Category: Food

Hi guys! Hope you all are having a great day. Today I have a yummy and very easy recipe to share. Lentil burgers! 🙂

They are one of my favourite things to cook! First, because they are so easy to make and second because I can always cut up some potatoes, season them well, bake them until golden brown and I get to eat burgers and fries, ha!

This recipe is 100% oil and flour-free and super healthy for you. Lentils are an amazing source of protein. They boost your energy, decrease your risk for heart disease, regulate blood sugar levels, and they are very cheap!

Now, I am not into exact measurements (because I eyeball everything I cook) so I will describe generally the ingredients I use and how I prepare them so you can get an idea. I am confident you will not have any issues. You can add your own favourite seasonings.

Let’s start! 😀

Ingredients:

Lentils.

Oat flour (just add regular oats to your food processor or blender) and just process them for a few minutes until they look like flour).

Finely chopped onion.

Chopped pimento peppers (finely too).

Bell peppers. (also chopped small)

Salt.

Black pepper.

Red chili flakes or cayenne pepper (optional if you are not into hot/spicy food).

Flax seeds (optional).

BBQ sauce (optional).

Homemade Ketchup (optional).

Mustard (optional).

Water.

PREPARATION

The first thing you need to do is rinse your lentils and clean them well. I usually buy it in a pack and I ALWAYS find a pebble or two, so this process is very important. Always ensure to clean them well.

The quantity depends on how many burgers you’re making. If it is just for yourself and it is your first time making them, just take a handful of dry lentils. After cleaning them well, add some water to cover them completely and let them cook. You want the lentils to be extremely soft (so don’t be afraid to let them cook for a long while if necessary).

After they are done, rinse them completely and place the cooked lentils in a bowl. Take a masher (the one you use for mashed potatoes) and start mashing them. You just want some of the lentils to be mushy but at the same time you don’t want all of them to be that way, you still want the great texture of those lentils. So just mash them a little bit.

Then, add the finely chopped onion, pimento, bell peppers , season with salt and black pepper, red pepper chili flakes or cayenne pepper (if you like things very spicy, optional) and a little bit of flax seeds (a couple of tablespoons)(optional). Mix everything thoroughly.

Add a little bit of BBQ sauce, a little homemade ketchup and a bit of mustard. Mix everything well. You want the mixture to be wet and well-seasoned, not dry so taste and adjust according to that.

Using your hands, try to mix everything to ensure all the lentils have all the seasonings, onions, etc.

Now take your oat flour and add it to the lentil mixture a bit at the time and mix everything with your hand. The oat flour is your binding agent since this is a Vegan burger you will not be using any eggs. So the amount of oat flour depends on how much lentils you have.

The key is to put a little bit at the time and mix with your hands. You know you put enough, when you can actually make a ball with the lentil mixture without the mixture falling apart.

Take a non-stick pan and let it heat for a few minutes on medium heat. Shape the patties with your hands very carefully, the thickish the better and do not disturb them at all for a few minutes while they are cooking or they will fall apart.

Make sure the heat is on medium-low. If you feel the pan is drying them a lot and they might stick, just sprinkle a couple of teaspoons of water in the pan.

If you observe that the edges are getting very brown, take a spatula and very carefully peek to see if they are getting nice and crusty. That’s what you want! You see, a good crust on a lentil burger is KEY for the success of the recipe and flavour!

Once you see that it formed a super nice crust, very carefully turn them over. If you have issues, just try to cook one or two at the same time instead of trying to be a hero. Lol

Now, some people like their lentil burgers thick…I rather them very thin and crispy because I do not like the sensation of the soft lentils inside.

So this is what I do: When I flip them, I take the spatula and very carefully (on the crispy side and while they are cooking) I flat them out until they are as thin as I want them to be.

Let them cook undisturbed until they are super brown and flip them over several times until they reach the colour and consistency I want.

And that’s about it! 🙂

Hope you enjoy the recipe of today and please do not forget to follow me on Instagram, Twitter and subscribe to my YouTube channel (help me reach 100 subscribers!).

Happy eating. 😉

Today I have for you a very simple and yet very delicious Vegan Double Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe. Now, I decided to call it “once in a blue moon” because as the name indicates… it can and SHOULD be eaten once in a blue moon!  So please take it easy.

