Whether you’re working from home or going back to the office, coming up with a new delicious lunch option can be a bother.
We all tend to stick to the same recipes. Or, we might simply choose to order a meal or grab something on the way to work. Sadly, this means we’re no longer in control of our portion sizes and calorie intake, and we’re not exactly eating healthily.
However, you can take a bit of time out of your day to compile a list of easy and affordable recipes that you can have on rotation, prep well in advance, and that are also easy to store in meal prep containers. That way, you can ensure you’ll keep eating healthy and don’t spend too much time worrying about lunch.
This veggie burger is just that kind of meal: nutritious, wholesome, and easy to make in advance. All you’ll have to do is leave your main ingredients to roast or cook, then mix them and fry. With less than 30 minutes of your involvement, you can take care of at least a couple of lunches (or dinners) in one fell swoop.
You can keep your pattie mixture in the fridge and fry them up fresh on the day, or you can have them ready to go and ready to reheat. Then you’ll simply make your burger before you head out or on the spot if you’re eating at home.
The beauty of this recipe is that it can also be combined with fresh salads and extra burger garnishes. Plus, since it’s a burger, it will feel super-indulgent and much less like “a healthy meal.” That certainly makes it that much more delicious and enjoyable.
Try changing the beans around as well. Red or black beans work really well too, or you can even go for chickpeas.
Ingredients
1 small sweet potato, baked
¼ cup dry quinoa
¼ cup dry barley
1 can of beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons parsley
1 ½ teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons flour (whole wheat recommended)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ fresh pepper (red or green)
Optional: 1 teaspoon cayenne or similar pepper
Directions
- Start by preheating your oven to 400°F and bake your sweet potato until soft. Around 45 to 60 minutes should do it.
- While the sweet potato is in the oven, cook the quinoa and the barley in separate pots. This will take between 30 and 60 minutes (a bit longer for the barley). Your goal is to get both of them to soften up nicely, so they can be mashed easily later.
- Remove seeds and stems from your peppers and cut them into quarters, then halve the quarters. Roast in the oven for about 15 minutes after the sweet potatoes are done.
- Cool your sweet potatoes, then add to a food processor together with your beans, parsley, cayenne pepper, cumin, salt, pepper, flour, and a tablespoon of oil. If you don’t have a processor, you can mash by hand using a fork.
- Cool the quinoa and the barley, then mix in with the rest.
- Heat your little bit of oil on a large pan and bring to a medium heat. Make patties out of your mixture and pop them on the pan, then brown on each side.
Serve in a bun of your choice with the roasted peppers.
You can also add some extra veggies on top. Go for tomato slices, lettuce, or even red cabbage. Pickles also go very well. Lastly, you can throw in a slice of cheese on top (vegan or dairy) to turn it into a proper feast.
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