Veggie Burgers w/ Lentils

Can you believe I am posting a "veggie burger" recipe?

I find veggie burgers pathetic. Usually, it's the only sad vegetarian choice on a menu in a burger joint, and I am always horrified.

They are most often dried out, tasting like saw dust, usually with some black beans thrown in.

My friend serves frozen veggie burgers to her son often, and I recently read the ingredients on the box......there are NO VEGETABLES in the ingredients! Lots of soy, etc. It's just a protein substitute for red meat. Yuck.

Make your own veggie burgers, is what I say!

It's BBQ time, and I am sure you will be having some vegetarian guests (I have so many friends who don't eat meat anymore).
Why not surprise them with a veggie option that does not taste like saw dust?

These patties were a happy accident.

It started with leftover roasted cauliflower and some cooked lentils and continued to build.

I started building the flavors by adding some spices, more veggies and an egg.
Wow! Were these good!

I didn't really measure anything, just threw the stuff together to make a delicious vegetable "burger".

You could make these with any leftover cooked pureed vegetable and add in some of your favorites to make these your own (sweet potatoes, corn, red bell pepper, onions, black beans, whatever!).

My Veggie Burgers: (makes 6-7 patties)

1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
olive oil
kosher salt
2 tbsp tahini paste
zest of a lemon
1/2 cup of cooked rice, lentils, quinoa, or white beans (of course you can use canned beans, please do!)
1 large garlic clove, grated (I use a microplane zester to grate my garlic, it's great!)
handful of defrosted frozen peas
2 carrots, grated
handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tsp cumin
salt & pepper
1 egg

Roast the cauliflower florets w/ kosher salt & a drizzle of olive oil in a 425F oven for 20 minutes until golden.

Mash the cauliflower with a potato masher and add in the rest of the ingredients.
Season w/ salt & pepper.

I use a small ice cream scoop to form the patties.

Scoop out level mounds onto a parchment lined baking sheet, and flatten them down into patties using wet hands.

Bake in a 425F oven for 20 minutes, carefully turning them over after 10 minutes using a thin fish spatula.

You can also fry these in a non-stick skillet w/ some vegetable oil, but I tried the baking method instead.

Once they cool a little, they will firm up, don't be scared if they break a bit, they are still so tasty, especially on a good roll with some sliced avocado on top!

Enjoy!