My New Favourite Cookbook!

A few weeks ago I worked a day shift (this never happens) and had time to go to the library... ALONE.  This also never happens so I was pretty excited to spend at least 1/2 hour in the cookbook section.  I'd seen the Canadian Living-Vegetarian Collection book around but hadn't had a chance to actually look through it so it was the first book I picked up.  I love it.  REALLY REALLY love it.  So far we've had our version of the tofu salad sandwich, the chili fries and tonight (our version) of the Curried Lentil and Cashew burgers.  It was the first page I stuck a post it to because it had 3 of my favourite things (LENTILS! CURRY! and BURGERS?!) and I was not disappointed.  Even knowing that I was going for a run less than an hour after dinner I still ate 2, that good.  We served the burgers with a wild rice/brown rice pilaf and some steamed asparagus.

Curried Lentil and Cashew Burgers

3 cups cooked lentils

2 cups roasted (unsalted) cashews

1 chopped onion

4 cloves minced garlic

2 cups sliced white mushrooms

3 tbsp curry paste

salt and pepper

2 tsp cumin

handful of fresh cilantro

1 cup bread crumbs

*In a food processor, pulse cashews until crumbled

*Add lentils and mix well

*In a frying pan, saute together onion, garlic and mushrooms until soft.

*Add curry paste, cumin, and salt and pepper.

*Add onion mixture to food  processor and pulse together.

*Transfer to a large bowl and add cilantro and bread crumbs, allow to rest for 5-10 minutes.

*Form into patties and cook on a grill or a well oiled frying pan for at least 8 minutes per side.

Garden Burgers

I know what you are thinking, burgers on a Monday?  Ha.  I am working a couple of evenings this week so I have tried to pick meals that I can either make ahead of time or that are fairly simple for the husband to pull together.  I saw some frozen garden burgers last time I went shopping and figured I could probably put together something like that so this was my best shot.  I felt they could have used a little more spice (dh brought me supper at work <3) but the kids LOVED them, even the baby!  We had sweet potato fries and corn on the cob on the side and DH actually remember to take a picture.  I hope to make it through the week (split shifts are not for me!) and be able to still share our meals with you :)

Garden Burgers

 

 1 onion, caramelized

2 cloves minced garlic

1 medium zucchini, grated (

2 carrots, grated

1 cup mushrooms, minced

1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

1 cup TVP + 2/3 cup hot water (let sit for 10 minutes)

2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

3 tsp italian seasoning

2 tbsp dijon mustard

2 tbsp ground flax seed + 2 tbsp water (let sit for 5 minutes)

1 1/2 cups bread crumbs

*After onions are caramelized, add carrots, zucchini, and mushrooms and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes.

*In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients and let sit for another 10 minutes.

*Form into patties and cook for 5-8 minutes per side in a frying pan, and then bake at 375 for another 15-20 minutes.

Chickpea Burgers!!

Chickpeas with salsa burgers

3 cups cooked (and mashed) chickpeas

1 chopped onion

3 cloves minced garlic

1 cup of prepared salsa

3/4 cup shredded cheese

1 tsp chili powder

juice from 1 lime

2 tbsp flax seed+2 tbsp water (mixed together and left to stand for 10 minutes)

1 1/2 cups bread crumbs

salt and pepper

*Mix together all ingredients and let stand for 10-15 minutes.

*Saute in olive oil for 5-6 minutes per side.

*Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes to allow burgers to firm up.

I heart summer!

I have spent almost no time inside my house this week.  Well, that isn't entirely true... I have spent almost no awake time in my house this week.  The kids and I have been to the beach, the wading pool, the park, camp, the backyard... It's been a really good time.  Meal times though have consisted mainly of picnics, leftovers and very quick and easy meals.  Today was only slightly different in that we had a southwestern rice casserole from last week that I never posted the recipe for and some chickpea burgers that I literally threw together.  It was nice to have a heartier meal :)

Southwestern Rice Casserole

1 chopped onion

3 cloves minced garlic

1 chopped red pepper

1/2 cup yogurt

1/2 cup milk

4 cups cooked (brown) rice

1 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp chili powder

1 cup salsa

2 cups shredded tex mex cheese mix

*Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until soft, add pepper and cook 5 more minutes

*In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients.

