Vegetarian Burgers

My lunch group at work went to Chili’s restaurant this week. I wasn’t too happy that we were going because the last time I went there they didn’t have any good vegetarian entrees, but they’ve added a black bean burger to the menu, and it was great. I don’t like fake meat, but I do like a nice vegetarian sandwich. Some of the brands of vegetarian “burgers” try to be like meat, and they end up tasting like hockey pucks. (Actually I’ve never eaten any hockey pucks, but if I did I’m sure they’d taste like a Boca burger.) Some people get it right. The Garden Burger is a mixture of rice and vegetables. It’s light, tasty and fits in a bun, but doesn’t pretend to be meat. The black bean burger is the same. I also like walnut-lentil burgers.

Black Bean Burger

1/3 cup coarsely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 cups black beans (or black soybeans), rinsed and drained
1/2 cup coarse dried breadcrumbs
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 large egg, beaten
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 English muffins or hamburger buns

1. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, place onion, garlic, and cumin; pulse until coarsely chopped. Add beans, bread crumbs, and cilantro; pulse until just combined (don’t puree).
2. Transfer mixture to a bowl; stir in walnuts. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in egg and stir until combined. Form into four 3 1/2-inch patties. (If burgers seem very wet, add 1/4 cup bread crumbs.) Chill patties, covered, at least 1 hour, and up to 1 day.
3. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat until hot. Cook patties until light brown, 4 to 6 minutes on each side. Serve on toasted English muffins or buns.

Lentil-Walnut Burgers:

3/4 cup toasted walnuts, cooled
1/3 cup plain dried breadcrumbs
3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
Coarse salt and ground pepper
3/4 cup lentils, cooked, drained, and cooled
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 large egg

In a food processor, combine walnuts, breadcrumbs, garlic, cumin, coriander, pepper flakes, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; process until finely ground. Add lentils and 1 tablespoon oil; pulse until coarsely chopped (some lentils should remain whole).
In a large bowl, whisk egg. Add lentil mixture; mix well. Divide into 4 equal-size parts; roll into balls, and flatten with the palm of your hand into 3/4-inch-thick patties.
Heat remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add burgers; cook over medium-low heat until crisp and browned, turning gently with a thin-edged spatula, 8 to 10 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain.

Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday

What a week! Many choir rehearsals and many church services. Plus lots of cooking. My gardening this week consisted of a little bit of weeding and some lettuce thinning. The radishes are just beginning to come in. I ate the first of the season on Thursday. It was delicious.

Here’s the menu we had yesterday. We had choir rehearsal Saturday from 8:30 to noon. The rest of the day Judi and I spent cooking. We had two kinds of potatoes because Katie said she really wanted au gratin potatoes, and the rest of us wanted new potatoes. She actually liked both of them. We won’t have to cook most of the week. It was worth all the work.

Ham
Grilled lamb chops
Spanikopita
New potatoes with parsley sauce
Au gratin Yukon gold potatoes
Artichoke casserole
Grilled asparagus
Greek green beans
Mixed green salad with radishes, tomatoes, peppers and spring onions
White cake, shaped like an egg, with chocolate truffle frosting
Chocolate cake, shaped like an egg, with butter cream frosting
Rolls – Thank you, Pillsbury
A Grenache-Syrah blended French red wine

Judi did a fabulous job on the cakes. They looked like giant Easter eggs.

Greek Green Beans  

1/2 cup olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 clove garlic, minced
2 pounds fresh green beans,  rinsed and trimmed
3 large tomatoes, diced
Tablespoon chopped fresh mint
Tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
2 teaspoons sugar
salt to taste

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir the onions and garlic in the skillet until tender.
2. Mix the green beans, tomatoes, sugar, and salt into the skillet. Reduce heat to low, and continue cooking 45 minutes, or until beans are soft.

  
Spanikopita

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil,
1 onion finely chopped
2 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
Salt and pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, ground or freshly grated
1 lb. feta crumbled into tiny bits
1 egg, beaten
¼ cup pine nuts
Tsp chopped fresh oregano
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 box, defrosted phyllo pastry dough, long thin sheets
½ cup melted butter

Place oven rack in center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.
Preheat a small pan over medium to medium high heat. Add oil and onion and sauté 5 minutes. Place onion in a bowl. Add chopped dry, defrosted spinach and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add feta to the bowl and combine it with spinach. Add beaten egg and ricotta to the bowl and combine with feta, spinach and onion.
On a large work surface, place 1 sheet of phyllo. Paint half of the sheet with a little melted butter, paying extra attention to your perimeter. Fold sheet in half. Pile 2 tablespoons onto end of long strip of phyllo. Fold into triangles as if you were folding a flag.  Paint the seam and the ends with butter and set triangles seam side down on a cookie sheet. Repeat until the phyllo sheets are used up. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly golden all over and serve.

Grilled Asparagus

1 pound fresh asparagus spears, trimmed
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
lemon

1. Preheat grill for high heat.
2. Lightly coat the asparagus spears with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Grill over high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, or to desired tenderness.
4. Season with a little squeeze of lemon juice.