Lunch Is Served: Rockstar Veggie Burgers

These cauliflower-sweet potato burgers are loaded with digestion-boosting herbs and spices. Plus they pack in a tonne of veggies.

I’ve been on the hunt for a good homemade veggie burger recipe for years. I shared a black bean burger variation in my first book, but I wanted to come up with a bean-free option, since legumes can be difficult for a lot of people to digest. Serve them on a burger bun of choice, atop a salad, or on a Good Gut Rule of Five bowl.

Makes 6 burgers

Ingredients

For the quick-pickled onions
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
180ml red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar

For the burgers
coconut or avocado oil spray, if needed
1 head cauliflower, cored and chopped
4 small sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp coconut oil, melted
½ tsp sea salt, plus more as needed
freshly ground black pepper
15g fresh cilantro, finely chopped
½ tsp ground cumin
juice of ½ lime
½ tsp chilli powder
½ tsp garlic powder
smashed avocado, for topping

Method
Cover the onion with the vinegar and let sit for at least 15 minutes, then drain. Preheat the oven to 220ºC/gas mark 8. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or spray with coconut or avocado oil spray. In a large bowl, toss the cauliflower, sweet potatoes, and coconut oil to coat, then transfer to the baking sheet, season with the salt and pepper, and roast until golden brown. Let cool slightly. Transfer the roasted cauliflower and sweet potatoes to a food processor and pulse until mostly smooth (or transfer to a bowl and mash with a fork). Transfer to a bowl (if necessary) and add the cilantro, cumin, lime juice, chilli powder, and garlic powder. Mix to incorporate. Form the mixture into patties about 1¼cm thick and place them on the baking sheet you used for the vegetables.

Bake for 30 minutes, flipping the burgers once halfway through. You may need to use two spatulas when flipping these, as they can be delicate. Top burgers with smashed avocado and some quick-pickled onions.

Extracted from Reset Your Gut by Robyn Youkilis (Kyle Books, approx €20). Photography by Ellen Silverman.