*Transfer to a 9x13 casserole dish and bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.

Repeats and a Blueberry Tart Dessert.

Happy Canada Day!  We spent the day as a family not. doing. anything.  Maybe I should be more specific... we didn't have any plans to go anywhere, or do anything.  We did clean out the garage and do some housework.  We played (and played and played and played...), but we didn't have to do anything.  And that is very strange for our family.  We ended up inviting my parents and brother over for supper, we had lentil burgers, corn on the cob, and a green salad with a delicious balsamic vinaigrette (wondering if I've shared the recipe before?).  I saw this recipe a few days ago and figured today was the perfect day to try it.  It went over very very well.  There wasn't a cumb left!  I made a few minor changes to the recipe, so here is my take on it!

Blueberry Tart 

 

Crust:

3/4 cup toasted walnuts

3/4 graham crackers

2 tbsp melted butter

1 tbsp oil

pinch of salt

filling:

1 cup softened cream cheese

1/4 cup sour cream

1/4 cup real maple syrup + 2 tbsp more

juice from 1/2 lemon

2 cups blueberries

*In a food processor, pulse together graham cracker and walnuts until it resembles a fine crumb.

*Transfer to a large bowl and add butter, oil, and salt.  Mix well.
*Press into bottom of a tart pan (or pie pan) and up the sides at least 1/2 inch.

*Bake at 325 for 13-14 minutes.  Allow to cool.

*In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese, sour cream, 1/4 cup maple syrup and lemon juice.

*Pour into crust and top with blueberries.

*Drizzle remaining 2 tbsp syrup on top of berries and transfer to freezer for at least 1 hour

I don't often post pictures of my children on this blog but I had to share this one.  I think he enjoyed his dessert, don't you?!  :)

White Kidney Bean Burgers

We've had these burgers several times over the last few weeks (can you tell it's bbq season?), and every time they are totally devoured before I have a chance for seconds.  SO GOOD.  It started out with a recipe from Veggie Burgers Every Which Way but since that recipe involved olives I decided to totally change it up.  Not a fan of olives, can you tell?  We had the burgers with some coleslaw and steamed asparagus.

White Bean Burgers

butter

2 sliced onions

1 head roasted garlic

2 cans of white kidney beans, drained and rinsed

2 tbsp chopped fresh sage

1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1 tsp cumin

2 tbsp ground flax seed + 2 tbsp water (mixed together)

1+ cup bread crumbs

salt and pepper

juice from 1/2 lemon

*Cook onions in butter on low until caramelized (at least 30 minutes)

*In a food processor, pulse together onions, garlic, sage, flax seed mixture and half the beans

*Transfer to a large bowl and add remaining ingredients

*Cook in a small amount of olive oil for 5-6 minutes per side

*Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes, flipping once

Burger Wednesday: Spicy Kidney Bean Burgers!

I would be lying if I told you that this early morning shift isn't hard to get used to because it really is.  The work itself? No big deal... but going strong all day because my children refuse to nap?  THAT is the hard part.  I'm a little off topic from food but I'm going somewhere, I promise.  This meal was super easy to put together and very low prep, perfect for days like today where it's raining and chilly and you can't keep your eyes open.  I have a feeling that we'll be eating like this a lot while I get used to waking up early for work!  We had spicy kidney bean burgers, rice and roasted vegetables.  The burgers were a little bit too spicy for the kids but I thought they were delicious and they managed to finish them anyway.  I originally found the recipe here but have made some adjustments because I can't seem to follow a recipe, haha!