You can check my YouTube channel if you would like to see how I made them.

Shall we start?

Ingredients:

1 cup of all-purpose flour

½ cup of margarine or Vegan spread

2/3 cup of cocoa powder

1 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of baking soda

A pinch of salt

1 tablespoon of any plant-based milk

Dairy-free chocolate chips

Sesame seeds (optional)

Preparation:

Pre-heat your oven to 350F.

Using a regular mixer or a hand-mixer, cream the spread and the sugar until well combined.

Little by little add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix well.

Add the cocoa powder and sugar and continue mixing.

Add the milk and then using your clean hands; mix everything like if you are shaping soft dough. Make sure everything is well combined. You can use your mixer to do this but I find using your hands can give you a better feeling of the dough.

Add the chocolate chips and make sure they are well combined into the cookie dough.

Take pieces of dough and shape them into medium-size balls. Place them on a greased baking sheet.

Using your palm, flatten the cookies slightly. At this point you can add your sesame seeds if you wish.

Bake at 350F (pre-heated) oven for 10 minutes. Make sure you do not overcook them.

Let it rest for 5 minutes before removing them from the baking sheet.

Hope you enjoy this recipe my friends!

Remember, you can follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe to my YouTube channel for more Vegan ideas.

Happy eating! 🙂

If you are in a lighthearted mood and you want to confuse your neighbours (those who know you’re Vegan) grill some vegetables and let the aroma reach their windows! Hahahaha seriously!

The smell of grilled vegetables is very similar to grilled meat so I am sure they will start questioning if you’re a Vegan for real.

WHY YOU SHOULD GET A GRILL

I have a very small indoor grill that I bought many years ago that I use to grill my veggies. As a Vegan, of course I consume a lot of fresh vegetables (raw mostly but also cooked). I like to eat them in different ways (so I don’t get bored) and grilling them is one of my favourite methods.

First, because it is so easy and yet so tasty that it literally takes very little time to prepare and cook. There is something about the charcoal marks it leaves printed on the veggies that I absolutely adore! You also don’t have to worry about making outdoor grill preparations if you have one of these  little bad boys at home. They are small and very handy. You can also use one of these to grill tortillas if you’re making flour/corn tacos.

Today, I used it to grill sweet peppers, eggplants, cucumbers and tomatoes.  But you can grill any veggie you enjoy eating. You can grill onions, corn on the cob, zucchini, potatoes, sweet potatoes and even squash.  The options are endless.

HOW I GRILL SWEET PEPPERS & CUCUMBERS

Speedy-Gonzalez’s style, I like simple foods with little preparation.  I started by spraying my grill with a little bit of cooking spray so the veggies do not stick on my grill. Then I placed the grill on medium high so it starts to get hot. At the mean time, I prepared my sweet peppers by removing all the insides and flatten the peppers really well so they can rest comfortably on the grill.

Then I just sprinkled a little salt and a little pepper and let it cook really well. You can take a peek to see how well they are cooking, you want to see those charcoal marks well printed before you turn them to the other side.  When you do, sprinkle salt and pepper on the other side and let it cook until you see the marks again.

After they were done, I cut a cucumber in thick slices as well (I did not remove any seeds since a lot of the vitamins and nutrients are in those seeds) and just grilled them. Then, I added a little salt, turned them over when they had a nice charcoal colour and cooked the other side. They looked beautiful!

EGGPLANTS AND TOMATOES

It was now the turn of the eggplant. I peeled the skin off completely and ahead of time, I cut them in thick slices and sprinkled a little salt and let it rest for about 10 minutes so it can remove the bitterness of the eggplant.

Then I rinsed it thoroughly with water, dried them well and added my favorite seasonings: Oregano, cayenne pepper and paprika. Mixed all the seasonings well and added them to my hot grill. Make sure those slices are thick because it will cook quite fast and you don’t want the eggplant to stick on your grill.

Finally, I did the same method with the tomatoes. You have to be careful, try to use very firm tomatoes and let those slices be thick. They cook very fast.

The aroma of grilled veggies is absolutely wonderful!  If you’re entertaining, use skewers for a nice visual plate. I cooked mine to top a gorgeous linguini Vegan Alfredo and let me tell you, I had to restrain myself to go for seconds! Hahaha.

Enjoy!