Quinoa Burgers with Tzatziki Sauce

These were fun.  I saw a beautiful picture and recipe of a quinoa burger in another place I like to share recipes.

Love That Quinoa Burger from a blog called Eating Well... Living Thin~er

I gave it a try, but veganized the recipe.  They're lovely burgers, very flavorful, and easy to make.  I had some butternut squash left to use from the live nachos, so I sliced it up and put it on the grill next to the burgers. I heard the flour is very important to keep them together as patties.  I used some Cassava flour, mostly because I have some.  It not only made for gluten free burgers, I thought the cassava flour would be more moist than wheat flour and form a nice patty.

Quinoa Burgers ~ Vegan Style

2 cups cooked quinoa
3/4 cup Daiya cheddar cheese
1/2 cup firm tofu, crumbled
1 medium zucchini, grated and squeezed a bit to get most the liquid out, about 1 cup
     grated carrot is nice instead of zucchini also
3 teaspoons Enr-G egg replacer, whisked with 4 1/2 tablespoons filtered water
3 tablespoons all purpose flour, I used Cassava flour
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/2 teaspoon ground stevia leaves, agave or other sweetener will work well too, this is optional
1 tablespoon tamari
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder, I used ground garlic scapes I dried last summer

In a large bowl combine the cooked quinoa, Daiya cheese, tofu, zucchini or carrots, egg replacer, flour, green onions, sweetener, if using, pepper, cumin, sea salt, and garlic powder.

Heat a grill or large frying pan and a couple teaspoons of olive oil over a medium heat.  Mixture will be slightly sticky.  I used a three ounce scoop and dropped the mixture onto the hot pan and lightly flattened to about 1/2 inch thick.  After they seared just a minute or two, I turned the pan down to medium low and let them cook slowly about eight minutes each side.

I served them with some vegan tzatziki sauce, grilled butternut squash, and a cucumber, red onion, and bell pepper salad.

Tzatziki Sauce

1 cup unsweetened vegan yogurt
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 teaspoons fresh chopped mint
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons olive oil
½ cup peeled, grated cucumber, patted dry

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients.  Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.