 

Spicy Kidney Bean Burgers

3 cups cooked kidney beans

1 chopped onion

4 cloves minced garlic

1 tbsp grated fresh ginger

2 tsp green chili paste

2 tsp hot sauce

2 tbsp fresh cilantro

2 tsp oregano

1 tsp cumin

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

3/4 cup rolled oats

juice from 1 lime

1/2 cup crushed almonds

salt and pepper

*In a food processor, pulse together all ingredients but oats, lime and almonds

*Transfer to a large bowl and add remaining ingredients

*Cook in an oiled skillet for 5-6 minutes per side

Burger Wednesday: Fava Bean Burgers

I think I've only ever used fava beans in a mixed bean salad or in chili so when I noticed this recipe in (SURPRISE, I found it!) Veggie Burgers Every Which Way I just had to try it out.  I'm so glad I did because they were delicious.  I know I've said it many many times before but these really are my new favourite burgers.  I served them with a quinoa salad and some raw broccoli, I only wish I could have served some dessert but I'm in the middle of a sugar detoxing that just may kill me.  I only changed a few things from the original recipe so here is my version...

Fava Bean Burger

 2 chopped onions

4 cloves minced garlic

1 cup crushed walnuts

3 cups fava beans

 2 cups chickpeas

1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1/4 cup ground flax in 1/4 cup water

salt and pepper

3 cups toasted bread crumbs

*Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until translucent

*In a food processor, pulse together walnuts, fava beans, and chickpeas

*Transfer to a large bowl and mix together with onion mixture and remaining ingredients

*Let sit for 10 minutes and form into 11-12 patties

*Cook in a well oiled skillet for approximately 10 minutes, flipping once

*Bake at 375 for 15 minutes

Burger Wednesday!

My most favourite burger cookbook has gone missing!  It's true!  I don't know if I gave it to someone or put it down somewhere in the house, but either way I can't find it :(  Anyway, my friend Shannon makes some bulgur burgers and the other day on Best Recipes Ever I saw another version of them!  Obviously I took this as a sign that I should be adding them to our menu, so here is my version.  We had the burgers with some mashed yams and a simple green salad. 

Black Bean and Bulgur Burgers

1 1/2 cups bulgur

3 cups water

3 cups cooked black beans

1 chopped onion

1 chopped shallot

4 cloves minced garlic

2 cups finely diced mushrooms

1/2 cup vegetable stock

2 cups oats

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

 salt and pepper

3/4 tsp thyme

2 tsp cumin

*Bring water and bulgur to a boil, cover and remove from heat, let sit for 20 minutes

*Saute onion, shallot, and garlic in a skillet until soft

*Add mushrooms and stock and simmer until reduced

*Mash black beans in a large bowl, add bulgur, and onion mixture

*Add oats, parsley, salt, pepper, thyme and cumin

*Form into 8-10 patties and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes

*Cook on bbq for 7-8 minutes per side

The kids like tofu :)

Toe-fooooo, toe-foooo!  My kids really love tofu. So much that they chant for it when I ask for menu suggestions!  This time they thought I should make a burger out of tofu and have tofu fries?  A little too much if you ask me ;)  I have never tried to make tofu burgers before but I figured it shouldn't be too hard, and it wasn't!  They could have used a little more spice but they were still very good.  I served them with a sweet and savoury kale and a bell pepper salad.

Tofu Burgers

 2 packages of soft tofu

3/4 cup sunflower seeds, crushed

1 chopped onion

3 cloves minced garlic

1 cup old fashioned oats

3 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

salt and pepper

hot sauce

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

*In a food processor, pulse together tofu, seeds, onion and garlic

*Pour into a large bowl and add remaining ingredients, mix well.

*Form into patties and cook in a skillet (with olive oil) for 4-5 minutes per side.

*Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes

Wednesdays are love.

Today I woke up to snow.  Again.  In the middle of April :(  I shouldn't really be surprised but somehow I always am.  We had already planned on bbq type food but I decided to cook it all inside and continued to pretend that it was spring outside.  I'm tired of the pretending...anyway!  We spent the day inside cleaning (and cleaning and cleaning) and getting a whole bunch of stuff done that I've been avoiding.  The burgers were made this morning, starting from this recipe but then totally finishing off as something different!  Served with some roasted veggies and corn on the cob, it was the prefect way to avoid the weather outside.  Tomorrow is a new day and it's not looking quite so terrible.

