Welcome to week two of Vegan Tuesdays! So glad you stopped by again this week to see what I have to share. I definitely think you’ll love this recipe! :) It’s perfect to bridge the gap between summer and fall.
And so my quest for the perfect homemade veggie burger continues. Next up, this delicious vegan fall-inspired butternut squash nut burger. These burgers were fantastic and included a number of my favourite things – namely butternut squash, quinoa and pumpkin seeds. Yum! A few years back, I tried this burger for the first time at a great local restaurant called Fresh Café. I was smitten and went back a number of times over the past few years to curb my yummy-veggie-burger cravings.
Recently, I was flipping through a local food magazine called Ciao! and I noticed my beloved veggie burger recipe was included in the magazine! With this awesome recipe in mind, I headed to the local Farmer’s Market this past weekend to load up on butternut squash. Side Note: I very much went overboard at the Farmer’s Market this past weekend and now have a ton of fresh produce to cook with this week! Weeee! :) Anyhoo, after the Farmer’s Market, I headed home to test out the recipe with very high expectations. And, thankfully, the recipe did not disappoint! The burgers tasted just like the ones I love from Fresh Café. And they were really easy to put together. The burgers are soft without being too mushy. And I loved all of the yummy seeds and nuts in the burger. Unlike some veggie burgers, these stayed together very well. And the roasted garlic aioli was delicious and the perfect topping for these burgers. I also topped the burgers off with some fresh tomato slices. Jesse added a bit of dijon mustard to his burger. He said it was extra delicious!
Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Mine was quite nice! Friday, we celebrated our friend Michelle’s birthday at a local South American Steak House called Hermanos. I know, I know…vegetarians at a steak house makes no sense! But they offered delicious vegetarian empanadas :) So I was a happy camper! Saturday, I met a friend at a local pub for some lunch and a nice chat. Saturday, Jesse and I met his family for an amazing meal at La Fiesta – an El Salvadorian restaurant. I tried pupusas for the first time and now I’m obsessed. Wow! Incredibly tasty. If you live in Winnipeg, I highly recommend La Fiesta. Just make sure to make a reservation. It’s one busy place! Awesome food and fantastic service. Sunday, Jesse, my friend Paul, my dad and I attended a football game…and my team lost again. Thankfully, the final score was a lot better than last week’s 0-52 blow out! *phew*
I’ll be back on Thursday with another yummy vegan post :) Have a fantastic Tuesday! And Wednesday for that matter. xo
Ingredients
- 1 large butternut squash, peeled and diced into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1-540 ml can of white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 cup of uncooked quinoa; rinsed
- 1/2 cup of water
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 1 cup of pumpkin seeds
- 1 cup of chopped walnuts
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup of whole wheat bread crumbs (or gluten free bread crumbs)
- 12 whole wheat burger buns (or gluten free burger buns)
- Roasted Garlic Vegan Aioli (recipe to follow)
Garnish: sprouts, finely sliced red onion, dijon mustard, tomato slices
Roasted Garlic Vegan Aioli
- 1 block of soft tofu, drained of excess water
- 1 head of garlic, roasted
- 2 tablespoons of cider vinegar (or 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice)
- 1/4 cup of olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Method: Prep
1. Roast the Garlic: Preheat oven to 350’F. Slice the top off of the head of garlic. Place garlic in a pocket of tinfoil. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on some salt. Pinch the tinfoil around the garlic leaving a little bit of room for steam. Place garlic in oven and allow it to roast for about 35 minutes, or until soft. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
2. Cook the Butternut Squash: In a large saucepan, bring 6 cups of water to a boil. Add the butternut squash and reduce to low. Cook the squash until it is tender (about 15 minutes). Drain and set aside.
3. Cook the Quinoa: While the squash is cooking, bring 1/2 cup of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the quinoa, cover and simmer on low for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Method: The Burgers
1. In a mixing bowl, smash the cooked butternut squash, white kidney beans and quinoa together using a potato masher. Using a wooden spoon, mix in the shallots, garlic, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper.
