I recently purchased, with a Christmas gift certificate to a local bookstore, Veganomicon. I’ve had my eye on this cookbook for a while, and so far I’m really pleased with the recipes. Last night I made the black bean burgers, which are different from the other black bean burgers I make in a few ways. First, the “glue” that holds them together is not egg but vital wheat gluten, an ingredient I’ve never used before but am pretty fascinated by. After mixing the dough for a while, it started to become really stringy; the texture created by vital wheat gluten is fascinatingly similar to that of real ground beef.
A stringy, albeit tasty, mess.
The downside to the recipe, which wouldn’t be a downside at all in other circumstances I guess, is that the other black bean burger recipe I use makes eight huge burgers, leaving plenty for freezing or lunches all well. This recipe made six smallish burgers, and I had a hard time even stretching the dough that far; next time I think I’ll double the recipe.
For the truly trashy, only loaf bread will do.
Last night’s burger was eaten with barbecue sauce, spinach ,and avocado, while today’s featured the more traditional ketchup and spicy mustard (on loaf bread, of course).
