This photo includes baked french fries, pickle, ketchup and a lettuce-tomato-cucumber-radish salad.

BBQ Tempeh Burgers

Seeds or nuts can be dry toasted on a stovetop to give a nuttier flavor to a dish.  Place the seeds in a sauté pan over low heat, wait a few minutes and stir constantly.  When the seeds or nuts begin to brown and give off a toasty aroma they are done. Be careful because nuts and seeds can go from perfect to burned in seconds.  Take them off of the heat just a little before you think they are done.

Ingredients:
1 Quinoa recipe
2 packages (12 ounces) ‘smokey Tempeh strips’ crumbled  (Lightlife brand product)
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
2 cups onion, (2 medium) diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon Nama Shoyu soy sauce
1/3 cup sunflower seeds, dry toasted
2 teaspoons mesquite seasoning blend
2/3 cup barbeque sauce
olive oil spray

Directions:
1. Toast seeds in medium pan on top of stove and place them in a large bowl.
2. Prepare Quinoa recipe and put it in the  mixing bowl with the seeds.
3. In a food processor add the Tempeh and pulse until a crumbled paste.  Then add Tempeh to the mixing bowl of Quinoa and sunflower seeds.
4. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F.
5. In a saute pan place the onions and garlic in olive oil, cook, mixing and stirring until a transparent golden color.
6. Add the onion mixture to the bowl and mix in soy sauce, barbeque sauce and  spices, mixing until fully incorporated.
7. Spray a 10’ x 14’ pan or cookie sheet with olive oil.
8. Divide the mixture into 6 equal sized balls and then shape each ball into a tight patty. Place the patties on the cookie sheet or pan and then bake them for about 45 minutes on one side, gently turning them, and then 30 minutes on the other side, until browned.

Note:  
Allow the Quinoa to cool before working it into patties or it will burn your hands.  These burgers are easy to freeze and have on hand when short on time. This is where the expression “hand to mouth” comes from (just kidding).
   
Yield: 6 patties