2. Add bread crumbs as necessary until the mix holds together well. Mould bits of the mixture into patties about the size of a hockey puck (can you tell I’m Canadian? *hehe*). You will get about 12 patties from this recipe.
3. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Make sure to spread the oil around the entire pan to ensure even cooking. Place patties onto the skillet and pan-fry the burgers for about 4 minutes per side (or until the sides are crispy and the burgers are cooked through). Note: I added a bit more oil between each batch to ensure even browning.
Method: The Aioli
1. Remove the roasted garlic cloves from the skin. Mash well with a fork.
2. Using a blender or food processor, mix the mashed roasted garlic, tofu, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper until smooth.
Serve each butternut nut burger on a toasted whole wheat bun. Slather on some of the delicious roasted garlic aioli. Top with some fresh tomato slices and some sprouts. Add dill pickles for good measure.
Yield: 12 veggie burgers
Source: Fresh Café in Winnipeg, Manitoba
This looks fantastic! I’m always trying to find ways to make new and tasty burgers. I usually make a big batch of “meat” and freeze in burger patties for a later date…I bet this would work the same. Thanks!!
I think these would freeze nicely! Freeze them separately on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. I find that works best. And then once frozen, you can place them all in a bag. I’d let them thaw out in the fridge a little before pan frying them. Then the middles will heat through a bit better. This recipe does make a lot of burgers, so freezing half would be a great idea! :) Thanks so much for your comment! xo
I’d love to try this recipe out! I love butternut squash, but am usually unsure about how much squash to use. I have had butternut squash ranging from about a pound and a half to 6 pounds this year. How large is large? Thanks!
That is a really good question! I think I had about 3 cups of diced raw butternut squash for this recipe. A little more is okay too, as you can offset the amount of “wetter” ingredients with just a bit more breadcrumbs.
Have a lovely day! :) Thanks for the comment!
What a brilliant combination! I like the idea of squash, nuts, seeds, beans and quinoa for a burger. The aioli looks simple and delicious, too!
I love a veggie burger with a lot of textures and components! I think this is why I loved this burger so much. Crunchy seeds and nuts, soft butternut squash and chewy quinoa – they were perfect! :) Thanks for the comment! :)
WOW these look so unique – I love the idea of a winter squash Veggie Burger!
Loving all your vegan recipe creations – so awesome :)
Awe, thank you! I’ve really been enjoying vegan cooking! I already have tomorrow Vegan Tuesday post ready to go. I made a yummy stew for dinner last night. Very excited to share it with you guys! xo
wow, these sounds amazing! i love the abundance of delicious ingredients!! butternut squash and walnuts and quinoa are three of my favorite things on my planet!
you are totally rocking vegan tuesdays ;)
*hehehehe* Awe, thanks Caitlin!!!!! I am really, really enjoying Vegan Tuesdays and am already making a lot more vegan meals for dinner in particular :)
Me too! I adore butternut squash, walnuts and quinoa. Hmmm…I’m starting to think of putting these in a new fall salad. Hmmmm….. *hehe*
this looks beautiful! Like you said, always SO hard to find a good homemade veggie burger recipe that holds together. I’m looking forward to trying these. Thank you so much for sharing!
Yay, burgers! I’m so glad we;ve reached the winter squash stage of early fall, aren’t you? These look amazing!
Yes!!!! I am thrilled we are into fall squash now! I bought a bun already! *hehe* Butternut and acorn so far. And a pumpkin. But I’m not sure I’ll be able to cook with him! He’s just such a cute pumpkin! *hehe*
My, my, my, those look amazing! What a unique ingredient list. I’ve never tried them all together. I can just image the Fall flavours going on! Did you find that the burgers got dry at all?