Black Bean Burgers

2 cans of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup of cooked brown rice

1 chopped red pepper

1 chopped onion

5 cloves minced garlic

3/4 cup sliced white mushrooms

1/2 cup feta cheese

1/4 cup ground flax seed

1/4 cup water

1 tbsp curry paste

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp cilantro

salt and pepper

1 tsp hot sauce

1 cup bread crumbs

*In a large bowl mash black beans together with rice

*In a food processor, pulse together onion, garlic, pepper, and mushrooms

*In a small bowl mix together flax and water, set aside for 5 minutes

*Add flax mixture and vegetable mixture to black beans and rice

*Add remaining ingredients and let sit for 10 minutes

*Form into patties and cook on a skillet in olive oil for 5 minutes per side

*Grill burgers (inside or out) until heated through

On why I try to always make supper in the morning.

Wednesday is my lazy day, it isn't that I don't do anything, it's just that I don't have to be anywhere.  My husband has the van that day and he does the school pick-up so if I want to, I can just stay home all day.  It's one of my favourite days of the week!  That being said, even though I don't have to be anywhere I still try and make our burgers in the morning.  You never know what is going to happen in the afternoon and today is the perfect example of that.  At about 1 my sister-in-law called and asked if I could watch two of my nephews (5 and 1) while she took her 3 year old to the doctor.  No problem!  But there was no way I could have made anything with 5 children, 5 and under, in the house.  We had a great time playing and I was so happy to not have to worry about supper. 

Today we had these vegetable burgers that my sister made for me last year.  I had just had a baby and she left me at least 25 of them in the freezer (I had asked her to make a million but she didn't listen!).  I ate them for lunch, suppers, and snacks until they were gone... I couldn't get enough!  Along with the burgers we had quinoa cooked with garlic and parsley (so quick and easy!) and some green, red, and yellow peppers.

Dana's Vegetable Burgers

5 potatoes, cooked and mashed

1 shredded zucchini

3 shredded carrots

2 shredded red pepper

1 chopped onion

2 cloves minced garlic

1 can mixed beans, mashed

2 tsp cumin

1 tbsp curry paste

1 tsp parsley

1 cup rolled oats

*After shredding zucchini, carrots, and red pepper make sure to squeeze out excess liquid

*Mix together all ingredients and form into patties.

*Fry patties in a little olive oil for 5-6 minutes per side

*Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes

What was supposed to be burgers with spicy guacamole...

We are pretending it's spring here.  It's after March 20th, it's warm(ish), the birds are chirping... so let's just ignore the feet upon feet upon feet of snow left on the ground.  That might depress me if I weren't pretending that it's spring!  With spring comes bbq'ing and we love to bbq in this house.  Tonight I was going to try this bean burger with spicy guacamole recipe that I found in the Eating Well magazine that I love so much.  I made the burgers early this afternoon and then right before supper I got out the ingredients to make the spicy guacamole, and they weren't ripe enough!  I was so disappointed!  The burgers were good but they were missing that bite that I love so much.  We had them with bbq'd potatoes and asparagus and now we are off for a walk to get some dairy queen... because it's spring, right??

Pinto Bean Burgers

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup quinoa

olive oil

1/2 a chopped red onion

3 cloves minced garlic

2 1/2 cups cooked pinto beans

1 1/2 tsp paprika

2 tsp cumin

3 tbsp chopped cilantro

3 tbsp cornmeal + more for dipping

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

*Cook quinoa in water according to package instructions.  Cool.

*Saute onion, and garlic in olive oil.  Add mashed pinto beans, paprika, and cumin.  Stir well.

*Place in a large bowl along with quinoa, cilantro, salt, pepper and 3 tbsp cornmeal

*Form into patties and roll in remaining cornmeal.

*Place in fridge for 30 minutes to firm.

*Heat olive oil in frying pan on low/medium and cook burgers for 5-6 minutes per side.

*This is where I placed them back in the fridge for the rest of the afternoon and bbq'd them to warm at dinner time.

