Category Archives: vegetarian

Pub Grub Burgers for National Wear Red Day!

Posted on February 3, 2012 by

Did you know that more women die from heart disease than all forms of cancer combined??  So today we wear red to show support and raise awareness for women’s heart health.  Happy National Wear Red Day!

Since we are talking heart disease today do you know the top risk factors?

  • High blood pressure
  • High blood cholesterol
  • Diabetes
  • Smoking
  • Being overweight
  • Being physically inactive
  • Having a family history of early heart disease
  • Age (55 or older for women)

As you can see diet can play a big role in risk factors for heart disease.  The good news what we eat is almost totally within out control!

So my recipe for today is dedicated to taking care of our hearts.  I took a family favorite, the all-American beef burger, and gave it a complete overall.  The new version uses black beans, garbanzo beans and pepper jack cheese to create a savory delicious meatless-burger.  This meatless-burger recipe is largely based on the Pub Grub Veggie Burger recipe found in Veggie Burgers Every Which Way by Lukas Volger with a few of my own tweaks.

These burgers are really versatile and they are just as great reheated the next day.  My most common method of serving them is bunless with a side salad (they make an excellent brown bag lunch this way!).  But you can always choose to dress them up more like a traditional burger with a bun and your favorite burger toppings like lettuce, cheese and tomatoes.

I am making Pub Grub Burgers for my Superbowl party this weekend.  Instead of regular size burgers I am making sliders (mini burgers) and topping them with an avocado slice and a drizzle of low fat chipotle cream.  After all I want my friends to all be heart healthy too!

Note: The Undercover Cook is a cook and nutrition enthusiast NOT a health care professional.  If you have specific dietary needs, diet restrictions or health concerns please consult your health care provider or a registered dietician for information on what foods are best for you.  Food suggestions from The Undercover Cook should not replace diet advice from licensed health professionals.

Pub Grub Burgers

Prep Time: 10 minutes  -  Cook time: 15 minutes  - Makes: 8 burgers

  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 can low sodium black beans, drained, rinsed and divided in half
  • 1 can low sodium garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 3 eggs, whisked
  • 1 1/2 cup Italian panko crumbs
  • 1 cup (about 3.5 oz) grated pepper jack cheese
  • 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
  • 1/4 cup canola or extra virgin olive oil
  • non-stick cooking spray

Place a large skillet on high heat.  Spray generously with non-stick cooking spray.  When skillet is hot add diced onions.  Reduce heat to medium high and saute onions for 4-5 minutes or until onions are soft.

Pour cook onions into a food processor.  (Set skillet aside to use later to cook burgers.)  Add 1/2 can of black beans, garbanzo, chili powder, salt, garlic powder and 3 whisked eggs.  pulse until just combined.

Pour mixture into large bowl.  Add remaining 1/2 can of black beans, panko crumbs, shredded cheese and fresh thyme leaves.  Stir to combine.  Divide mixture into 8 portions and form into patties.

Return large skillet to medium high heat.  Add 2 tablespoons oil.  Saute 4 burgers at a time to avoid  over crowding in the pan.  Saute burgers for 10 minutes, gently turning burgers half way through.  Burgers should be nicely browned on both sides.  Set burgers on a paper towel lined plate to drain off any excess oil.  Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to the pan and then saute the remaining 4 burgers.  Serve and enjoy!

Other Recipes You Might Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Fries

 

Black Bean Dip

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Roasted Broccoli with Garlic

Posted on January 25, 2012 by

My absolute favorite way to enjoy vegetables is to roasted them in the oven.   It is a relatively simple to do.  Just chop your favorite vegetable to a uniform size, toss with a little olive oil, spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake.  Roasting vegetables deepens the flavor and makes vegetables more savory.

The key to roasting vegetables it cutting the pieces into a uniform size and making sure you don’t over crowd the baking sheet.  Over crowding the baking sheet will result in more of a steamed vegetable experience than a true roast.

Last night’s roasted vegetable of choice was broccoli and garlic.  This dish comes together in about 30 minutes.  I hope you give it a try.  I am sure you will become a roasted vegetable believer too!

Roasted Broccoli with Garlic

Prep time: 5 minutes  -  Cook time: 25 minutes  -  Makes: 2-3 servings

  • 1 bunch of broccoli
  • 1 head of garlic, cloves separated and pealed
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400º F.

Cut off the broccoli florets and cut into uniform pieces.  Place broccoli florets into a medium size bowl.  Add pealed, whole cloves of garlic into bowl with broccoli.  Sprinkle with olive oil.

Use your hands to mix the broccoli and garlic with olive oil until all the vegetables are well coated.

