Delicious, hearty, healthy and full of flavor! My Mushroom And Jalapeno Burgers won’t disappoint.

People either love or hate veggie burgers. Those who hate them seem to think that burgers should be made only with meat: beef, pork, turkey or combination. Maybe they had a bad experience when they decided to give a veggie burger a try and happened to try the not-so-healthy version often found in the freezer section. Some of these fake patties are pretty gross! People who love them, well, they just do. Maybe they don’t eat meat or maybe they like the different flavors that vegetables have. I’m not a vegetarian and I simply love these burgers. If you never had a mushroom burger before, give it a try. Don’t expect it to taste at all like a meat patty, don’t compare it with your favorite beef burger. Keep your mind and those taste buds open to new flavors!

My Mushroom And Jalapeno Burgers are very flavorful. If you read my post Mushroom And Asparagus Pasta, you know that mushrooms give us the umami flavor ( “delicious” in Japanese). Jalapeno pepper provides a nice amount of heat and I’m sneaking in some zucchini, celery and fresh dill for more flavor.

For this recipe you can use portobello mushrooms, brown or white crimini mushrooms, or combination of any of these. If using portobello mushrooms, after giving them a quick rinse, you need to halve them, remove the stem and clean the gills. Simply, gently scrape the gills off with a spoon and discard. Cut the caps into bigger chunks. With smaller mushrooms, just wash them, trim the ends and halve the caps. Place the mushrooms into a food processor.

Next, cut the zucchini into chunks. Here, I’m using about 6 mini ones called courgettes but you can use just 2 regular small zucchinis. Place the chunks into food processor. Halve and seed the jalapeno pepper. Of course, if you like food to be really spicy use the seeds, too. Chop 1 celery stalk and lots of fresh dill. Parsley or your favorite herb will work fine, too. Add all the veggies into your machine!

Process everything for about 1 minute or so until the vegetables are finely chopped.

When the mixture resembles the one on the picture above, transfer it to a mixing bowl. Heat up a small skillet, add 1 tablespoon of coconut oil and 1 finely chopped onion. Cook for a few minutes and add minced garlic. Cook for another minute, then add to the vegetables.

Next, add ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, salt, dried oregano and bread crumbs. Stir everything together. Form the patties and bake for 25-30 minutes.

Let them cool down slightly before serving. I like to eat them wrapped into lettuce leaves with the usual fixings. Recently, I tried them with Sriracha mayo, onion and avocado and I loved them!

Makes: 6 burgers         Prep time: 15 minutes        Bake time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 large portobello mushrooms, cleaned, gills removed, quartered
• 6 mini zucchinis or 2 regular ones, cut into chunks
• 1 celery stalk, cut into chunks
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1/3 cup fresh dill, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped ( about 1 cup)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 tablespoon ketchup
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups bread crumbs

To serve: add buns, lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado, ketchup, Sriracha mayonnaise.

Directions:

1. Wash or wipe the mushrooms clean. If using portobellos: halve them, remove and discard stems and gills. Cut into bigger chunks. If using criminis: trim the stems, halve the caps.
2. Roughly chop zucchini, celery stalk and dill. Seed and chop the jalapeno pepper.
3. Place the chopped vegetables into a food processor and process them until finely chopped, about 1 minute. Transfer into a bowl.
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
5. Finely chop the onion. Heat a small skillet, add the coconut oil, then chopped onion. Cook for a few minutes until translucent. Add minced garlic and cook another minute.
6. Mix the vegetables with cooked onion and garlic. Add ketchup, salt, oregano, Worcestershire sauce and bread crumbs. Stir well. You might add more bread crumbs if the mixture seems too loose. Adjust the seasonings to taste.
7. Form patties.
8.  Bake 25-30 minutes until the are cooked through.

Enjoy!