Spinach-Chickpea Burgers

Burger Wednesdays are quickly becoming my favourite day to cook.  I can't wait for the weather to change so that we are able to bbq more often!  It seems like that will be a long time in the future though, since we are still buried under many (many) feet of snow.  I got this recipe from (SURPRISE!) Veggie Burgers Every Which Way and have made a few small adjustments for personal taste and also because I didn't want to use any eggs.  I served the burgers with rice stuffed red peppers and a few raw vegetables.

Spinach-Chickpea Burgers

Olive oil

2 tsp toasted cumin seeds

2 cloves of minced garlic

11 oz spinach

2 cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed, divided

Juice of 1 lemon

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup chickpea flour

*Heat olive oil in pan, add cumin, garlic, and spinach.  Cook for 3-4 minutes.

*Squeeze out as much liquid as possible and let cool.  Chop finely.

*Combine 1 1/2 cans of chickpeas, lemon juice, and salt in a food processor and pulse several times.

*In a large bowl, combine spinach, and all chickpeas.  Fold in Chickpea flour.

I didn't have chickpea flour so I blended up some dried chickpeas.  Aside from scaring the baby it worked super well!

*Shape into 10 patties and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side in a little oil in a frying pan.

*Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Lentil Burgers

I spend a lot of time looking at recipes.  I mean, A LOT of time.  When I'm holding a sleeping baby, nursing a hungry baby, or just having a minute to myself I am usually looking through different cookbooks/blogs/websites.  I found myself doing that this morning when I had already started my lentil burgers for tonight's meal.  I like to start the burgers right after my two older kids have gotten on the school bus, and then I just put them in the oven about 20 minutes before supper.  The littlest kids are usually happiest at that time of day so its my most uninterrupted time in the kitchen.  The burgers were almost ready and I was just giving the bread crumbs a bit of time to soak up the extra moisture when I found this recipe on the savvy vegetarian site.  Sunflower seeds?  in a burger?  I went into the pantry and realized I had some leftover from the granola bars I made a few weeks ago so I threw them in last minute.  It was a great idea, these burgers were absolutely delicious.  I served the burgers with a wild rice and quinoa pilaf and some raw carrots and red pepper.

Lentil Burgers

3 cups cooked lentils, divided

1 1/2 cups ground rolled oats

1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs

3 tbsp ground flax seed

1 cup ground sunflower seeds

1 diced onion

3 cloves minced garlic

3 finely diced carrots

1 finely diced red pepper

3 stalks finely diced celery

2 tbsp curry paste

3 tsp cumin

3 tsp mustard

1/2-3/4 cup chopped parsley

*Place half the lentils in a food processor and pulse several times

*Mix together all the lentils, oats, bread crumbs, flax, sunflower seeds, spices.

*Fold in veggies and parsley

*Let sit for 10 minutes (and find new recipe, haha) and cook in lightly oiled frying pan for 5-6 minutes on each side

*Cook at 375 for 15-20 minutes

Walnuts in a burger? Yes, please!

I tried another recipe from my Veggie Burgers Every Which Way cookbook tonight; Quinoa, Red Bean and Walnut burgers.  I was a little wary of what the combination would taste like, but like Joey (from Friends) said , "Quinoa... good, red beans.. good, walnuts.... good."  I really hope I'm not the only one who gets that reference.  Its one of my favourite TV moments, ever.  I served the burgers with some potato "chips" and some raw veggies.  Last night I tried out my yogurt maker so it seemed appropriate to make a cucumber dip with some homemade yogurt.

Quinoa, Red Bean, and Walnut Burgers

1 cup quinoa, rinsed

2 small potatoes, peeled

2 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves minced garlic

1 1/2 bunch thinly sliced green onion

1 cup chopped parsley

4 tbsp grated ginger

3 cups cooked red beans

1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
1 cup panko bread crumbs

1 tsp salt

juice from one lemon

*cook quinoa according to package instructions

*Steam or boil potatoes until tender, mash with fork

*Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in skillet, add green onion, parsley, garlic, and ginger.  Stir gently for 1-2 minutes, remove from heat

*Mash together cooked quinoa, potato, green onion mixture, beans, walnuts and bread crumbs.  Add salt and lemon juice and shape into 12 patties

*Cook on non-stick grill for 5-6 minutes per side

Another theme night?

