Cherish - Eating Healthy - Carrot Burgers!

In my book, Cherish, the protagonist's mother loves to cook healthy food for her family.

The following original recipe by me would fit into any Ovo Lacto Vegetarian diet, as it does require the use of eggs. But feel free to substitute anything that you might use in place of eggs for binding.

Also, keep in mind that it is always preferable to use organic carrots and free-range chicken eggs when possible.

Ingredients:

7 - 8 large - medium carrots (Shredded)
2 whole eggs
1/2 - 3/4 c. flour (Any type that you prefer. I use organic whole wheat flour.)
2 - 3 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp garlic powder (not garlic salt)
Pinch of Salt (Optional)

Optional Ingredients:
Brown and wild rice (cooked), chopped raw spinach, black beans, or oatmeal. Any of these or even a combination of these can be added into the batter to "beef" up the patties. I have even added alfalfa sprouts (that I home sprout) and wild greens that I have gathered. Delicious!

Other Flavors:
Adding sage, black or white pepper, and marjoram gives a more chicken-y flavor to the patty and adding rosemary, thyme, and sage can make the patty taste more like sausage.

Frying:
2 pats of butter melted in the pan

Preparation & Cooking:

Cook carrots until they are still moist, but tender. About 3 - 5 minutes in a microwave should do. Mix in the rest of your ingredients until you get a thick, easily portioned batter. You can add more flour to thicken the batter, if necessary. Likewise you can add a little water if the batter is too thick.

Melt butter in a frying pan or wok over low to medium heat. Don't let your pan get too hot so as not to burn the patties. Spoon carrot mixture into patty shapes into pan. Allow to brown on one side, flip, brown other side, then remove from pan and allow to drain excess butter onto a paper towel laid in a plate or platter.

Once you have all of your patties (this recipe should yield 7 - 8 large patties) you can then put them on any bread that you prefer using the same condiments that you use whenever you have hamburgers. You can also eat these alone or paired with a side salad or cut into strips and placed on a hotdog bun with cole slaw. The possibilities are endless for what you can use this recipe for, even meatloaf. Just mix in what you normally put into your meatloaf, such as bell peppers, onions, or tomatoes, etc. Bake and enjoy!

I have even used these to make spaghetti and meatballs by forming the mixture into balls and partially cooking them before adding them to the sauce.

You can bake the patties in an oven as well, but since I don't have an oven I'm not sure how long they would need to bake to cook thoroughly and you want to be sure that the eggs in the mixture are completely cooked.

Personally, I just microwave 7 - 8 on a plate on high for 9 minutes. But with the way cooking times vary depending on microwave brand and the possibility that you might under cook the eggs in the mixture, I can't really advise others to prepare them this way.  After all, I live in a part of Florida that is right about at sea level and that will definitely affect cooking times in a microwave or even a regular oven.

However you choose to cook them I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. They are a very nutritious addition to your mealtime repertoire. 

Enjoy!!