sauce

1 1/2 Tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1 teaspoon salt

Using a small amount of water, saute the onions and garlic for a few minutes.  Add sauteed onion and garlic as well as all remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  Mix well, using hands (yes, it's the best way to mix it all!).  Form into patties and bake at 350 for 15-17 minutes on each side.

Again, we like the ingredients ground extra fine, so grinding onions, garlic, carrots and nuts extra fine in a food processor helps!  We also have substituted many kinds of nuts when we don't have exactly what the recipe calls for and it still turns out fantastic!

 Form into a large ball and refrigerate for about and hour (optional).  We've found that the burgers are less likely to separate or crumble as you form the patties.

 We bought a hamburger press to make our burgers, and it worked okay.  It made for a thicker burger and we like ours a little more thin.

 This batch I decided to roll them into balls, spray with nonstick spray and press with a measuring cup.  It was much faster and easier and made for a thinner burger.