Looking back on the last few weeks menus, I'm noticing a new theme day.  Burger Wednesdays!  Tonight we had a quinoa and spinach burger from the same cookbook as the mixed bean and black bean burger that I've posted about.  They don't stick together as well as the bean burgers but they are equally delicious.  I served them with homemade french fries and steamed broccoli with a cheese sauce.  They were so good that I had 3, no joke, I really did eat 3 burgers!  This recipe is not exactly as seen in the book.  I've made a few modifications that worked well for us.

Baked Quinoa Burgers

2 cups quinoa

10 oz chopped spinach

1 large minced shallot

4 cloves minced garlic

2 beaten eggs

6 tbsp flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

red pepper flakes to taste

*Rinse and cook quinoa according to package instructions

*Saute garlic, and shallots in olive oil.  Add spinach and cook for 2-3 minutes.

*In large bowl quinoa, spinach mixture and remaining ingredients

*Shape into 12 patties and baked for 25-30 minutes, flipping half way through

Curried Bean Burgers

bWe seem to be eating a lot of veggie burgers lately, just can't get enough!  I was flipping through some magazines on the weekend and saw a recipe of curried pork burgers, it sounded gross BUT I thought curried bean burgers sounded DELICIOUS.  So I spent the afternoon perfecting a recipe for the couple of cans of black beans I had in my pantry.  We had a few of the quinoa rolls left from the other day so I served the burgers on those, along with a toasted quinoa salad and some roasted caulifower.

 Curried Black Bean Burgers

2 cans of black beans

1 chopped onion

3 cloves minced garlic

1 inch grated ginger

1 jalepeno pepper, seeded and minced

3 tbsp curry paste

2 tsp cumin

salt and pepper

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

handful chopped cilantro

1 1/2 cups bread crumbs

*Place beans in food processor and quickly pulse a few times

*Saute onion, garlic, ginger and jalepeno until softened

*Mix beans, onion mixtre and the remaining ingredients until well combined, let rest for a few minutes

*Fry in olive oil for 5 minutes per side and place on baking sheet

*Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes.

Black Bean Burgers

I wrote in my facebook status a few weeks ago about my new black bean burger recipe.  I must have gotten asked for the recipe at least 10 times!  Honestly, these are the easiest, most delicious veggie burgers I have ever made.  The best part is that you can use it with any kind of bean.  So far I have only tried "mixed beans" and black beans.

I got the recipe from this cookbook that I got for Christmas  this year.  I can't even imagine how much it will get used this summer once we can finally bbq again!  I served it with a simple salad and some yam fries (with a touch of cumin...ha!)

Black Bean Burgers

3 cups of black beans

4 eggs, beaten

4 tsp dijon mustard

1 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cups bread crumbs

salt and pepper

juice from half a lemon

olive oil

*Preheat the oven to 375

*In a mixing bowl, mash the beans.  Fold in the rest of the ingredients (minus the oil) and let sit for 5-10 minutes for the crumbs to soak up some of the moisture.  This step is very important!

*Form into 8 patties and cook in a frying pan (in the oil) for 6-10 minutes, flipping once.

*Transfer to a pan and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes

I hope you are all enjoying reading this blog as much as I am enjoying writing in it.  For now though, I am going to enjoy a quiet house as my husband has taken all 4 children out.  *Bliss*

First Post

I've been considering starting a food blog all week.  In anticipation I decided to take a few pictures of our meals from the week.  What a great way to start off!  Please don't judge my picture taking abilities, its the food that counts :)

 Vegan Cinnamon French Toast with Blueberry Compote

 Easy Mixed-Bean Burger with a side salad and steamed asparagus

White Three Cheese and Spinach pizza, Cheese Pizza, and Raw Veggies

So here we go!  I hope this blog works out better than the last few tries, and I hope you enjoy the ride! Up next, tonights dinner...