Burgers and Fries

This recipe is very forgiving, as you will see. 

For all the health nuts out there, this is a nut burger with sweet potato fries. This dish is mostly vegan (minus the goat cheese I added, and the baking of the fries).

Below's the recipe (courtesy of the New York Times. Who knew?), but in bold I'll let you know what I did.  

NUT BURGERS

1 medium onion
1 cup walnuts, pecans, almonds, cashews or other nuts, preferably raw (I used raw pecans since I had them on hand.)
1 cup (raw) rolled oats or cooked short-grain white or brown rice (I used barley flakes.)
2 tablespoons ketchup, miso, tomato paste, nut butter or tahini
1 teaspoon chili powder or any spice mix you like (Italian seasoning)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg (Ground flax instead)
2 tablespoons peanut oil, extra virgin olive oil or neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn.

1. Grind onion in food processor. Add nuts and oats, and pulse to chop, but not too finely. Add remaining ingredients except oil. Process briefly; don't grind too finely. Add a little liquid — water, stock, soy sauce, wine, whatever — if necessary; mixture should be moist but not loose.
2. Let mixture rest a few minutes, then shape it into 4 burgers. (Burger mixture or shaped burgers can be covered tightly and refrigerated for up to a day. Bring back to room temperature before cooking.) Put oil in nonstick or well-seasoned cast iron skillet and turn to medium. When oil is hot, add burgers to skillet. Cook about 5 minutes, undisturbed, until browned, then turn with spatula. Lower heat a bit and cook 3 or 4 minutes more, until firm. (No cooking since I didn't use egg.)
3. Serve on buns with mustard, ketchup, chutney or other toppings.
Yield: 4 servings.

I built the burger like so: Ezekiel bread slice, avocado, nut burger patty, fresh sliced tomato, sliced red onion, goat cheese, alfalfa sprouts, vegenaise and dijon mustard on top slice of bread. 

MMmm-MMmm! 

And for any of you wondering, yes, that is veganaise on the side to dip my fries into. In my less healthier days, I used to dip french fries in mayo . . .and ice cream.  

I buy the soy-free vegenaise and I seriously can't tell the difference. All natural ingredients and herbs make it taste just like mayo. 

And before anyone thinks I'm finishing this post without offering the sweet potato fries recipe (like I did yesterday), fear not. 

Sweet Potato Fries

• 1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled (2 medium potatoes)
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more, to taste
• Cooking spray

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Cut the potatoes lengthwise into 1/4-inch thick matchsticks, and toss with the oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake until the "fries" are tender and crisp, about 30 minutes.

Season with additional salt, to taste. Serve immediately.

Recipe Credit: Food Network, Kellie Krieger

Some of you might be wondering what's with all the cooking of the potatoes and such. Well, I'm back in transition mode after a less than healthy August, (I gained over 10 lbs in less than two weeks due to higher caloric and sodium intake . . .and margaritas. Nuff said.), and I'm gearing up for another fast in two weeks. So, if you're like me, sometimes you gotta start somewhere, knowing that you're headed to healthier pastures. Plus, on the good/better/best scale, the sweet potato fries fall somewhere in the good to better side in that they are baked. Also, I used himalayan salt (tons of trace minerals) to season, and cooked it for a little less time than this recipe called for, so they were a little crunchy on the inside.

Salud!