I like beets, but they are not always on my grocery list. My DH has never had them and would never have them in the future which is reason enough for me not to buy. But I do end up buying them when they look very fresh and almost tempt me into putting them in the cart.
So that’s how I ended up with 2 perfectly plump beets in my fridge for almost a week, when I realized that I had to make something (for myself) or I would have to say goodbye to two great beet specimens.
Recipe is from “Totally Vegetarian” by
Toni Fiore. The result was not your typical vegetarian burger; it’s savory-sweet (but not too sweet), delicate and crumbly. No bread is needed for this, but you would definitely need a fork.
Recipe adapted from Totally Vegetarian by Toni Fiore
Ingredients:
Beets – 2 medium, peeled and quartered
Carrot – 1 medium, peeled and roughly chopped
Onion – 1 medium, chopped
Garlic – 2 cloves, minced
Millet – 1 cup
Whole-wheat bread – 2 slices, toasted
Wheat germ – ½ cup
Walnut pieces – ½ cup
Salt and pepper – to taste
Method:
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
Add beets, carrots and onions to the baking sheet; add 1 tbsp oil, season with salt and pepper; mix well and roast for 20-40 minutes or until the veggies are tender.
In the meantime, bring 2 cups water to a boil; stir in millet and cook covered on low heat for 30 minutes or until millet is fully cooked. Remove into a mixing bowl and let cool.
In the food processor blend walnuts, wheat germ, toasted bread cut into pieces; process until it has a fine crumb textile. Add to cooked millet.
When the veggies are done and cool enough to handle, process them in the food processor until finely chopped. Add to cooked millet mixture. Season liberally with salt and pepper; mix well with a spoon. Refrigerate the mixture for an hour to chill.
Make burgers with about ¾ cup of the mixture. I got about 16 medium size burgers while Toni made 8 huge ones.
To cook the burgers: heat 1 tbsp oil in a sauté pan on low heat. When the pan is hot, add the burgers. Do not touch or move them once in the pan, otherwise they will fall apart. Cook for 5-10 minutes (depending on the size of the burger), then carefully flip with a spatula and cook for another 5-10 minutes. These have to be cooked on low heat otherwise beet sugars will be burnt.
I served them with home fries for brunch and it made a complete meal. The mixture can be refrigerated until used or uncooked patties can be frozen for later use. I layered the patties with a piece of foil and froze them in a freezer bag, so I can make them whenever I have a taste for them. Actually my DH really liked them since they don't taste too much like beets. They have a nutty and a pleasant sweet-savory taste, I'm sure beet-haters like my hubby would like them.
These urundai can be made by soaking and grinding dal like in Gayathri's recipe. But I wasn't really prepared to make this dish the day I made them, so went with Nalini's recipe for an instant recipe which uses ground roasted gram to hold them together.
