Guest Blogger: Broccoli Addict – Millet and Quinoa Burgers in Sesame

Always amazing to see how far VBU! can reach. All the way from Poland, please welcome Urszula, author of Broccoli Addict. Here she is in her own words, “I’m a passionate vegan who loves to cook and experiment. I rarely follow a recipe to the letter. Also, I’m a wife, mom, artist, writer, art therapist, curator, teacher, milliner, and a maker of things. I love soup and tea, my dog Inka, jazz, and the color fuschia.” Follow Broccoli Addict on Facebook as well. Welcome Urszula!

Making burgers makes life so much easier, at least for me. Not only are these great for lunch or dinner, they make a great snack on their own or on a sandwich. These burgers are high in protein and have an unexpected flavor. I’m beginning to love using black onion seeds to add a unique flavor to various foods.

Sesame seeds are a really great source of calcium. And most of the calcium is in the hull, therefore unhulled sesame seeds should be a regular staple in the vegan diet. A tablespoon of unhulled or black sesame contains 88 mg of calcium.

I also added quite a bit of flaxseed. First of all, its function in this recipe is to bind all the ingredients together. Secondly, flaxseed contains soluble and insoluble fiber and omega-3 fatty acids. I buy my flaxseed whole and grind it in the coffee grinder when I need it.

Ingredients

½ cup dry millet

½ cup dry quinoa

3 ½ cups water

2 tsp. oil (optional)

½ tsp. turmeric

1 large carrot, grated

¼ cup ground flaxseed

1 tbsp. whole flaxseed

1 tbsp. whole black onion seed (nigella sativa)

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. paprika

½ tsp. cardamom

½ tsp. coriander

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

Salt and pepper to taste

Whole black and/or unhulled sesame seeds

Instructions

1.Cook millet and quinoa in water with 1 teaspoon of oil, pinch of salt, and ½ teaspoon turmeric for about 20 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain any excess water, if necessary.

2.In a frying pan, sauté grated carrot with 1 teaspoon of oil, cumin, coriander and cayenne. You may need to add a teaspoon or two of water.

3.Add carrot to the cooked millet and quinoa. Stir in ground and whole flaxseeds, black onion seeds, salt and black pepper.

4.Shape patties. I have a bowl with water in which I wet my hands. This eases forming the patties and prevents the mass from sticking to your hands. Roll in sesame seeds.

5.Bake at 180°C (355°F) for 20-25 minutes.

Yield: about 13 palm-sized patties

Allergy information: These burgers are free of wheat, soy, nuts, gluten, and of course milk and eggs.