So this one has some bloody mary vibes. No booze though because that would be weird. Lots of spicy components, horseradish, a special sauce, a little lemon freshness, celery slaw for crunch, tomatoes by way of paste AND sundried little babies. This burger has some intense flavour that stands alone for real. Aside from set-up time, these took about 25 minutes for me to throw together, which is nice with those jam-packed summer days coming up.
We enjoyed these on some toasty ciabatta buns on our new little patio (yay!), trying to avert our gaze from the giant pile of dirt in our backyard (that's left over from said patio). It's all sitting on top of my vegetable garden area, so I need to figure out a strategy for getting rid of this stuff before that window closes. Although I am a proponent of the never-too-late club when it comes to vegetable gardening to some degree… I planted way too many Fall crops last year, so I'm focusing on greens, lettuces, tomatoes, summer squash, eggplant, hot peppers and just a little bit of celery root and winter squash in the mix. Also, I never used to be huge on non-veg gardening, but something changed this year and I'm spending most of my free time google-researching flowers and perennials these days. I'm actually 75 years old, guys. I have the Snapchats of my dog napping and my plant pointers as proof.
NOTES: Once I have the mixture all set in my bowl, I like to really rake over it with the backside of some fork tines to get everything "cut" together in a way. Using a food processor would expedite this process considerably. I did a grill set-up to cook mine, but you could certainly pan-fry them as well. I tried baking them and the results were not great. Better to pan fry in oil or "sear" on oiled foil on the grill to keep it together. Also, the grated beet really is just for colour. You could totally skip it if beets aren't your thing.
Place the quinoa in a small saucepan. Cover the quinoa with ⅔ cup filtered water. Turn the heat onto medium high and bring quinoa to a boil. Simmer until all water has been absorbed, about 15 minutes. Set aside.
While quinoa is cooking, in a large bowl, mash the chickpeas with a potato masher or fork. There should still be some slightly larger pieces of chickpea. Set aside.
Grind the sunflower seeds in a food processor or the dry container of a Vitamix (or similar). It should look like almond meal with a few whole seeds remaining. Transfer ground sunflower seeds to the bowl with the chickpeas. Add the cooked quinoa to the bowl as well.
Rinse out the saucepan, and return it to the heat. Add the olive oil to the pan and let it heat up. Add the shallots to the pan and saute until slightly soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and chili powder to the pan. Stir and cook until garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove the shallot mixture from the heat and add it to the bowl with the chickpeas and quinoa.
To the chickpea mixture, add the sundried tomatoes, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, grated beetroot, lemon zest, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Stir mixture with a spatula thoroughly to combine, or use the back of the tines of a fork to "rake" the mixture together. Sprinkle the oat flour over to of the mixture. With your hands, bring the burger mixture together one more time.
Divide the burger mixture into either 4 or 6 patties, carefully but firmly patting them together with your hands. Set a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet. Lat the formed burgers on the lined baking sheet as you finish them. Cover the burgers with plastic wrap and let them set up in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
Make the slaw: In a medium bowl, combine the celery, kale, lemon juice, olive oil, horseradish, salt, and pepper. Cover and place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Make the burger sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together the ketchup, mayonnaise, horseradish, and lemon juice. Cover and place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Preheat your grill to medium high. Lay a sheet of foil over the grates and grease the foil with either a spray oil or brushed-on olive oil. Place the burgers directly onto the foil and bring the lid down. Cook the burgers on one side for 8-10 minutes. Open the grill back up, very carefully flip the burgers over, and then close the lid again. Cook the burgers for another 8-10 minutes, or until you see some light charring.
Serve the bloody mary veggie burgers hot on toasted buns or in crisp butter lettuce leaves with the slaw and burger sauce. Enjoy!