My mum used to make a version of these burgers when I was a kid, with cheddar cheese, chilli powder and parsley, and I remember them so fondly, always served with mashed potato and tomato sauce (my mother is a firm believer that everything goes with mashed potato, there was never a burger bun in sight!)
This is an adaptation of those burgers, swapping the cheddar for feta, the parsley for a big bunch of basil, and adding garlic and sundried tomatoes, because it sounded delicious in my head, and it turned out to be just as delicious as I had imagined. And if you need more convincing, they’re baked not fried, so even better for you!
The only downside to this recipe is that dried soy beans are a bit of a pain to source, as I’ve never yet seen them in UK supermarkets. However, they are very good for you, and personally I seek them out for this recipe alone. I buy mine from www.buywholefoodsonline.co.uk but you’ll find plenty online with a quick google search.
And last but very much not least, you need a food processor to make these, so please stop here if you don’t have one, sorry!
- 250g dried soy beans
- 1 small/medium onion, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 large free range egg
- 25g fresh basil leaves
- 120g feta
- 75g sundried tomatoes in oil (drained weight)
- Salt and black pepper
- ~200g medium oatmeal (not rolled oats!), to coat them
- Soak the soy beans in plenty of water overnight, or for at least 8 hours. Make sure they are in a large bowl/pan and covered well with water, as they will expand as they soak.
- Drain and rinse the beans, then put them into a saucepan covered with fresh water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for approximately 1 hour until tender – the cooking time will vary slightly depending on how fresh the beans are, so after 45 minutes start checking them every 15-20 minutes until they’re tender. Drain them and set aside to cool a little.
- In the bowl of your food processor, combine the cooked beans, basil, feta, sundried tomato, egg, onion and garlic. Blitz until no lumps remain, and the mixture will hold its shape. Season the mixture well with salt and black pepper.
- Scatter the oatmeal over a plate. With clean hands, scoop and shape the mixture into 8 equal-sized patties. (I do this by eye but you could weigh them if you want to be exact) Gently roll each patty in the oatmeal so it gets coated all over, then transfer them to a baking sheet lined with baking parchment, or a plate if your baking tray doesn’t fit in the fridge. Refrigerate them for an hour (or up to 24 hours if you prefer). If you want to freeze some at this point, let them freeze on a plate covered with cling film, then once frozen solid you can put them into a freezer bag and freeze for up to a month.
- Heat the oven to 200’c/180’c fan/gas mark 6.
- Bake the burgers for about 45 minutes, carefully turning them over with a spatula half way through cooking, to ensure they brown on both sides. After 45 minutes they should feel firm and dry to the touch. If baking from frozen, allow for an extra 10-15 minutes.
- Serve immediately, however you like to eat your burgers – I like mine with a homemade brioche bun, lettuce, mayo, mature cheddar cheese and a swipe of ketchup. Also, red cabbage, carrot and shallot coleslaw on the side. (For my coleslaw I use equal parts crème fraiche and mayo, with a good splash of white wine vinegar, glug of olive oil and lots of salt and pepper to dress it. Oh, and make sure it’s lightly dressed – I can’t stand the shop bought versions that are more mayo than they are veg.)
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