By: Wes Simons | June 22 2010
Posted in Seattle - Cook It - Seattle

I like to think that Seattle is a progressive city. After all, we pioneered having a coffee shop on every corner so that you can get your caffeine fix without having to cross the street. In addition to coffee, Seattlites also love their vegetables. In support of this movement, I’m going to cast off my meat-covered hat and don a newer, cleaner, vegetarian hat, at least for the rest of the day.

Photo: Wes Simons

Wouldn’t you know it, the day I decide to veg it up is also the day that I scheduled a family barbecue. In an effort not to stray too far from the norm, and to please all of my guests, I opted to make my own veggie burgers in lieu of having meat.

Beer Notes for BBQ

For a vegetable-based barbecue, I suggest a trying a more robust beer with a strong flavor. The potatoes that I cooked up and the feta on the burger made for a salty meal, and while any beer would go well with this, I suggest pairing it with a nice stout to offset the saltiness of the entree. Dragonstooth Stout from Elysian Brewing is a great choice and one of my favorites. If the weather outside is a little warmer, Red Chair Pale Ale from Deschutes Brewery has great hop flavor an easy-drinking, lighter-bodied beer.

I thought that the process would be complicated, but it doesn’t require more than some decent forearm strength.

My Veggie Burger Recipe:

• 2 cans of Garbanzo Beans
• 1 can of Black Beans (you can use whatever beans you like)
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups (or so) of cooked brown rice
• 1 red pepper, seeded and diced
• ½ large onion, diced
• Olive oil
• Salt and seasonings to taste

Mash the beans until they form a paste and then add the eggs, cooked rice, pepper, onions, olive oil and seasoning. My burgers came out a little runny (pre-cooked) so I would recommend more binding agent (plenty of beans for everything to stick to). It is a good idea to mix the ingredients ahead of time and let them chill in the fridge.

Fry your burgers in olive oil, or grill them on an olive-oiled piece of foil.

Accessorize

A burger, meat or otherwise, is nothing without some good accessories. I adorned mine with pesto, spinach, cooked peppers and onions, feta cheese and artichokes. We also added homemade Yukon Gold potato fries to complete the meal.

Almost as important as what you put on your burger is what you put your burger on. I wanted my burgers to be good and healthy so I went with Oroweat Sandwich Thins. These make a great burger bun because they're strong enough to hold everything together, and you get more than just a mouthful of bread with each bite. They are usually about the same price as regular buns, but you get twice as many in a pack. More veggie burger bang for your buck!

Which brand of veggie burger is your favorite? (Feel free to vote for mine!)

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