I’m super excited to share this recipe with y’all because I love burgers. I’m the girl who will go to a 5-Star restaurant and order a burger and fries. I’m serious. I can’t explain it, but I just like the satisfaction of biting into these huge, beefy sandwiches. As we all know, eating burgers all day, every day, is not the healthiest and would definitely not help me reach my weight-loss goals.

Yep, that’s right, the hubs and I are still going strong on our weight-loss journey. Since we’ve adapted a much healthier lifestyle, I like to make food that my whole family can enjoy. I never want to make separate food for us and the kids. In my opinion, this sets a negative tone toward healthier food, and I always want to be sure that my kids keep an open mind about all different types of food.

During the week, I like to switch up our meals. Some days we will eat vegetarian meals, or Asian-inspired cuisines or even vegan meals. Whenever I create a vegan recipe, I have to make sure that it’s good. My husband and kids will try different kinds of food, but they truly enjoy those familiar dishes like hamburgers, pizza and mac & cheese. As a way to ease them into trying new things, I often add my healthy spin on those familiar dishes. This is how the Completely Vegan Lentil Burger was born.

I tried and tested several veggie burger recipes. I knew that I wanted to keep this recipe totally vegan, so I wanted to experiment with different binders that didn’t include eggs, and I wanted to keep the recipe simple and delicious. I felt like I was asking for too much, but I finally stumbled upon the perfect recipe. I must say that this is seriously the best vegan burger you will ever eat.

I always like to provide the opinions of my husband and kids because they are some super-tough critics. If they don’t like something, they will tell me, instantly. My husband loved this Completely Vegan Lentil Burger and actually said he preferred it over the traditional kind. And my kids loved them, too, mainly my 1-year-old. He kept saying, “more, more!” I guess you can say this was a winner.

Completely Vegan Lentil Burgers. (Andrea Mathis / Beautiful Eats & Things)

Completely Vegan Lentil Burgers

Click here for a printable version.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2 cups cooked green lentils
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced
• 2 tablespoons chopped onions
• 4 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 5 hamburger buns
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Pulse lentils in a food processor or blender. It’s OK if lentils are not completely blended; you want the mixture to be slightly coarse.
2. Empty lentils into a medium bowl and set aside.
3. In a medium skillet, on medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil, garlic, onions and mushrooms. Sautee until garlic is fragrant.
4. Remove from heat and place in food processor or blender. Also add 1 hamburger bun, Worcestershire sauce and mustard.
5. Blend until slightly smooth. Mixture may not blend completely, but that’s OK. Do not add any more liquid; this will make burgers fall apart during cooking.
6. Add mixture to lentils and stir until all ingredients are thoroughly combined.
7. Add garlic powder and season with salt and pepper to taste.
8. Form into 4 patties.
9. Heat a medium skillet on medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.
10. Place patties in skillet and cook for approximately 3-5 minutes on each side, until patties are brown.
11. Place on hamburger buns and add your favorite toppings and condiments. Enjoy.

Andrea Mathis is a registered dietitian and owner of Beautiful Eats & Things. For more great recipes, visit beautifuleatsandthings.com.