Walnut-oatmeal burgers

Easy to make walnut oatmeal burgers make a great tasting meal.

Walnuts and oatmeal are two main ingredients used to make meatless burgers in a new recipe we tried recently. Many readers are now rolling their eyes and moving on to another article but we say these burgers are worth trying. They taste very good and are easy to make.

We came across the recipe for these burgers in the “Southern Living 1996 Annual Recipes” book. The first time we tried it we stuck to the ingredients as listed. It was good but we decided to customize it with a few more seasonings. They remind us of meatloaf.

Here is our version of the recipe.

Ingredients:

2 large eggs

3 tablespoons water

1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal, uncooked

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper

1/2 teaspoon celery salt

1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 clove garlic, pressed

2 tablespoons grape seed oil

1/2 cup water

Combine the eggs and three tablespoons water in a large bowl and beat with a fork. Add oats and next seven ingredients. Shape mixture into four patties. Note: the salt can be reduced or left out for those on restricted diets.

Pour oil into a large skillet and heat over medium-high until hot. Add patties and cook three minutes on each side, or until lightly browned. Add half cup water and cover. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until water evaporates.

Burgers can be served on buns with all the regular fixings one would use for regular burgers. Another option is to serve them `with noodles or mashed potatoes and a favorite vegetable or salad.

Our suggestion for desert is a peach-blackberry crisp. These are two fruits that are in season now and make a good combination. Below is one recipe we use.

In a 13 by 9-inch baking dish layer the peaches and blackberries with about three tablespoons of minute tapioca and two teaspoons of cinnamon mixed in. Use enough fruit to fill the dish about two-thirds full.

For the topping mix the following ingredients:

1 cup granola

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup margarine

Spread topping mixture over the fruit layer. Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes.

We shared our recipe for homemade granola in our June 29, 2007 blog. Also a two-serving fruit crisp recipe we use was in our July 20, 2007 blog. Both are posted on this site.

Making healthy food choices does not have to be difficult or lack taste. The above recipes are not only healthy choices but are easy to make and taste great also. It does take a little planning to purpose to eat healthy but once the habit is formed it is easy to stick with the change. We encourage everyone to give it a try one recipe at a time.