In the third week of January – I tried veganism. It’s complicated. Cue eyeroll of all vegans and carnivorous individuals (individuals that believe chicken is a vegetable) – out there. It was horrible. Mainly because I ate raw vegetables without salt. After this ordeal. I decided I would invest time in the coming years, reading vegan recipes and making vegan food. You see, I am a highly conflicted individual. I absolutely love animals. I believe all animals have personalities and that if I had more livestock as pets, the less meat I would eat. But on the other end of the spectrum – I love bacon and ribs. But I also think pigs are absolutely cute. Cue the second bout of eyerolls.
So, at the very least I decided until I can part with bacon, I will implement the following rule – vegan Mondays, vegetarian Tuesdays, pescatarian Wednesdays, chicken Thursdays and you can figure the rest out…
So, this week I decided to cook my first vegan meal applying all my skills. It was surprisingly delicious. I challenge all carnivores to try it! DELISH. Al moet ek self sê… No wonder vegans are vegan – it tastes better than meat (well – if you actually make something instead of eating veg without salt).
So, here is the tastiness I call – Melt-In-Your-Mouth Gourmet V+ Burger
SUMMARY OF ALL THE V+ INGREDIENTS:
Vegan (V+) Sweet Potato Buns
{8 BUNS}
Step 1 Ingredients:
- 1 package of instant yeast
- ½ cup warm water
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
Step 2 Ingredients:
- 1 cup cooked sweet potato, mashed
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 4 ½ tbsps. grapeseed oil
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- Pumpkin seeds
Burger Filling
- Small to medium cauliflower, sliced into “fillets”
- 2 avocados, sliced
- Handful of baby tomatoes
- 1 gem lettuce
- Mielie, sliced off cob
Chickpea Batter (Batter 1)
- 1 tin chickpeas
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 slice red onion
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp turmeric
- Pinch of salt and pepper
- Water to blend (2– 5 Tbsps)
Spicy Batter (Batter 2)
- 1 tsp dried chillies or cayenne pepper
- 8 pitted dates
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Pinch of salt and pepper
- Water to blend (2– 5 Tbsps.)
Burger Dressing
- 100 g cashew nuts
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- Handful of chives, chopped
- Handful of basil leaves, chopped
- Pinch of salt and pepper
- Water to blend (2– 5 Tbsps.)
HOW TO MAKE THE V+ SWEET POTATO BREAD:
{8 BUNS}
Step 1 Ingredients:
- 1 package of instant yeast
- ½ cup warm water
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
Step 2 Ingredients:
- 1 cup cooked sweet potato, mashed (about 1 or 2 medium sweet potatoes)
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 4 ½ tbsps grapeseed oil
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- Pumpkin seeds
Instructions:
1. Peel and cube 1-2 medium sweet potatoes. Place in a microwave safe bowl with half a cup of water and a pinch of salt and cover with a lid. Microwave on high for 6 to 8 minutes or until fork tender. Pour out excess water and mash. Set aside and allow to cool.
2. In the meanwhile, combine the yeast, warm water and flour in a mixing bowl. Lightly whisk to combine, cover and let sit for about 20 minutes or until the yeast is activated and foamed up with little bubbles.
3. Add the cooled mashed sweet potato, syrup, salt, grapeseed oil, baking powder and 2 ½ cups of the flour to the yeast mix. If you have a stand-mixer, use the dough-hook to mix on a low speed, until a dough forms (about 5 – 7 minutes). Scrape down the sides as needed. If you don’t have a mixer, mix all the ingredients and knead, slowly adding flour until the dough comes together and is formed. The dough should be soft and elastic (shouldn’t stick to your fingers).
4. Pour an extra ½ tsp of grapeseed oil over the dough and lightly coat. Cover the dough and let rise in a warm area for approximately 1 – 1 ½ hours or until it is double in size.
5. Lightly flour a surface. Place the dough on it. Compress the dough slightly with your hands to deflate it a tad. Shape the dough into 8 balls approximately 4 centimetres in diameter. For a smooth top – slightly stretch the top and tuck the excess into the bottom of the bun. Brush the buns with grapeseed oil; stick pumpkin seeds on the bun and gently brush with more grapeseed oil. Allow the buns to stand and rise in a warm spot for 15 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 210˚ C and bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until the top is golden.
HOW TO MAKE THE VEGAN (V+) BURGER FILLING AND SAUCE:
Burger Filling
- Small to medium cauliflower, sliced into “fillets”
- 2 avocados, sliced
- Handful of baby tomatoes
- 1 gem lettuce
- Mielie, sliced off cob
Chickpea Batter (Batter 1)
- 1 tin chickpeas
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 slice red onion
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp turmeric
- Pinch of salt and pepper
- Water to blend (2– 5 Tbsps)
Spicy Batter (Batter 2)
- 1 tsp dried chillies or cayenne pepper
- 8 pitted dates
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Pinch of salt and pepper
- Water to blend (2– 5 Tbsps.)
Burger Dressing
- 100 g cashew nuts
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- Handful of chives, chopped
- Handful of basil leaves, chopped
- Pinch of salt and pepper
- Water to blend (2– 5 Tbsps.)
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 230˚ C.
2. Blitz the Chickpea Batter (Batter 1) ingredients in a blender. Add water if needed. Remove. And then separately blend the ingredients for the Spicy Batter (Batter 2).
3. Slice the cauliflower into pieces/ “fillets”.
4. “Pack” the chickpea batter on one side of the cauliflower “fillet”. Bake for 16 minutes. Remove and flip the cauliflower and pack more of the chickpea batter on top. Bake for 16 minutes.
5. Pour the Spicy Batter over the cauliflower fillets. And bake for +/- 23 minutes.
6. In the meanwhile, place a mielie in the microwave for 6 minutes. Remove and allow to cool. Slice the lettuce, tomatoes and avos.
7. Make the burger dressing – pour everything except the basil and chives in the blender; blend and then add snippets of the basil and chives.
8. Slice the bun and build the burger.
Top sparkle tip: Don’t waste the off-cuts of cauliflower. Throw it in the muffin pan with baby potatoes, a little bit of oil and if you have spare batter that too; bake at the same time as the fillets.
Assemble. And Enjoy!
PS. I baked the bread and made the batters the night before vegan Monday. Just to save some time.
Download the Melt-In-Your Mouth V+ Gourmet Burger Recipe.
Please share all your favourite vegan and vegatarian recipes and tips with me in the comment section or contact me directly.
