On a high note, these meatless burgers had me over the moon. I scarfed mine in less than 5 minutes, and hubby enjoyed his a lot too. They were a perfect weeknight meal. Even if you are a meat-eating family, I think you can easily tempt your children with promises of sweet, grilled pineapple. I definitely took this recipe from Brooke at Cheeky Kitchen, who posted a completely veganized/plantie version of this a few weeks ago. I am not a vegan. Oh lawdy, do I love bacon way too much to ever even consider it. Bacon is meat candy. Swoon. Despite my love of saturated fat laden pork products, I am happy to make a lot of my meals meatless and plant-based for a variety of reasons. They are cheaper. They are healthier. They help me to use my weekly bounty of produce from my local food co-op, and they encourage me to experiment and try new things. Let's be honest. If I had a choice, the rest of my life would probably be spent consuming bread and cheese. I could literally live in the cheese case at Whole Foods and be happy forever. Drat. I am experiencing some major A.D.D. today. On to the recipe.
These babies are delicious. They are healthy. They have fabulous flavor and texture. They whip up fast. They make you want to dance and sing and puddle-jump outside of your house in a warm spring rain. Healthy quinoa is mixed with fiber-packed chickpeas and sweet, decadent coconut milk, spices, and panko bread crumbs, and pan-fried in olive oil and coconut oil before being put to bed on some fresh lettuce, ornamented with grilled pineapple, dressed up in a little mayonnaise spread and enveloped in hearty whole wheat. Who doesn't want to eat something described like that? So I took Brooke's vegan meal and turned it into a vegetarian meal that fit what I had available in the house. Hers was flavored with curry, I opted for cumin. I hate curry. Hate it. I lived in a house in college, and some of the people in the house cooked with curry every day. For every meal. Our house smelled like curry all the time. All of my clothes smelled like it. I just can't do curry anymore. So after a few adjustments here and there, and we ate a meal fit for a sometimes health-conscious and amazingly lucky king. Make this. Now. You will love it.
Start with a 1/2 cup of uncooked quinoa.
I have posted about quinoa and it's cooking methods before, and this would be a valuable read if you are unfamiliar with this super food. You cook quinoa at a 2 to 1 ratio, much like rice. Measure out a 1/2 cup, rinse it well, and put it in a pan with 1 cup of water. Cook on medium heat until the quinoa has absorbed the water and is soft. It will take about 10 minutes. Set aside.
Crack open a can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans). Drain and rinse them.
Measure out a 1/2 cup of coconut milk. This comes in a can in the Asian food section of the grocery store. I used the light coconut milk. It is delicious!
Combine the chickpeas with the coconut milk in the food processor. Also add a 1/2 teaspoon of cumin, and I threw in a 1/2 teaspoon of Emeril's original essence. Brooke suggested using garlic powder. I discovered I was out. The Emeril spice was a nice swap. Process these together until they are smooth.
Transfer to a bowl, and add a 1/2 cup of the cooked quinoa (measure this out). Mix well to combine.
Grab some panko bread crumbs. These Japanese style bread crumbs are lower in calories than other types, and they give an excellent crunch to a variety of foods. Measure out 2/3 of a cup.
Add to your chickpea and quinoa mixture. Mix to combine.
Select a few lovely fresh chives.
Roughly chop them.
Add them to the mixture and combine well.
Form four patties out of the mixture. Set them aside for a few minutes. It is a little sticky, but should hold together well.
In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of Olive Oil Mayonnaise (you could substitute Veganaise here) with a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice and three turns of freshly ground black pepper. Mix well. Set aside.
Slice four large wedges of fresh pineapple. Sprinkle with a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon and a teaspoon of brown sugar. Mix to coat.
Heat an indoor or outdoor grill and grill the slices until the juices bubble and the sugar has caramelized. Remove and set aside.
Butter the inside of some whole wheat buns. You could use thick, fluffy buns here. We used the 100 calorie whole wheat sandwich thins and they worked beautifully.
Toast in a 400 degree oven for 3-5 minutes, until brown and crispy. Set aside.
Heat two tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and a tablespoon of unrefined coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat.
When the oil has melted, add the patties to the pan. Cook 5-7 minutes, flipping once, until the patties are golden brown on each side.
Remove the patties from heat. Place them on your bun of choice, top them with a slice of grilled pineapple, a dollop of the lemon pepper mayonnaise, and some crisp romaine lettuce. We paired ours with some blanched broccoli.
Coconut Quinoa Pineapple Burgers
(Serves Four)
Ingredients
-1/2 cup of cooked quinoa
-1 can of drained and rinsed chickpeas
-1/2 cup of light coconut milk
-1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
-1/2 teaspoon of Emeril's Original Essence OR garlic powder
-1/4 cup fresh chives, chopped
-2/3 cup Panko breadcrumbs
-4 slices of fresh pineapple
-1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
-1 teaspoon of brown sugar
-2 tablespoons of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
-One tablespoon of unrefined coconut oil
-1/4 cup of olive oil mayonnaise
-Freshly ground black pepper
-One teaspoon of fresh lemon juice
-Whole wheat buns
-1 teaspoon of butter
-Romaine lettuce
1. Cook a 1/2 cup of quinoa in one cup of water, until the quinoa is soft and has absorbed the water. Set aside.
2. Rinse and drain a can of chickpeas. Place chickpeas and 1/2 cup of light coconut milk in a food processor, along with 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of Emeril's Original Essence or garlic powder. Process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl.
3. Add 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa to the chickpea mixture. Mix well to combine. Add 2/3 cup of Panko breadcrumbs to the mixture. Combine well.
4. Roughly chop several fresh chives (approximately 1/4 cup). Add to the chickpeas and quinoa. Mix to combine and distribute the chives. Form four patties from the mixture with your hands. Set aside.
5. Sprinkle four slices of fresh pineapple with 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon and one teaspoon of brown sugar. Mix to combine. Grill on indoor or outdoor grill for 3-5 minutes, until the juices are running and the sugar has caramelized. Set aside.
6. In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of olive oil mayonnaise, 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice, and several turns of freshly ground black pepper. Set aside.
5. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter the insides of whole wheat buns. Toast, buttered side up, 3-5 minutes until crispy and golden. Set aside.
6. Heat a skillet over medium heat, and add two tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil and one tablespoon of coconut oil. When the oil is hot, add the chickpea and quinoa patties to the oil. Pan fry 5-7 minutes, flipping once, until the patties are golden brown on each side.
7. Place the patties on the buns. Top with a slice of grilled pineapple, a dollop of the lemon-pepper mayonnaise, and a few leaves of crisp romaine.
8. Partake of the deliciousness. Eat with reckless abandon. Indulge in natural, whole-food eating. It's a beautiful thing.
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