walnut burgers

one of my road trip vacation stops last year was at beans & barley in milwaukee, wi. there was a really delicious walnut burger on the menu, and our server kindly explained that it was inspired by a little hotel in trempeleau, wi. the next night, on our way to minneapolis, we decided to stop in trempeleau. it was the quaintest little hotel - no tv, no phones, shared bathrooms etc. it was almost like a bed and breakfast (without the breakfast). it was the coolest little place to stay, and home of the apparently famous walnut burger. although their version isn't vegan, i came home with the express intent to re-make it vegan friendly.

the finely ground walnuts replace bread crumbs in this recipe and give it a serious flavour boost.

• 2 cups cooked short grain brown rice
• 1¼ cup finely ground walnuts
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons ground flax seed
• 1½ tablespoons tamari
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)

it's important that you use short grain brown rice in this recipe as it provides a much stickier texture than long grain rice. make sure it's cooled down to room temperature. combine all ingredients except for walnuts and rice into a medium mixing bowl. mix into a dry crumbly paste and incorporate the rice. the rice and paste should combine to be a pretty thick and sticky mash. last, fold in the ground walnuts.

you should be able to create about 5 1/2-inch patties.  these don't really firm up like a standard veggie burger, but the flavor is phenomenal.  just be gentle when cooking them and you shouldn't have any problems.

fry: grill in a non-stick skillet with about 1 tablespoon oil for about 10 minuets on each side.
bake: on a greased cookie sheet, bake at 375°f for 15 minutes on each side.  i've also baked them in an oil-rubbed cast iron grill pan.
grill: heat grill to medium and use a non-stick olive oil spray to prevent sticking. grill for 10-12 minutes on each side.