Sweet Potato & Chickpea Burgers

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C) and bake the sweet potato for 40-60 minutes, or until tender. Meanwhile, gather and prep the rest of your mise en place. To prepare the onion, heat a fry pan over medium to medium-high heat. Once hot, dry-sauté the onions until they are translucent and soft. Alternatively, you can fry them with a bit of oil. To make your own oat flour, simply grind a 1/3 of a cup of oats. *Note: to smash the chickpeas, place them into a ziplock bag and smash them using a rolling pin. Alternatively, you can just use a fork to smash them, but the ziplock is just so much cleaner and easier. Once the sweet potato is done, remove it from the oven, and when cool enough to handle, peel and add it to a mixing bowl, along with the chickpeas. Using a fork, mash together the sweet potato, chickpeas, and onions. Next, add the tahini, vinegar, garlic and chipotle powder, nutritional yeast, and chopped kale, as well as a good pinch of salt and pepper. Lastly, add a bit of the oat flour and mix to combine. Continue to add the oat flour until the burgers hold together nicely. Typically, we use the whole 1/3 cup, but this may vary depending on the moisture in your sweet potato etc. Taste a tiny bit of the mixture and adjust the seasoning as desired.

To shape the burgers, using a round mold, or simply using your hands, form the mixture into 6 burgers. The exact amount of burgers will ultimately depend on how big you make the burgers. We have found that these burgers are best if they are not made too thick. To bake the burgers, place them onto a baking tray, lined with parchment paper and bake in a preheated 400°F (200°C) oven for approximately 20 minutes, or until the bottom is a nice golden color and the top just starts to color. To fry the burgers, heat a large fry pan over medium heat. Once hot, fry the burgers for a few minutes on each side. If desired, you can first dredge the burgers in the breadcrumbs — this will just give the burgers a bit more crispiness.

To serve the burgers, toast the buns and serve with your favorite toppings. The great thing about these burgers is that they are very versatile, so they go with many different topping combinations — so have fun and experiment. Any leftover burgers, will keep in the refrigerator for a few days. The burgers can also be frozen. To reheat the burgers, warm them in a 400*F (200°C) oven until warmed through — approximately 10 to 12 minutes, depending on the thickness of the burgers.