These Lentil Walnut-Apple Burgers are tucked away in the burgers chapter in LTEV. I wanted to show people in that chapter just how fantastically delicious whole foods vegan burgers can be!
Our family loves these Lentil Walnut Burgers, and I think the kids quite enjoy the small bites of sweet apple inside the otherwise very savory burger (as do I). Don’t skip the apple, I promise it works!
Along with these Lentil Walnut Burgers, I’m sharing my Almonnaise recipe. It’s a fresh take on mayonnaise, made by blending presoaked almonds with a few essential seasonings. No, it doesn’t taste quite like mayonnaise. Nor like vegennaise. It has the creamy, rich texture and more-ish flavor that you expect from mayonnaise, just fresher and healthier. Scrumptious on veggie burgers and sandwiches, but also wonderful in green wraps, baked spuds, and wherever you’d like a dollop of creamy/salty/rich sauce. I love it, but then those of you that have LTEV know that I am a little saucy.
These Lentil Walnut Burgers will be a hit year-round, and especially for summer BBQs and celebrations. Enjoy!
Lentil Walnut Burgers
Ingredients
- 1-2 tbsp water for saute, see note for skipping saute and cooking onions/garlic with lentils
- 1 1/2 cups onion chopped
- 3 medium-large cloves garlic
- 1/8 tsp sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper generous is good
- 2 cups cooked green lentils will need about ¾ cup dry lentils, see note
- 1/2 tbsp vegan worcestershire sauce omit for wheat/gluten-free version or use a gluten-free vegan worcestershire
- 1 ½ tbsp mild miso I use Genmai brown rice Miso
- 1 tsp dried thyme or 2-3 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- 3/4 tsp dried sage
- ½ tsp dried basil
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- ¾ - 1 cup ground steel cut oats or ¾ - 1 cup rolled or quick oats; see note for firmer burgers (use gf-certified oats for gluten-free option)
- 3/4 cup raw walnuts or can toast to enhance the flavor
- 1 cup apple firm, crisp apple like Gala, Fuji, or Yellow Delicious, peeled and diced (in small cubes) – *toss with a squeeze of lemon juice (see note)
Instructions
- In a skillet over medium-high heat, add the water. Add the add onion, garlic, salt and pepper, and let cook 7-8 minutes until onions have softened. Meanwhile, in a food processor, add the cooked lentils, worcestershire sauce, miso, thyme, sage, basil and salt, and blend through. When onion mixture is ready, add this to the food processor and puree through again, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed. Add the oats and walnuts, and pulse through a few times to break up the walnut (but not fully pulverize, leave in a rough chop). Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Add apple and mix through until well combined. At this point, you can refrigerate mixture until ready to fry in patties (refrigerating for at least 1⁄2 hour will make it firmer and easier to form). Take scoops of the mixture and form into patties with your hands. In a non-skillet over medium-high heat (use a wipe of oil unless you have a very good non-stick pan), add the patties, flatten gently on the pan, and fry for 6-9 minutes on each side, until golden and a crust has developed; flip them over only once or twice (the second side will cook quicker than the first).
Notes
Almonnaise
Ingredients
- ¾ cup soaked and drained raw almonds (see notes)
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar or lemon juice
- ¼ tsp dill seed or ¼ scant celery seed, or omit either, see note
- ¼ tsp ground mustard optional, see note
- ¼ + 1/8 tsp sea salt
- 1/3 cup + 2-3 tbsp water (as needed to blend/thin)
Instructions
- Using a blender or immersion blender and deep cup or jar, puree all ingredients (starting with 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp of water) until very, very smooth, scraping down sides as needed. (A high-powered blender works best to achieve a smooth consistency, but a standard blender or immersion blender can step in, just takes a little longer to smooth.) If texture is very thick, add another 2-3 tablespoons of water (or more, if needed). I like this mixture fairly thick, so if you want to thin it out more, go ahead and add more water until you have your desired consistency.
Notes
photos credit: Emma Potts
Do you have any inventive burger toppings? Share your ideas!
Donna says
Dreena, I just put a batch of these burgers in the bowl to refrigerate and would like to freeze 1/2 of them. Any special instructions?
I took a taste. They’re gonna be soo yummy!
Luciana Galindo says
Hi,
Can these patties be frozen before or after cooking?
Dreena says
Hi Luciana, I replied to your email, I generally freeze patties uncooked (little more detail in my email).
Claudia says
These sound like they will be very tasty. I’m just wondering, though, what the consistency will be on the outside and inside. Crunchy outside and soft and moist inside when baked? It’s simply good to know what to expect in advance,especially with a picky partner who prefers it slightly drier so that it feels “cooked.”
Dreena says
Hi Claudia, if you want a drier texture, cook a little longer – and pan-frying will give a better outer texture than baking! Hope that helps. 🙂
Claudia says
Not sure what happened, but in spite of them holding together well, in the frying pan they browned without really cooking inside. I didn’t seem to have much luck when I tried baking them in the oven (a commercial Vulcan). Any thoughts?