The burgers themselves were not too dry because of the roasted butternut squash. And the roasted garlic aioli made them incredibly delicious and nice and moist. Jesse mentioned that after a few days in the fridge, the dried out a tad. But when made the same day or a day after, they were perfect :)
I love the looks of this burger! I bet the pumpkin seeds in there were extra good. I love veggie burgers because you can get really creative and put whatever you want in there! :)
I adore pumpkins seeds. And butternut squash. I think that’s why I fell in love with this burger :) Me too! I adore veggie burgers. I love how every restaurant that sells veggie burgers always have such different takes on them. And different flavour profiles. This is definitely one of my favs.
These look amazing! I love veggie burgers :)
Me too! Veggie burgers seem to be the # 1 thing I crave lately! Every time we go out for food, I scour the menu for a veggie burger. *hah* That’s why I love Boon Burger. So much variety!!!!
Mmm … I love sweet potato burgers but I don’t think I’ve seen a squash burger.. It makes such sense though and I’m sure I’d love them even more, especially with the addition of quinoa!
The squash is really quite yummy! Very similar to sweet potato burgers :) But I love the addition of lots of nuts and seeds in this one. And quinoa! Quinoa makes everything tastier in my opinion! *hehe*
OMG, Courtney, these look stupid good! I’m going to try and convince Matt that he wants to make these! :D
*haha* Thanks Liz! They WERE stupid good. *HAH* Definitely make these for Matt. I really think you guys will love them :)
Wow. Just, wow. This looks (and sounds) amazing! I love butternut squash, so I think I’ll have to try out this recipe sometime soon….like this week…or tonight…or right now…
Thanks for sharing!
Awe, thank you for the lovely comment :) Me too. I adore butternut squash. And these burgers are full of delicious butternut squash goodness. Plus, I adore pumpkin seeds and quinoa. I plan on making another batch soon, so I can freeze some to have over the fall. So yummy! :) I tried one with a tomato chutney and it was so good!
Yum – I will definitely have to give this a try this season, I’ve never made a butternut squash burger! I love the addition of pumpkin seeds and walnuts – they must give the burger so much texture!
I’ve only tried pupusas once at a festival and I had such a difficult time trying to communicate with the cooks that I only wanted cheese in mine – I don’t think they were used to making vegetarian ones! I’d like to give them another try though!
I think that was my favourite part of the burger! I loved the texture with the soft butternut squash mixed in with the pumpkin seeds, quinoa and walnuts.
Mmmm! I’ve been missing out! Pupusas are delicious! I’m so thankful that La Fiesta makes everything at their restaurant vegetarian or vegan. I’ll have to get a good recipe from my mom’s best friend from El Salvador and post a vegetarian version. Then you can make them all the time. :)
this is such a fabulous idea for a burger! sounds absolutely delicious!
It was extremely yummy! I plan on making many batches of these over the fall and winter! :)
ooooooooooooooooooooooooh dear. making these very soon
Please do! And let me know what you think of them :)
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment! :)
You’ve got me hooked! Now to see if I can get the kids to eat them. =)
Sure hope the kids enjoy them! :)
A+ on the garlic aioli….! Looks good. Love you :)
Love you too sistah! :) I’ll have to make these for you to try. xoxo
oh fun, i am from winnipeg! fresh cafe is one of my fave spots. your recipe is me in burger form. seriously, perfect!
xo
http://allykayler.blogspot.ca
Yummy! These come together in no time if you roast the squash in advance and throw everything in the food processor. I used both the lemon juice and the ACV in the aioli, and added some dijon too. Served in a lettuce “bun” – perfect! Next time I might experiment add some kind of herbs or spices – maybe a bit of sage and cinnamon?
Made these a few week ago and they were really good! Then froze the remainder (formed into patties on a sheet pan and then into a ziploc), and they still taste wonderful! This recipe is definitely a keeper – thanks!
Awe, I am so thrilled you enjoyed these! They are my favourite burgers. I adore butternut squash!