Thank you Village Harvest for sponsoring this post. Every day Village Harvest is planting seeds of change and growing possibilities, one bag of goodness at a time.

Pin Protein Powerhouse Veggie Burger for later!

Rice, lentils and quinoa.. in burger form?

Yep, we are going rogue and straight up defying the traditional meat-based burger category.

As much as I love a good beefy burger from time to time, today we are talking about these protein powerhouses that are actually meat free.

I know, sneak -ayy.

The breakdown is that they are made from a base of brown jasmine rice, lentils, quinoa, sweet potato, almond flour, egg and oats. They don't require hours of prep. It's just simple, straight forward, SUPER delightful plant-based power in the form of a burger patty.

Craziest part of the whole situation, my meat and potato loving husband can't get enough of them.

If you have read this blog for any amount of time, you know that if there is a time-saving trick or tip for making a recipe come together faster... I'm your girl. I like to think of myself as an expert in the area of "efficient laziness."

Here's the deal:

I used Village Harvest's Organic Protein Blend (a mix of brown jasmine rice, lentils and quinoa) to amp up the protein count without having to cook 3 separate grains in 3 separate pans (aka.. I hate dirty dishes).
I skipped on the veggie grating. It's time-consuming, knuckle endangering and to put it bluntly... I don't have the time or energy. Instead, I roasted the veggies and then let the food processor do the work.

Obviously stocking a million different types of grains so that you can make protein-packed recipes like these veggie burgers could get expensive (and take up a lot of room in your pantry) which is why I highly recommend stocking up with these high quality, high taste blends from Village Harvest. Each blend offers you a distinctive combination of healthful goodness. Choose from Organic Antioxidant Blend, Organic Ancient Grain Blend or Organic Protein Blend (my fav).

Added bonus.. Village Harvest is about more than just rice blends, they are about discovering new possibilities at home in the kitchen, or thousands of miles away in the fields. They have pledged 1% of their profits to run programs that give back to the farmers and local communities from which they source products. They have also pledged to donate 1% of their employees' time to charitable causes and sustainability efforts. I like knowing that my purchases are helping support sustainability.

If you aren't able to find Village Harvest Products at your local store, complete a product request form by clicking here. You can also shop online!

Time Saving Tips and Tricks

Prep: To get a head start on this recipe, you can roast your veggies in advance. Store in refrigerator for up to 3 days. The Village Harvest Organic Protein Blend can also be prepared in advance and stored in the fridge.

Make Ahead: Protein Powerhouse Veggie Burgers can be made a day in advance and stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container or zipper bag. Allow to come to room temperature prior to baking.

Freezer: Definite yes. To freeze, follow recipe directions, but do not bake burgers. Once patties are formed, arrange them in a single layer on a baking sheet and pop them into the freezer for 2-3 hours (or until completely frozen). Wrap individual burgers in freezer paper and store in an airtight freezer safe container or zipper bag.

Protein Powerhouse Veggie Burger

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews

Yield: 8 Burgers 1x

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Scale

1 cup Village Harvest Organic Protein Blend (uncooked)
1 TBS olive oil
½ red onion, chopped
½ cup sweet potato, chopped
1 egg (use flax egg for vegan)
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
⅓ cup walnuts
⅓ cup parsley
2 TBS sofrito (tomato paste can be subbed)
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
¼ cup almond flour
⅓ cup old fashioned rolled oats

Instructions

Heat oven to 425 degrees and cover two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Prepare Village Harvest Organic Protein Blend according to package directions. Set aside.
Place sweet potatoes and onion on individual baking sheets. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss to ensure all veggies are coated. Make sure veggies are arranegd into a single layer.
Bake sweet potatoes for 22-27 minutes (or until tender) and onions for 17-22 minutes (or until tender).
Remove from oven and set aside. Change oven temperature to 350 (if making burgers immediately).
To the bowl of a food processor; add roasted potatoes, roasted onions, egg, garlic, walnuts, parsley, sofrito, salt and pepper. Pulse to combine.
Pour processed mixture into a large mixing bowl. Add Village Harvest Protein Blend, almond flour and rolled oats. Use a wooden spoons (or hands) to combine.
Form the mixture into 8 patties (I made each burger ½ cup). Make sure that burgers are sized evenly. Bake Protein Powerhouse Veggie Burgers for 15 minutes, remove from oven and flip. Then, return to oven for an additional 10-15 minutes.
Serve on salads, in a whole-wheat tortilla or on a bun with your favorite toppings (I like guacamole, tomato and red onion).

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 Burger

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