Lentil Burgers/Patties

My sister Melissa turned me on to this food blog (by a fellow San Franciscan foodie) called 101 Cookbooks. It is absolutely fantastic with healthful, interesting recipes. I ran into this recipe for Lentil Burgers and decided to try them out. In this recipe, the lentil burgers are actually used instead of bread--sort of an inside-out burger. We stuffed them with lettuce, tomato, avocado, and cilantro yogurt. They were so delicious; even Adam, who is a bit skeptical of lentils, absolutely loved them. As a side, we had a Grapefruit, Red Onion, and Spinach salad, whose freshness paired perfectly with the heartiness of the lentils. (Sharon: here's another way to use your lentils!) Enjoy!

Vegetarian Lentil Burgers (www.101cookbooks.com)

The recipe calls to cut the burgers in half, but we just used two patties to make our burgers rather than going through the hassle of cutting them. Also, we used brown lentils instead of the black lentils. Perhaps ours were a bit mushier than they would have been using black lentils, but the flavor was quite delicious. A fork and knife are necessary to eat them though.

3 cups cooked black lentils
4 large eggs
1/2 tsp. fine-grain sea salt
1 onion, finely chopped
1 cup toasted fine (whole-wheat) bread crumbs
1 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil (or clarified butter)

1. Combine the lentils, eggs, and salt in a food processor. Puree until the mixture is the consistency of a runny yet textured hummus - it's o.k. if many of the lentils remain whole (see photo). Pour into a mixing bowl and stir in the onion. Add the breadcrumbs, stir, and let sit for a couple of minutes so the crumbs can absorb some of the moisture. At this point, you should have a very moist mixture that you can easily form into twelve 1 1/2-inch-thick patties. I err on the moist side here, because it makes for a nicely textured burger. You can always add more bread crumbs a bit at a time to firm up the dough if need be. Conversely, a bit of water or more egg can be used to moisten the batter.
2. Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium low, add 4 patties, cover, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the bottoms begin to brown. Turn up the heat if there is no browning after 10 minutes. Flip the patties and cook the second side for 7 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the skillet and cool on a wire rack while you cook the remaining patties. Carefully cut each patty in half, insert your favorite fillings, and enjoy immediately.


Cilantro Yogurt

The cilantro yogurt was essential to these burgers. In the blog, it suggests using saffron yogurt, but since we didn't have any saffron, we decided to try out a cilantro version. I suggest using a non-fat Greek yogurt because it is thick, creamy, and extra delicious. Greek yogurt also has a high protein content, which is especially important for us vegetarians. We mixed the yogurt with frozen cilantro cubes from Trader Joe's. They sell little cubes of herbs that are frozen and can be popped out in small portions for your convenience. They don't have as much flavor as fresh cilantro, but they work well for us because we always have them on hand and we don't waste large amounts of fresh cilantro. Be creative with the yogurt; I'm sure there are many combinations that would go wonderfully with the burgers.

Grapefruit, Red Onion, and Spinach Salad

This salad is so refreshing and easy. It's perfect for an exciting lunch or dinner side dish.

1 grapefruit, peeled and sectioned
2 sliced red onion, diced
2 cups spinach
olive oil
salt and pepper

1. Plate the spinach and top with the grapefruit sections and red onion. Drizzle with olive oil and top with salt and pepper to taste.