Many vegans, plant based folks, vegetarians, and the culinarily adventurous enjoy a good old fashioned mushroom veggie burger. I have had my fair share over the years. Some incredibly tasty. Some more or less forgettable.

And so, I thought for a very long time about this burger. Over a year. I knew I wanted to use fresh tarragon. I knew I wanted to use white beans. The rest came together over time. And in the end, it’s a vegan burger with big flavor, very mushroomy, and stays together on the grill! I would strongly urge using fresh tarragon and fresh parsley. It does make a difference in the freshness of the burger and the robust flavor. While you can top this burger with whatever you want, I would highly recommend some Kite Hill Ricotta Cheese, caramelized red onions, and dijon mustard. If you want to get fancy, throw on some microgreens.

When grilling, I use non-stick aluminum foil. It makes a big difference when making veggie burgers. It keeps burgers from sticking to the grill. It keeps burgers from falling through the cracks. It makes flipping burgers a total breeze. And if that’s not enough, it makes clean-up super easy.

This recipe makes 4 large burgers or 6 smaller burgers. You’ll need to adjust how long you grill based on how large you make the burgers. I made 4 large burgers, and grilled them on a gas grill at 450º F for 7 minutes on each side. Adjust as you see necessary, and based on how “charred” you like your burger.

Savory Mushroom Burger

2 Tbsp olive oil (plus more to drizzle)

1 cup red onions, chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

3 cups white mushrooms, chopped into bite-size pieces

4 cups eggplant, chopped into bite-size pieces

3 Tbsp soy sauce

2 cups cooked farro, divided

16 ounce can of white beans, drained and rinsed

⅓ cup fresh parsley, chopped

3 Tbsp fresh tarragon leaves

1 tsp dijon mustard

1 tsp lemon zest

½ tsp garlic powder

⅓-½ cup flax seed meal

Optional toppings:

Kite Hill Ricotta Cheese

Caramelized red onions

Dijon mustard

Microgreens

1. In a large skillet, add 2 Tbsp olive oil, onion, garlic and a dash of salt. Sauté over medium heat for 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, eggplant, and soy sauce. Sauté for 10-15 minutes over medium, stirring constantly. You want to evaporate the soy sauce, and “sweat out” as much water as possible from the mushrooms and eggplant.

2. Add 1 cup farro, 1 cup white beans, ½ of the mushroom-eggplant sauté, ¼ cup parsley, 2 Tbsp fresh tarragon, dijon, lemon zest and garlic powder to a blender. Blend until it’s mostly smooth (it doesn’t want to be a “smoothie”, so some bits and pieces are good!). Spoon the contents of the blender into a large mixing bowl.

3. Add the remaining whole cooked farro, white beans, mushroom/eggplant sauté, parsley and tarragon to the large mixing bowl. Add the flax seed meal. Combine with a wooden spoon or spatula. Allow it to sit in the fridge for ~15 minutes (this will allow the flax seed meal to congeal a bit). If it still feels too wet to you, add more flax seed meal, and then, wait a bit.

4. For this recipe, I made 4 large burgers out of the mixture, and thus, the times below are for making 4 burgers. If you make more than 4 burgers (6-8), the burgers will take less time to cook on each side. In addition, everyone has a different version of how “charred” they like their burger. Adjust accordingly for size and desired level of “char”.

TO GRILL: Line a gas grill with a large piece of non-stick aluminum foil. Shape 4 large burgers out of the burger mixture, and brush with olive oil. I used a gas grill at 450º F, and grilled for 7 minutes on each side.

TO PAN FRY: Add 1-2 Tbsp olive oil to a large skillet, and warm over medium heat. Shape 4 burgers out of the burger mixture. Fry over medium-low heat and allow to cook for ~7 minutes on each side.

TO BAKE: Preheat the oven to 450º F. Line a large cookie sheet with non-stick aluminum foil. Shape 4 burgers out of the burger mix, and brush them with olive oil. Place the burgers on the non-stick aluminum foil. When the oven reaches 450º F, bake for 7 minutes, then remove the cookie sheet, flip each burger, and . return it to the oven. Bake for another 7 minutes.

5. Allow to cool for ~3 minutes before serving. The burgers will set-up even more. 3 minutes is just enough time to properly dress a bun, anyway 🙂 Top with Kite Hill Ricotta Cheese, caramelized red onions, dijon, and micro-greens, or with your favorite burger toppings!

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