Prep time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 40 minutes

Ingredients (makes 6 5-inch burgers):

• 1 lb extra firm tofu (to make these soy-free, substitute 1 cup white or black beans; both are delicious)
• 1 Cup sweet potato puree (for purple burgers use Stoke’s Purple Sweet Potatoes)
• 1/2 Cup quinoa flakes
• 1/2 Cup diced carrots
• 1/2 Cup dried cranberries
• 6 baby portabella mushrooms, diced
• 4 Stalks of celery, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, diced
• 1-2 Tablespoons grape seed oil
• 1/4 – 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper (depends on personal heat preference. I turned my heat way up on these burgers and they were delicious!)
• Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.  Heat a medium saute pan with your oil on medium-high heat and add your carrots, cranberries, mushrooms, celery, and garlic and saute until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the desired amount of cayenne pepper (I’d start off with a pinch & taste as you go – you can always add more heat) and salt to taste.
2. In your food processor pulse your tofu until it is smooth.  Add the sweet potato puree and pulse until evenly incorporated.  Add in your cooked vegetables and pulse until combined.  Move your mixture to a large mixing bowl and fold in the quinoa flakes. Add salt to taste and adjust any seasonings if necessary.
3. I recommend keeping a small bowl of water next to you when forming your burgers (this way the mixture doesn’t stick to every square inch of your hands!).  Place a piece of parchment paper on your  baking tray.  Use about 1/3 Cup of your mixture and roll between your hands to form a ball.  Place on your baking sheet and flatten to 1/2 inch thick.  Pop them in the oven for 20 minutes, or until golden, and carefully flip over.  Cook for another 20 minutes, or until golden.

4. Enjoy eating whole!

I enjoyed my burgers on toasted gluten-free buns, sliced avocado, alfalfa sprouts, my spicy mayo (recipe below), and a side of my blackened sweet potato fries.

Spicy Mayo Dressing

1 batch of my raw mayonnnaise

1-3 Tablespoons of your favorite hot sauce

Stir to combine!