Deliciously Vegan Baked Mushroom And Oat Burgers Recipe

If frozen veggie burgers just aren't cutting it, these hearty mushroom and oat burgers from wellness coach and recipe developer Miriam Hahn have you covered. Made with wholesome ingredients like oats, flax seed, and mushrooms, these burgers offer delicious nourishment without any of the processed additives. Ground flax seed and grated zucchini act as our binders here and add enough moisture to keep the burgers from teetering into dry territory. Perfect for lunch, weeknight dinners, casual entertaining, and make-ahead meal prep, these mushroom and oat burgers offer an easy yet exciting way to incorporate more vegan meals into your diet.

Not only are these burgers great for making the day you plan to enjoy them, but they can easily be stored and enjoyed at a later time, too, without sacrificing texture or flavor. "I like to make a double batch of these burgers and put them in the freezer to pull out when I want a quick meal," Hahn tells us. "Once you form the patties, lay them on a baking sheet, cover and freeze for one hour. Then transfer them to a freezer safe container, separate them with parchment paper, and store for up to 3 months." When it comes time to reheat, just pop into the oven set to 350 F and bake for 30 minutes, then voila — homemade vegan burgers all over again.

To make this recipe, head to the produce aisle and pick up an onion, mushrooms (something like white button will work well), zucchini, and parsley. Then hit up the dry goods area and grab ground flax seed, rolled oats, breadcrumbs, nutritional yeast, and your buns of choice. If you have whole flax seeds on hand, use a spice or coffee grinder to break them down to a powder. Check your spice and condiment cabinet for oil, soy sauce, cumin, salt, pepper, and smoked paprika.

In a small bowl combine the ground flax and water. Set aside for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Line a pan with parchment paper.

Add the oil to a pan and bring heat to medium-high.

Add the onion and garlic and saute for 7 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and cook for 10 more minutes.

In a large bowl combine the flax mixture, oats, breadcrumbs, nutritional yeast, cumin, salt, smoked paprika, pepper, zucchini, soy sauce, parsley, and mushroom mixture.

Form the mixture into 4 patties.

Place on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes, flipping halfway.

Serve the vegan burgers on buns with optional toppings.

Flax seeds are nutrient-dense, protein- and fiber-packed seeds that come from flax crops. When combined with water, ground flax seeds create a "flax egg", which helps bind ingredients together much like how an actual egg works in a similar setting. This combination turns into a gel that also adds moisture to recipes, making it perfect in vegan cooking where eggs are not part of the diet. Flax eggs can be used in vegan muffins, chocolate chip cookies, pancakes, banana bread, meatballs, and meatloaf to name a few.

Flax seeds are sold whole or ground. You can easily grind them in a small coffee grinder or spice grinder, and storing them in the fridge will extend the shelf life. They can also be sprinkled on top of oatmeal, yogurt, and salads, as they also boast a crunchy texture and mild nutty flavor.

There are several substitutions that can be made in this recipe. If you want to avoid oil where possible, you can omit that and just use about ¼ cup of vegetable broth to cook the aromatics. If you have shallots on hand instead of onion, you can use two diced bulbs in place of the onion. And, if you want a quicker option than mincing garlic, use 1 teaspoon of garlic granules in place of fresh garlic.

For the oats, you do need to stick to rolled oats versus quick oats or steel cut oats. For the mushrooms you can feel free to use any type, or a combination of several types. To enhance the mushroom flavor you can even add in mushroom umami seasoning, in case the mushrooms alone don't pack enough punch.

Instead of the breadcrumbs, you can simplify the recipe by grinding up more oats and using ¼ cup of that. That will also make this recipe gluten-free, if you also use Tamari soy sauce in place of standard soy sauce, and choose a gluten-free bun.