Saturday night we were scrounging through the fridge and cabinets looking for something to eat for dinner. It never ceases to amaze me that we can have a house full of food – yet nothing to eat. Astonishing in fact!

Then I remembered I was oggling Heidi Swanson’s Ultimate Veggie Burger recipe from 101 Cookbooks last week. It really is a clever idea! She makes veggie patties then uses them as the bun. You simply cut the patty in half and stuff it with goodies. I modified her recipe a bit then we stuffed ours with bacon (obviously not very veggie!), cheese (for me), lettuce, avocado, and a sprinkling of paprika.

They were quite tasty and even won Brad over! These patties are easy to make and would be perfect atop a salad, in a tortilla, or just as a snack. I added tofu to mine in lieu of half the garbanzo beans, and used leeks since I have a fridge literally full of leeks right now. You can make them smaller if you wanted to do an appetizer tray of them. Yum!

Ingredients:

• 1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 block of tofu
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/3 c chopped fresh parsley
• 2-4 small leeks, chopped
• Grated zest of one large lemon
• 1 c whole-grain bread crumbs
• 1 T extra-virgin olive oil

1. In a food processor combine the garbanzo beans, tofu, eggs, and salt until a thick paste (similar to a thick hummus) forms.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the paste, parsley, leeks, lemon zest, and bread crumbs. Let sit for a few minutes so the bread crumbs can absorb some liquid.
3. Heat a pan over medium and add some oil. Form 4 patties and place them directly into the pan. Cook on each side approximately 7 minutes until nicely browned. If they are getting too dark or not dark enough modify the heat accordingly. Continue working in batches of 4 on the stove until you have 12 patties.
4. Cut the patties in half carefull, sprinkle with spices and/or just load them up with goodies and enjoy!

We particularly enjoyed the bacon & avocado on them (but we are not vegetarians). Sprouts would have been delicious but we didn’t have any this week.