At risk of repetition, I’ll say again something I repeat often: I’m not a natural born cook. Four years ago, I had no idea what quinoa was. Six years ago, I couldn’t even boil a pot of water to make pasta (true story). A change came when Alex and I got married and wanted to have others over for dinner. Our first meal was a bit rough, but luckily our guests were gracious! Gradually, we kept learning and exposing ourselves to people who really, truly loved being in the kitchen. It was contagious. A formative moment was when we read a book called Food Matters that challenged us to consider the way we ate. To make a long story short, we made a commitment to start eating all unprocessed, real foods and started this blog to share about it. Keep reading for more about real food, and this veggie quinoa burger recipe! Another great veggie burger? Try our Best Chickpea Burgers.
Eating real food
I say all this to introduce Lisa Leake. A mom of two, she had a similar turning point several years ago when she read Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food,which caused her and her family to take a challenge of eating real food for 100 days. It changed their lives, and she now chronicles all things real food-related on her immensely popular blog, 100 Days of Real Food. There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to healthy eating; one I hear often is that you have to be some kind of naturally-talented kitchen god or goddess who’s been cooking since kindergarten. The good news: not true. I think Lisa would agree when I say we’re just normal, everyday people who heard about a different way of eating and started passionately pursuing it. We’re not the best chefs or amazing gourmet masters; we grew up eating Easy Mac instead of kale. But we’ve come to love eating honest, delicious, real foods.
How to make these quinoa veggie burgers
These quinoa veggie burgers are from Lisa’s new book, 100 Days of Real Food. We’ve struggled with veggie burgers in the past, but these turned out wonderfully. If you’ve never made veggie burgers or fritters before, it takes a little practice pan-frying them, but it’s worth the learning curve. The main idea is to make quinoa, combine it with egg, cheese, and some sauteed veggies, and then form them into patties. Then, pan fry the patties in a bit of oil until they’re lightly browned and crispy! These quinoa burgers turned out moist and flavorful! The burgers keep in the refrigerator, so we ate these quinoa burgers for several days after we made them. Lisa’s book is full of wonderful recipe ideas like this quinoa burgers recipe! 100 Days of Real Food is great for families, with a whole section on school lunches, and has options for meat-eaters and vegetarians alike. Check it out if you’re looking to take a small step, a baby step even, towards real food eating. You won’t be disappointed!
Looking for more vegetarian dinner recipes?
Along with this quinoa burgers recipe, we have tons of vegetarian recipes on our blog, but a few of our all-time favorites are:
Classic Vegetarian ChiliEasy Calzone RecipeJackfruit BBQ SandwichChickpea Couscous Bowls with Tahini SauceGrilled Vegetable Pasta with RomescoVegan Banh Mi SandwichesCozy Farro and Brussels Sprouts SoupThe BEST Grilled Veggie Burger
Looking for more quinoa recipes?
Outside of these quinoa burgers, we have many quinoa recipes on A Couple Cooks! Here are a few of our favorite quinoa recipes:
Veggie Packed Quinoa Fried RiceTropical Mango Quinoa BowlsFeta and Quinoa Stuffed PeppersArtichoke & Quinoa Vegetarian EnchiladasAll our quinoa recipes!
This recipe is…
This quinoa burgers recipe is vegetarian. 2 from 1 review
1 cup uncooked quinoa 2/3 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese ¾ cup minced carrot (2 to 3 carrots) ⅓ cup minced onion 3 garlic cloves 2 eggs ¼ cup whole wheat flour ¾ teaspoon ground cumin ¾ teaspoon kosher salt 3 tablespoons raw sunflower seeds 2 tablespoons olive oil
For serving
Hummus or Special Burger Sauce Sliced avocado Salad greens or lettuce leaves
