(Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan | Paleo-Friendly) Happy (day after) Valentine’s Day! I recently went to the Herne Hill Sunday Market and had some crazy good vegan burgers. So, because I’m a firm believer in loving yourself all year round , I’ve created my version of the burger magic to share using the delightful contents of my Kent Veg Box as a guide ❤ If you want to make them for your sweetie, may I recommend shaping the burgers into hearts!? I love LOVE and (veggie) burgers! Sending you all my love and healthy wishes. Happy (day after) V-Day you beauties! 💜  Keep on loving yourself with good, wholesome food! xxx

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1-2 garlic cloves
• ½ teaspoon salt
• Oil for cooking (e.g. olive oil or coconut oil)

3 cups vegetables finely diced or chopped- I used the following:

• 3 small beetroot, peeled and diced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 large parsnip, peeled and chopped
• 1 large handful button mushrooms, chopped

• 185 g (1 cup) cooked quinoa
• 300g (1½ cups red lentils)
• Handful of chopped fresh herbs (I used coriander (cilantro) and basil)
• 165g (½ cup) flax seeds
• 45g (½ cup) oats (ground, if you have)
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp paprika (feel free to season with your fav spices instead of these!)

Directions:

1. In a large frying pan, heat a few tablespoons of oil (I used extra virgin olive oil) on medium-high heat and then add onion, garlic and salt.Cook for 2-3 minutes,or until the onion is translucent. Add the chopped veggies and cook until soft for 5-10 minutes.
2. Throw the cooked veggies (and all other ingredients) into a food processor and pulse 5-10 minutes to combine (don’t go wild and make a paste though!). I don’t have a food processor, so I put half of veg mix in blender, pulsed and threw into large mixing bowl. I then repeated with other half of veg and added other ingredients to bowl for hand mixing (old school, I know). You can use a potato masher or a simple wooden spoon if you’re doing things this way.
3. Press the mixture between your fingers to check that you can form a patty with it. If it’s too crumbly, add some liquid (1 tablespoon at a time) until it sticks together. If the mix is too wet, add some of your oats  (1 tablespoon at a time) until you get the right consistency. Check the mixture for taste and add salt, pepper and whatever other seasoning you want until it’s right for you.
4. Form the mixture into 8-12 patties of about 1/3 cup each (heart-shaped for Valentine’s Day even!) and place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate the patties uncovered for 30 minutes. Don’t skip this step! Resting will help the patties stay together. Here are my patties all ready for cookin’ 🙂 
5. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Cook 3-4 patties at a time until brown on one side, then flip and brown the other side. It should take about 3-4 minutes per side. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in the pan before cooking each batch of burgers.

Tips: Serve right away or cool and then wrap each burger in foil, place in freezer bag and freeze for later. Alternatively, you can just wrap up the patties before you cook them and freeze to cook later. Heat frozen patties in a pan on the stove or in the oven.

I served this burger on a toasted gluten free bun (that I just bought at store) with mashed avocado, spinach and sweet potato fries (with swede thrown in too).