Labor of Love

Ahhh Labor Day Weekend....a time for relaxing, sleeping in, and OOOPS!  This is Pixie-land, remember? It's time for me to get my cook on!  We had a supper engagement over at Happy Alys' home, and I wanted to impress her with my second-ever try at Morgans' Veggie Patties

They are (as you can see from the recipe) ingredient-heavy, so I figured I better get all in place before beginning. I find that the best way to ensure success in the kitchen is to be well-prepared...

I did have most of the beans called for in the recipe in cans, and therefore easy to use, but I did have to soak and boil the garbanzo beans prior to this photo.

Then came the process of combining.  I tweak the recipe ever so slightly, because in reading the reviews, it appears that many had issues with the burgers falling apart.  I pulse it all so that while all the ingredients don't get pureed, they are combined enough to hold the burgers together.  Here it all is, ready for the spin-fest.

Ooops, I forgot the black olives!

Okay....NOW we're ready to roll (literally). My tweaks to the recipe include adding some chopped sun-dried tomatoes, and nutritional yeast.  I add the tomatoes for a little sweetness, as these are spicy burgers, and the nutritional yeast to help them hold together. Just look at all the quality ingredients in there!

Once combined, I form them into burgers, dust with a little whole wheat flour, and chill down until suppertime.....

Okay....I tell a lie....there was one patty that did not make it into the fridge...I wonder just what ravenous cook intelligent recipe tester might have done....

Hmmmm blue cheese, siriacha sauce...I think it needs more...

Ahhhh...that's more like it, blue cheese, siriacha sauce AND A1 steak sauce. This was my breakfast, by the way. Of course if you are a loyal reader (and you ARE, right?). you know that I dislike traditional breakfast foods, so this was perfection on a bun (or lack of bun) for me.  I shallow-fried the burger in a half tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil, which gave it that nice crispy crust, and I was in heaven!  Later that same night, we grilled them, and they were equally delicious, although quite fart-tastic. Hey, healthy foods sometimes involve sacrifice!

What non-traditional foods do you indulge in, at breakfast time? Does anyone know, or do you hide your obsession?

Having enjoyed the successful re-creation of the veggie patties, I was left with the entire rest of a can of gorgeous artichoke hearts. What to do? Tomorrow all will be revealed...eat well, my friends.