Dan and I usually eat more veggie burgers in the summer (bbq time), but we were feeling like a delicious burger and I was craving sesame potato fries so I set out to make a new recipe! It was a GREAT success!
If you have EVER been to Boon Burger in Winnipeg, Manitoba, then you know, that they have the most AMAZINGLY delicious burgers and fries and basically ANYTHING/EVERYTHING else that they serve....and it's all vegan!!!! I love going to Winnipeg to see my family and I'm not going to lie....to hit up Boon Burger!!! When we were in Winnipeg over Christmas, I frequented it TONS! I am constantly praying that they open more lil' Boon Burgers and have hopes that eventually there may be a Boon Burger in B.C.!!!! Anyways, I made up my sesame potato fries recipe to what I thought would closely replicate the fries at Boon Burger and mine turned out DELICIOUS!!!
The burger recipe I got from one of my favorite cookbooks: refresh by Ruth Tal. I had initially been intimidated by the longer list of ingredients but making these burgers was really easy and they are the first vegan burger patties that I have made that hold together really really well (no crumbling)! They also taste amazingggg! They have quite the zing effect with the cayenne, and curry powder so if you aren't into a little spice then just withhold those ingredients! But Dan and I loved them!
What I love about the Fresh Burger recipe is that it makes 6 patties and I imagined 6 dinky little patties but it made 6 perfect-sized patties!!! Dan and I make 2 so we used 2 patties the night that I made them and then we invited my mom and brother over to enjoy the final four the following night! So delicious! Noah is a little young to eat an entire burger to himself so he ate the sesame fries, a few bites of mama's and the toppings!!!
Now for the recipe! Enjoy this meal when you are in the mood for an AMAZING burger and fries and are HUNGRY (be aware that you will feel very full afterwards...but not greasy!!! YAY! We had NO fast-food effect after consuming these!!! In fact, we were marveling at the high-quality ingredients that are in the patties! So healthy and delicious = a win, win!!!
Fresh Burger Mix (from the Refresh cookbook by Ruth Tal):
Ingredients:
1 cup of filtered water
1/2 cup of uncooked hulled millet
1/2 cup of uncooked pearl barley
3 Tbsp. of sunflower seeds
1 1/2 Tbsp. of chopped almonds
1 clove of garlic, chopped
2 Tbsp. of chopped parsley (*I chose to use basil instead of parsley and LOVED it)
1/2 red onion, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup of grated carrot
3/4 cup of firm tofu, chopped
3 Tbsp. of grated beets
1 1/2 Tbsp. of tamari (I used Shoyu Sauce)
2 Tbsp. of spelt flour
2 Tbsp. of Engevita (inactive) yeast
1/4 tsp. of cayenne
1/4 tsp. of chili powder
1 tsp. of curry powder
1 tsp. of sea salt
1 tsp. of cornstarch
3 Tbsp. of mixed herbs (*I added a mixture of oregano, thyme, rosemary and garlic powder)
2 Tbsp. of carrot juice or water (if needed) *I added 2 Tbsp. of low-sodium veggie broth instead of carrot juice or water - just a personal preference!
Method:
1) Put the millet, barley and 1 cup of water in a small pot over high heat and stir. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let cook until the water is absorbed. Put the grains in a large mixing bowl. Let cool.
2) While the grains are cooking, grind the seeds and nuts in a food processor. Add these to the ingredients in the mixing bowl.
3) In the same food processor, puree the garlic, parsley/basil, onion, carrot and beets. When they are chopped fine, add the tofu and process until smooth.
Such a beautiful colour thanks to the beets!4) Put this mixture in the mixing bowl with the nuts, seeds and grains. Add the remaining ingredients - except the 2 Tbsp. of liquid (carrot juice, water or broth), and mix thoroughly with a large spoon. Add the 2 Tbsp. of liquid if the mix is too dry for shaping into patties.
5) Divide and form into 6 patties.
6) Fry, broil or grill the burgers until slightly crisp and brown on both sides, about 5 minutes each side.
* Initially I thought about cooking the patties on a frying pan on the stove-top but then decided that it would be too tedious and opted for broiling...it was SO EASY! I just placed the 6 patties onto a pan that I had first lined with parchment paper. I put them into the oven for about 5-7 minutes and then flipped them, and cooked them for a further 5 minutes! They turned out amazing!
Fresh Burger Patties before going into the oven!
Fresh burger patties fresh out of the oven!I am going to argue that these just might be the most delicious vegan burgers I have ever had!!!! Okay, Boon Burger still has one up on me :) Or maybe, it's because when I go there, they have this super cool ambiance and the staff are super friendly and they make all the food I order for me!!! That's a really NICE treat!!! But these burgers will now gladly satisfy me until my next trip to Winnipeg!!!
As for the fries, SUPER EASY!
Jay's Sesame Potato Fries:
serves 3-4 people
Ingredients:
1-2 yukon gold potatoes, sliced into your ideal french-fry size!
1 sweet potato, sliced into your ideal french-fry size!
2 Tbsp. of sesame seeds
2 Tbsp. of either olive oil OR coconut oil (melted coconut oil if it's solid)
sea salt and pepper to taste
Method:
Preheat the oven to 350'F.
Place the sliced potatoes and sweet potatoes onto a baking sheet and drizzle with oil. Sprinkle sesame seeds over top as well as the sea salt and pepper.
With clean hands, massage the potatoes so that they all absorb some oil and are coated with sesame seeds.
Place in the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes. Take out of the oven and flip the potatoes and then place back into the oven for an additional 10 minutes. You should be able to easily pierce the potatoes with a fork when finished!
Enjoy these on their own or with ketchup or miso gravy!
I really hope that you enjoy the burgers and fries, whether together or separately! They are truly so delicious and you feel like you are treating yourself but without huge guilt because you are still nourishing your body and providing healthy alternatives for you and your family!
*A little known fact about me: I have a secret obsession for millet! Perhaps it's because I rarely cook with it but I find millet so intriguing and I love the little crunch that it provides! Seeing millet in this recipe SOLD ME!!! I loved the abundance of flavor as well that this burger has!
Another cool thing about the Refresh cookbook is that as well as having an amazing burger recipe, they also list different toppings/ideas for serving your burger. For example they have names like the Life Burger, Miso Burger, Thai Burger and Mushroom Onion Burger. If any of these sound appealing than they tell you how to top the burger of your choice and they even have the recipes for any of the dressings that they involve (examples - miso gravy, herb tofu mayo, and thai peanut sauce)....sweet!!!!
I topped my burger with daiya cheese (melted into my patty - yum), lentil hummus, ketchup, avocado (a favorite of mine), cucumber, spinach, sprouts, and mango chutney (SO DELICIOUS)!!!
Dan topped his burger with miso gravy, daiya cheese, lentil hummus, cucumber, spinach, and sprouts!
We used Ezekiel buns :) Dan also drizzled miso gravy over his fries but I prefer ketchup so that's what I used!
best burger ever!!!!
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