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I was backcountry skiing with some friends near Nelson, British Columbia recently. We decided to spend the first day skiing the terrain off the backside of Whitewater Ski area before flying into the Carlyle Hut to backcountry ski for the week. The group was stout to say the least and I spent the entire day “off the back” hyperventilating. After 7-8 hours of trying to hang on at their blistering pace, I headed back to the lodge to lick my wounds and re-fuel my depleted body. I pictured the normal ski lodge food scene were you grab a tray and head to the hot beverage machine, then help yourself to burgers and fries that have been under the warming lamp for hours. Much to my surprise, the charming and welcoming Fresh Tracks Café was open for business and looked like an oasis in the desert. I stumbled into the café, grabbed a seat and ordered the first thing I saw on the menu which happened to be the Whitewater Veggie Burger. I loaded it up with gruyere cheese, sautéed mushrooms, caramelized onions, ketchup, mustard, pickles, tomatoes all on a toasted whole wheat bun (is your mouth watering yet?). It saved me!  Well, truthfully it was the greasy French fries that saved me but I’m trying to think healthy after the holiday blitz I’ve been on for the past 2 weeks!

Your search for the perfect veggie burger has ended. This is it – load it up and enjoy! For more Fresh Tracks Café recipes, click here.

And why is there no photo of the veggie burgers, you ask.  Have you ever tried to take a photo of a veggie burger? Not exactly easy!

Ingredients

1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp cumin
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 19oz can black beans, drained, rinsed, roughly pureed
1 tsp oregano
¼ cup parsley or cilantro, chopped
2 tsp seasame oil
1 cup sunflower seed, roasted
½ cup almonds, roasted and chopped
3 cups fine bread crumbs
½ cup soy sauce
5 eggs (I use 2 egg whites as a substitute for whole eggs but that’s a lot of eggs!)
2 cups carrots, grated
2 cups oats
Flour for dredging
2 Tbsp vegetable oil

Method

In a large skillet, sauté onions and garlic in oil. Place in large bowl and let cool a little. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well and shape into patties. Dredge lightly in flour. Heat vegetable oil in a large pan to brown burgers on both sides and warm through. You will probably need to cook these in 2 or 3 batches. Add 2 Tbsp vegetable oil for each batch.

Bring It!

For all my vegetarian friends, how many times have you gone to a cookout only to see the grill loaded up with hamburgers, chicken, hot dogs, and steaks? Grills are meat magnets.  Here is what I do to manage these meat laden meals.  I ask the host if I can bring veggie burgers to feed any vegetarians in the crowd. I pre-cook the burgers at home, wrap them individually in foil, and then heat them on the grill (in the foil). Everyone is happy!  Oh, and make sure to freeze some so they are at the ready whenever you need them at home.

Load it up burger toppings

Maybe don’t look great but taste great!