Spread broccoli and garlic in a single layer on a baking sheet.  Don’t over-crowd the baking sheet.  You want space between vegetables for optimal roasting.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place broccoli and garlic in oven and roast for 25 minutes or until slight browning around the edges occurs and the broccoli and garlic achieves the desired level of doneness.  (Flip the vegetables half way through the cook time for best result.)

Remove broccoli and garlic from oven.  Add more salt and pepper if desired.  Serve and enjoy!

Other Recipes You Might Enjoy!

 

 

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Piled High Roasted Vegetable Pizza Pie

Posted on January 23, 2012 by

I have been following the HealthyEats.com Healthy Every Week Challenge.  This week is all about vegetables.  That makes this the perfect time to share my Piled High Roasted Vegetable Pizza Pie.

I got the idea for this recipe from a recipe for Mushroom, Ricotta and Olive Pizza in cookbook called Everyday Vegetarian Cooking, however I modified the recipe substantially from the original version.  I added whole grain to the crust, add more flavor to the ricotta filling and then topped it with lots more vegetables to create my own version of this pizza pie.

I won’t lie to you, this is recipe takes a little longer than most of us are willing to devote on busy weeknight to dinner.  I like to make it for family pizza night on a Saturday or Sunday.

To make the recipe more efficiently I usually roast the tomatoes the day before since they cook for longer amount of time and at a lower temperature than the other veggies.  The other vegetables can roast while the dough is rising.  If you roast the tomatoes the day before then the dish can come together in about an hour and 10 minutes.  If you are really pressed for time, try is using pre-made raw pizza dough (which is available at some grocery stores) instead of making your own or substitute sun-dried tomatoes for homemade over roasted ones.

Happy Vegetable Week Everyone!

Piled High Roasted Vegetable Pie

Prep time:  25 minutes + rising time for the dough  - Cook time: 45 minutes  - Makes: 6 slices

Dough

  • 1 (1/4 ounce) packet of dry yeast
  • 3 tablespoons warm water
  • 1/2 teaspoon granular white sugar
  • 1/2 cup skim milk
  • 1 cup all-purpose white flour
  • 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon garlic salt
  • non-stick cooking spray

Filling

  • 4 roasted Roma Tomatoes
  • 1 zucchini
  • 1 yellow crook-neck squash
  • 1/2 lb asparagus, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces.
  • 1 head of garlic, cloves pealed and separated
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
  • garlic salt
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 sweet white onion, diced
  • 4 white button mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 cup ricotta cheese (whole milk or part skim)
  • 1 egg, whisked
  • 2 tablespoons + 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese, divided
  • 2 stems of fresh thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon  garlic salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper

Make 4 roasted roma tomatoes.

In a small bowl combine yeast, warm water and sugar.  Cover bowl and set aside in a warm place until yeast becomes foamy (about 9-10 minutes).

Preheat oven to 400º F.

Place white flour, whole wheat flour, skim milk, olive oil and garlic salt in a medium size bowl.  Add foamy yeast mixture to the bowl and stir until soft dough forms.

Place dough ball on a lightly floured surface and kneed for 5 minutes.  Spray a bowl lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Place kneed dough into prepared bowl.  Cover and set in a warm place to rise for 40 minutes or until double in size.

While dough is rising , cut the ends off both the zucchini and squash then cut in half length wise.  Scoop the seeds out with a spoon and discard the seeds.  Slice the zucchini and squash into 1/2 inch slices.

Place zucchini and squash slices, asparagus pieces, pealed garlic cloves and 1 1/2 tables spoon olive oil. Toss until vegetables are well coated.  Place vegetables on a baking sheet sprinkle lightly with garlic salt. Put baking sheet in the oven and roast for 15 minutes.

Place a skillet on medium high heat.  Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and diced yellow onions.  saute onions for 5 minutes or until soft.  Add mushroom slices and remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil.  saute for an additional 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and set aside until ready to use onions and mushrooms.

After dough has doubled in size place on a floured surface and roll into a 15 inch circle.  Place dough on a baking sheet that has been lightly sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

Place ricotta cheese, a egg (already whisked), leaves from 2 stems of fresh thyme, 2 tablespoons shredded parmesan 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt and 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper.  Stir to combine.  Spread ricotta mixture onto the dough leaving a 1 1/2 – 2 inch border of the dough uncovered with ricotta mixture.

Place all vegetables (roasted roma tomatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, garlic and sauteed mushrooms and onions in a bowl.  Toss to combine.  Pour mixture onto the ricotta mixture.  Turn the edges of the dough up to hold in the filling.  Sprinkle remaining 1/4 parmesan over vegetables.

Bake the vegetable pie for 25 minutes or until crust is golden and fully cooked.  Cut into 6 slices and enjoy!

 Other Recipes You Might Enjoy!

 

Savory Marsala Chickpea Burger

 

Crispy Cheese over Romaine Salad, Strawberries and Flatbread

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