Makes 6 burgers Total time: 1 hour || Active time: 30 minutes
There are plenty of ideas out there for what to do with Thanksgiving
leftovers, and those creations are extremely amazing.
But what if it’s the beginning of November and you don’t yet have any Thanksgiving leftovers? Well, how about I introduce you to the day after
Thanksgiving; except without all those dishes, without all the travel
and without all of those classic “jokes”.
Enter the from-scratch Thanksgiving Burger. It’s an unholy carbfest:
think stuffing that’s stuffed in a roll! Lentils provide that proteiny
burgerness, mushrooms add that earthy umaminess and hazelnuts aren’t
only deliciously festive here, but they add great texture, too. And of
course, you’ve got to have cranberries. Here, they are dried and studded
throughout the burger like ruby jewels, providing little bursts of tart
sweetness. All of the stuffing stand-bys — your celery, sage and thyme —
are accounted for, too. You’re basically eating a beautiful Bob Ross
landscape of the prettiest autumn foliage you ever did see. But in
burger form. And believe me, you will give thanks with every bite!
Recipe Notes:
~Canned lentils work super great here. But if you don’t have any,
make sure to account for the time it will take to boil some up.
~Some food processors don't the best job of chopping
hazelnuts. If yours is such a machine, chop them by hand, using a clean
kitchen towel over the cutting board and your chef’s knife. PS don’t
bother peeling the hazelnuts. The skin doesn’t disturb anything here.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Small yellow onion, diced medium
2 ribs celery, thinly sliced
8 oz cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Fresh black pepper
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dry rubbed sage
4 cups baguette sliced into cubes
1 cup vegetable broth
1/2 cup hazelnuts [see note above]
I cup cooked lentils (brown or green)
3/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup dried cranberries
To serve:
6 sourdough rolls
Kale [or your preferred greens]
Vegan mayo (store-bought or homemade)
Preheat a large, heavy bottomed pan non-stick
(preferably cast iron) over medium high heat. Saute onion in one
tablespoon olive oil for about 3 minutes with a pinch of salt, until
translucent. Add mushroom, celery, garlic, black pepper, thyme and sage
and saute for 7 to 10 minutes, until mushrooms have released most of
their moisture.
Add baguette cubes, and drizzle in the other tablespoon of oil. Toss
bread to coat in the mixture and cook for 5 minutes or so, tossing
often, to lightly brown the bread.
Add the vegetable broth and use your spatula to really mush the bread
up in the broth, so that it absorbs all the liquid and resembles
stuffing. Let it cook about 3 more minutes, to sop up all the flavor.
While everything is cooking in the pan, place hazelnuts in food
processor and pulse until they are chopped (not pureed.) Pieces should
range from itty bitty to pea sized. Transfer nuts to a large mixing
bowl. (No need to clean it out for the next step.)
Add the lentils to the food processor and puree until relatively
smooth. Now add the bread mixture from the pan into the processor and
pulse 10 to 15 times. You want the mixture to hold together, but there
should still be mushroom and celery visible, it shouldn’t be a puree.
Transfer this to the mixing bowl with the hazelnuts. Add in the
cranberries and salt. The cranberries like to stick together so make
sure you separate them. Combine thoroughly, using your hands if need be,
to form a firm but still malleable mixture. Taste for salt and pepper.
Let the mixture cool completely. Refrigerate for 15 minutes or so, just to help it firm up and let the flavors meld a bit.
Rinse out your cast iron, and preheat on medium-high. Roll the
burgers into 6 equal sized tennis balls. Wash your hands often and keep
them a little damp during this process for that the burgers don’t stick
to your hands. Flatten into 1 1/2 inch thick patties.
Cook in a thin layer of oil for about 4 minutes on each side. Serve on buns with greens and mayo. Die of happiness!
Total time: 1 hour || Active time: 30 minutes
There are plenty of ideas out there for what to do with Thanksgiving leftovers, and those creations are extremely amazing. But what if it’s the beginning of November and you don’t yet have any Thanksgiving leftovers? Well, how about I introduce you to the day after Thanksgiving; except without all those dishes, without all the travel and without all of those classic “jokes”.
Enter the from-scratch Thanksgiving Burger. It’s an unholy carbfest: think stuffing that’s stuffed in a roll! Lentils provide that proteiny burgerness, mushrooms add that earthy umaminess and hazelnuts aren’t only deliciously festive here, but they add great texture, too. And of course, you’ve got to have cranberries. Here, they are dried and studded throughout the burger like ruby jewels, providing little bursts of tart sweetness. All of the stuffing stand-bys — your celery, sage and thyme — are accounted for, too. You’re basically eating a beautiful Bob Ross landscape of the prettiest autumn foliage you ever did see. But in burger form. And believe me, you will give thanks with every bite!
~Some food processors don't the best job of chopping hazelnuts. If yours is such a machine, chop them by hand, using a clean kitchen towel over the cutting board and your chef’s knife. PS don’t bother peeling the hazelnuts. The skin doesn’t disturb anything here.
Ingredients:
Small yellow onion, diced medium
2 ribs celery, thinly sliced
8 oz cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Fresh black pepper
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dry rubbed sage
4 cups baguette sliced into cubes
1 cup vegetable broth
1/2 cup hazelnuts [see note above]
I cup cooked lentils (brown or green)
3/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup dried cranberries
To serve:
6 sourdough rolls
Kale [or your preferred greens]
Vegan mayo (store-bought or homemade)