Vegan Meatless Meatballs

I will include the just vegetarian recipe as well, but these actually taste more like meat when I made them vegan. Who knew! They are undoubtedly the best meatballs I've ever had. Could be that the sauce is awesome or that they just have a perfect texture and make you want to eat the whole batch before they cool. Anyway, these are a must try. If they are not the Best Vegan Meatballs in the world, tell me and I will retract my statement.
Not only are these delicious straight out of the oven, they keep well in the fridge/freezer and are just as good cold (not frozen though).

To make the meatballs:

• 1 sleeve saltine crackers, crumbled (I assume any plain crackers would work as well)
• 4 vegan eggs (4tbs ground flax + 16tbs boiling water) (for just vegetarian use 4 eggs)
• 1 onion, finely chopped (literally food process them into as much of a liquid as possible) 
• 2 cups pecans, chopped
• 8 vegan grillers thawed and food processed. any plain burger will work (Or 1 bag vegetarian burger crumbles (thawed and chopped a bit finer)
• 6tsp Garlic Salt
• ½ cup grated vegan cheese. (I used Daiya shreds mozzerella style and it was good) (cheddar or mozzarella works best if going just vegetarian)
• 6-8 tsp. liquid smoke

1. Mix in a large bowl in any order you wish (I suggest starting with the dry stuff and working to the wet, since much of the ingredients are chopped in the food processor)
2. Form into balls; bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes or until brown.
3.  Let cool and pour the sauce over top!

Topping:

• 2 cups ketchup
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 stick margarine
• 1 onion, chopped and sautéed in the margarine
• 5-7 tsp. liquid smoke

Mix and pour over balls.

(TIP: I like it spicy, so I like to add lots of red pepper or cayenne)

A few tips: You can sub for healthier alternatives on the sauce. I will be trying honey, or dates instead of sugar, and probably olive oil would be ok to use instead of margarine. And i'm sure you could make your own Ketchup to use. This is just the original recipe with my vegan substitutions.

Delicious Vegan Burgers

I caught this recipe on a facebook post from the local healthfood store. I was hesitant to try it, since it takes so many ingredients. But thankfully I had all of them on hand, so I did it. I'm sooo glad I tried them, they are awesome! Plus they make 8 HUGE burgers. Trust me ONE is enough for each person, especially when paired with my home made wheat buns. It's worth the work, and they keep well in the fridge for a few days. Plus you get so many good things in the burgers... And they're VEGAN!  Yield: 8 burgers

 

You will need:

 

• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• Flax "eggs": 2.5 tbsp ground flax + 1/2 cup warm water, mixed in bowl
• 1 cup oats, processed into flour* (other flours might work)
• 1.5 cups bread crumbs (I processed 3 pieces of Alvarado bread until fine crumb)*
• 1 cup grated carrots
• 1 cup cooked black beans, rinsed and roughly pureed or mashed 
• Heaping 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley (or fresh herb of choice) Cilantro is yummy too
• 1/3 cup almonds, chopped1/2 cup sunflower seeds, (toasted if preferred)
• 1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 tbsp Tamari (soy sauce)
• 1.5 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. oregano
• Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste (I used about 1/2 tsp kosher salt)

Directions:

 

1. Preheat oven to 350F (if baking). In a large skillet, sauté onions and garlic in 1/2 tbsp oil. Mix your flax egg together in a small bowl and set aside for at least 10 mins while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

 

2. Place all ingredients (except spices and salt) into a large mixing bowl and stir very well. Now, add seasonings and salt to taste.

 

3. With slightly wet hands, shape dough into patties. Pack dough tightly as this will help it stick together. I made 8 medium patties.

 

4. Cooking methods: You can fry the burgers in a bit of oil on a skillet over medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side. If baking in the oven, bake for 25-30 mins (15-17 minutes on each side) at 350F, until golden and crisp. For the BBQ, pre-bake the burgers for about 15 minutes in oven before placing on a pre-heated grill until golden and crisp on each side. Our preferred method of cooking was the George Foreman Grill.

 

GF Note: To make these burgers gluten-free, use certified GF oats, GF Tamari, and gluten-free breadcrumbs.