Sunday, July 14, 2013

Grain Free Veggie Burger Stacks! GF, BED, SCD & Paleo w/ Vegan Opt'n!

Hey Happy Tummies!

So as promised, I'm delivering to you an AWESOME new recipe! 





Grain Free Veggie Burger Stacks!

So for our last night in Wisconsin, we had a BBQ! My family enjoyed beer-boiled-brats (a classic in the Northwoods)




 and I had a marvelous Veggie Burger over Zucchini Ribbons! Holy Cow guys...hold onto your hats! These were FAAABULOUS! 




I topped it with a roasted beet, fresh tomato, and delicious pesto!




Most veggie burgers are made with lots of grain or beans. Well, on the Specific Carb Diet, grains and beans are not allowed. :/ Soooo I used Almond Meal instead!! And LOTS of veggies! The great thing about this recipe is that you can literally add in any veggies you want! It's a "clean out the fridge" recipe!

And they're Gluten Free, Vegan, Specific Carb Diet & Body Ecology Diet friendly & Paleo w/ a Vegan option!




Here's what you need: (makes 4 patties -- serves 1-2)

2 baby carrots
3 mushrooms (BED use shiitake)
1/2 red pepper
1 cup sugar snap peas
1/4 cup almond flour
2 egg whites (vegan option: 2 flax/chia eggs)
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 onion
1 garlic clove
1 Tbsp EVOO

1 beet (BED omit)

1 cup basil
2 Tbsp pine nuts
Juice 1 lemon
1 garlic clove
1 Tbsp EVOO
salt and pepper

1 zucchini - made into ribbons
1 tomato (BED omit - substitute roasted red pepper)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Scrub and dry your beet. Cut it into 1/4 inch rounds. Place the rounds on a tin-foil-line-olive-oil-sprayed baking sheet. Spritz them with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 50 minutes, flipping once halfway through.




Meanwhile, throw your carrots, mushrooms, red pepper, sugar snap peas, onion, garlic, and oregano into your food processor. Process until minced. (Don't let it get soupy). Place the chopped veggies into a clean kitchen towl (or several paper towels) and squeeze out as much liquid as you can. This is a very important step! Rinse out your food processor and set aside (you'll use it again in a minute).

Place your dry, minced veggies in a medium sized bowl. Combine with your egg-of-choice, oregano, olive oil, several cracks of black pepper, and almond flour. *Note: I did not add salt to the mix, as I didn't want the veggies to release any more liquid. Proceed with caution if you choose to:) .

Form patties out of 1/4 cup of the mixture and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. (Makes 4 small patties). Mist the tops with olive oil and bake for 35-45 minutes at 400 degrees, until golden brown. 

While they are baking, make your pesto by combining all the pesto in your food processor. Process until smooth. (You'll need to scrape the sides several times.) 

Also, create your zucchini noodles by taking a vegetable peeler and carefully peeling the zucchini to create ribbons. Also, slice a tomato with a serrated knife into 1/4 inch rounds. Finally, chiffanade some basil for garnish.




To assemble: Place your zucchini ribbons on a plate. Place your veggie burger patty on top. Top with a beet, a slice of tomato, and another beet, seasoning each layer with salt and pepper. Top with 2 Tbsp of pesto and garnish with basil and pine nuts. I also dotted the zucchini noodles with some of the extra pesto as a sauce.




Wow oh wow. What. A. Meal! This was so fun to eat! The veggie burger had a complex flavor from all the different veggies and was complimented by the nutty almond flour. I love when almond flour is baked in the oven - it becomes so toasty and really brings out the nuttiness! 

The beet gave it an earthy sweetness, and the tomato was wonderfully juicy and delicious! But my faaaavorite part was the pesto! It was bright and fresh and really livened up the dish! It created this luxurious sauce for both the burger and the zucchini noodles!




I passed around my plate for everyone to take a bite and they all LOVED it! They said the flavor was delicate and fresh!

This is a repeat meal for sure!

Coming up this week, I'm really excited to do a restaurant review for you guys! I found out about this great SCD/Paleo/Vegan restaurant from this guy at the health food store I shop at. I can't wait to try it out and let you know all about it! 


Want more GFHT?  You can now get my e-cookbook, The Best of GlutenFreeHappyTummy for only $2.99 on Amazon!

18 comments:

  1. That was the most amazing UN-burger Care. Such a creative use of ingredients and beautiful to look at too. Congrats on another winning recipe...and nice alternative to brats!!

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    1. Thanks mom:) appreciate it. I can't wait to try out the paddle boards with you! See you in a short bit! Love u

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  2. What a great looking Veggie Burger with tons of delicious veggies! Your presentation is gorgeous, it looks like such a delicious meal. Definitely perfect for a BBQ :)

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    1. Thank you Sarah! Yeah this was fun to eat for sure! I wasn't about to miss out on BBQ fun:) haha thanks for stopping by! Have a fabulous week!

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  3. I must have forgotten along the way that you can't eat beans. So, what you do here is even more amazing!

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    1. Haha thanks. Yeah no beans or soy either. Kinda crazy but hey it's keeping me in remission! Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy your afternoon!

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  4. Here I thought I had seen it all when it came to veggie burgers, but you've seriously revolutionized the whole concept! Snap peas are an inspired addition, and the almond meal base is so smart. Plus, I never eat mine on a bun, so the simply stacked approach looks absolutely perfect for me.

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    1. Haha thank you so much Hannah! Yeah the snap peas were purely because they were in the fridge and we were leaving in the am!! By they gave it a wonderful sweetness. Thanks for stopping by! Have a super day!

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  5. What beautiful burgers, so healthy and flavoursome :D

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

    P.S I will not be commenting for 4 weeks due to exams - see you afterwards :)

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    1. Thank you so much CCU!! Best of luck on your exams! Glad you stopped by:) have a great night!

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  6. I am hosting a blog carnival this month with a grain-free bars theme. I’m hoping you may want to participate: http://mrsedsresearchandrecipes.blogspot.com/2013/07/go-ahead-honey-its-gluten-free-raising.html

    Tracee

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    1. Hi Tracee! Thanks for the heads up about your recipe carnival! I'll try to check it out if I get a free minute. Thanks for stopping by! Have a great Sunday!

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  7. This looks so good Caralyn! I love how meaty the burger looks with no meat, grains or legumes! Totally awesome! I must try these :)

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    1. Hi Gabby! Thank you so much:) yeah it was hard to believe how hearty these were! I think the almond flour really "beefed" them up. I'm glad you stopped by! I hope you're having a fabulous weekend!

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  8. Wow these look amazing! I can't wait to make them this weekend. I've been vegan for two years and just recently cut out gluten so your blog has been a God send! Keep up the great work :)
    Rachel

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    1. Thank you so much Rachel! Aw that's nice of you to say! Best of luck with your GF journey! It's amazing how good you feel after cutting it out. I'm excited for you:) thanks for stopping by! Have a great day!

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  9. I'm doing (my first) vegetarian Whole 30, and these are the best things I made all week! I substituted broccoli for mushrooms, and put them in a lettuce wrap with pickles, avocado slices, and mustard!
    I made the pesto a seperate night, and used it to baste baked tofu, and it was amazing!
    Thank you!
    Dana
    LilFamily.com

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    1. Oh good! I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Dana! It sounds like a delicious combo you made :D Thanks for your comment! Have a great night!

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Thanks for the comments! They make my day!