Claudia says
Dreena, just wanted to fill you in now that the burgers finished cooking. They came out a bit darker since I initially set the oven to 400 F, but I reduced the temp to 350 and left them in a touch longer than you, and they are fine.
Lauren Vaught says
I made these for the first time, and they are outstanding! A perfect combination of sweet/savory flavors and spices. They held up great in my grill pan, and the addition of the Almonnaise was over the top delicious. I added some heat and Liquid Smoke to the Almonnaise which amped it up for us! Thank you for the amazing recipes and continued inspiration.
Margreet says
Hello Dreena,
Is it possible to freeze the almonnaise ?
Thank you, Margreet
Heidi says
Can the burgers be baked instead of fried?
The veggie burgers I have tried to bake in the past seem to not stay together very well, even the recipes where it said to bake them.
Thanks, Heidi
Dreena says
Yes, they can. Usually I bake for about 8-10 minutes for each side, at about 400.
Corrin Radd says
Made these tonight with the almond sauce. They’re great!
Amanda says
Hi Dreena,
How long do you soak the almonds for the sauce? I’ve not had good results blending almonds after they have been soaked, but maybe I’m not soaking long enough. I usually soak a few hours. I’ve had good results with cashews, though.
Thanks! These look amazing!
Dreena says
I soak them about 6-8 hrs. They do need longer soaking than cashews, and they don’t smooth out *quite* as much, but they will get fairly creamy! A high-speed blender makes a big diff too, but not entirely necessary. Good luck!
Shonalika says
I love apples as a compliment to savoury foods. These burgers (and the sauce!) look absolutely amazing!
Marly says
I’m such a sucker for a good veggie burger…and this one looks great!
Cara says
I clicked on this knowing I’d love the burgers and then found myself extra intrigued by the almonnaise! Hmm, so many possibilities there…
Vicky says
Love this recipe and just shared it on my blog in a roundup of my favorite 10 recipes finds from around the web.
Dreena says
Thank you Vicky, I will share the post!
melissa @ my whole food life says
This looks amazing!! I am always on the lookout for new veggie burger recipes. I love the addition of apple in yours. Pinned!
D says
Can you omit the apples?
Dreena says
If you’d like to, yes. You can also grate them into the mixture so they aren’t quite as noticeable, but still adding some flavor/moisture. There’s a note in the recipe about that. 🙂
Michelle says
This recipe looks very tasty. When you blend the lentils with the onions, am I looking for a fine consistency or should I leave some texture and whole lentils?
Dreena says
You can leave a little texture, Michelle, though I do find that by the time I puree everything to get the mix to ‘hold’, the onions are fairly well pureed. But, you could always hold some back and pulse in at the end if you’d like to have some of that texture retained.
Lisa says
What is miso Dreena? Can I leave it out if I don’t have it? I have never used it so don’t have it stocked in my army of ingredients.
Thanks for another great recipe…looking forward to trying it out!
Dreena says
Miso is a salty fermented soybean paste, with many health properties. It comes in different varieties, I mostly use a brown rice/soy blend – pretty common in most stores. If you need soy-free, chickpea miso is also available in health food stores (and my new fave miso)! You *can* omit it, but it does lend a lot of deep flavor – plus saltiness. You’d need to adjust the salt to taste if omitting. Also, it comes in handy for many other delicious recipes, a good fridge staple (and keeps for about 6 months). Good luck!
Allison says
Do you think adding the extra oats will make the burgers firm enough to hold up on an outdoor grill? We love the Mediterranean Bean Burgers and your tofu burgers from LTEV and I want to try these! And I’m waiting for strawberries to really get sweet to make the raw strawberry pie again. So happy you’re back, Dreena!
Dreena says
Absolutely, Allison. Add the oats. You’ve made the other burgers, so you’ll be able to compare the consistency somewhat. I think they’ll be just fine on the grill with that extra bit of firming. We just picked a load of local strawberries last week – was great fun, and they taste SO amazing. Hope you can enjoy them soon. Thanks, it’s good to be back. 🙂
Jaime says
My girls finished school yesterday at noon and I was so excited to wash up their planet boxes last night and PACK THEM AWAY! Two whole months of waking up when we want to, having our days unscheduled and best of all NOT PACKING LUNCHES!
We have our first big family event/bbq of the summer this saturday and I can’t wait! Your nutty veggies burgers are on the menu 🙂
Dreena says
YES, Jaime! I neglected mentioning that, the freedom for us moms of not packing lunches! We need to crack open some wine to celebrate that one. 😉 Enjoy that bbq and the burgers!
Christine says
Two new recipes on the blog!!? Fabulous! I’ve tried many a burger recipe from you but alas, this is yet another that I have not tried. I was wanting a new one to try for this weekend and I think this will be it! I have a feeling the boys will love the sweet apple inside. I do love the Almonnaise too. So creamy and mayonnaise-y but so much tastier, and healthier.
Happy Canada Day and I hope you’re enjoying your summer!! xo
Dreena says
Thanks Christine! I hope the boys DO indeed love the burgers. I’ll be enjoying our Canada Day after finishing up the photo shoot!! Wishing you a fun 4th of July too! x