Green Garden Burgers (vegan, gluten free, oil free)
Apr 30, 2020 • Updated Jun 20, 2023
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Healthy Homemade Green Garden Burgers!
Try these Green Garden Burgers on top of salad, in sandwiches, on their own or, you know, as a burger! They’re delicious, vegetable forward patties that are easy to make with simple, at home ingredients like beans, quinoa and spinach. Most of the ingredients needed to make these burgers are shelf stable or pantry friendly, so I love to make these when I run out of fresh produce, but still want something nourishing.
They’ve got a wonderful texture, tons of flavour, and are packed with greens you can’t even taste. The best part is, it’s pretty modifiable, so you can use what you have on hand if you need to substitute (more on that below). Personally, I’m a big fan of veggie burgers versus faux-vegan-meat burgers, but don’t worry–these still hit the spot!
Oh and one more thing! You can make these burger patties without a blender or food processor. All we’re going to be doing is squishing things and mashing things which equals less clean up and no appliances needed. This recipe is vegan, gluten free, oil free, refined sugar free and nut free.
what’s in these Green Garden Burgers?
- White beans → The base of our burger that adds protein, fiber and texture. Most beans will work and you can use canned beans to save you some time as well.
- Cooked quinoa → Freshly cooked works best, as it can be a little harder to hold together once cold. White or tri-color will both work!
- Spinach (fresh or frozen) → Either will work, and this is what makes our garden burgers green! You can also use kale, chard, or other green of choice.
- Roasted garlic → I love to use roasted garlic specifically for flavour, but you can also pan sauté until aromatic. This is a must!
- Caramelized shallot or onion → Talk about flavour town! Caramelized shallots, or onions and garlic are my ultimate go to for delicious, deep flavour.
- Gluten free flour (just a touch) → I’ve made these burgers a total of 4 times now, and you can use chickpea flour, oat flour, or brown rice flour. Most flours will work, and you only need a few tablespoons to help bind!
- Flax “egg” → The “glue’ to our burger patties, and it adds a nice boost of omega-3 fatty acids, too.
- Gluten free soy sauce → For depth of flavour and umami. I recommend not skipping this and if you need an alternative, try liquid aminos or coconut aminos.
- Spices → The finishing touch! You can use the recommended spics I recommend or add your favourites to the mix.
secrets to success
To prepare the burgers, you can either pan fry them, bake them in the oven or even grill them. I’ve included how-to’s for each preparation method in the recipe card below. To serve, take your pick of burger bun, sandwich bread, pita, salad, wrap or solo. Totally up to you! Don’t forget your condiments if you like. P.S. I highly recommend slathering on some of my Goes-With-Everything Green Sauce.
if you like this recipe, try…
- Miso Mushroom Burger
- Tempeh Tenders
- Goes With Everything Green Sauce
- Mushroom Tempeh Bolognese
- Mushroom Shii-Tacos
- Tofu Chicken Noodle Soup
If you try this recipe out, tag me on Instagram @veggiekins so I can see your delicious re-creations and for a chance to be featured! As always, I love when you share your reviews in the comments below, and if you make any fun substitutions, let me know how it worked out below too!
Green Garden Burgers (vegan, gluten free, oil free)
Ingredients
- 1 large shallot thinly sliced or minced
- 5 small cloves garlic minced (preferably roasted)
- 2 cups frozen chopped spinach
- 1 heaping cup cooked white beans any soft bean like great northern, pinto, navy or even black eyed pea will work
- 1/2 cup dry quinoa cooked (I like to cook with veggie broth instead of water for added flavour)
- 1 flax egg 1 tbsp ground flax meal + 3 tbsp water, can sub ground chia seeds
- 1 tbsp gluten free soy sauce or liquid aminos, more to taste
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 2-3 tbsp gluten free flour as needed (can use oat, brown rice, quinoa, chickpea)
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- First, in a small pan over medium high heat, cook shallot until caramelized and fragrant, then add garlic, and frozen spinach until spinach is soft. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Next, in a large mixing bowl, mash beans using a fork, until mostly smooth (some chunks are ok to leave for texture!).
- To the bowl, add spinach mixture, cooked quinoa, flax egg, soy sauce, and spices and stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste, and any additional spices of choice. Finally, add gluten free flour by the tablespoon as needed, until the mixture is workable with your hands.
- Using your hands, form burger patties, making sure to tightly pack mixture. If it falls apart, go back and add flour first. Place formed patties on a nonstick baking mat.
- To serve, you can either bake, grill or pan-fry. To bake, set oven to 400F and bake on each side for 10 minutes on a nonstick baking mat. To grill, place on foil and grill each side for 5-8 minutes or until desired result is achieved. Finally, to pan-fry, cook each side for 5-6 minutes or until a slight golden crust is achieved (use oil or use a good quality nonstick pan).
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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