Acorn Squash Veggie Burgers

Wash the seeds through a strainer to get rid of all the squash then pat dry. The next day, we coated these with some olive oil, salt, pepper and nutritional yeast and baked them in a 275F oven for about 23 minutes until they started to pop and brown in the oven. I don’t know why I’ve been tossing all of my squash seeds all fall! Any squash seeds – butternut, acorn, pumpkin, etc. – will make a great snack.

I probably scooped out about 4 cups of squash once it was cooked and soft, so I put about 2 ½ cups in the freezer for another day. I didn’t follow the recipe to an exact science, but the end result was what Funk and I deemed our best veggie burger so far. The ingredient list looks long and complicated, but it was simple and relatively quick – even faster if you use canned pumpkin. We ate two, refrigerated two, and froze two for plenty of delicious leftovers.
Ingredients:
6 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped red or green bell pepper (I used one whole pepper)
1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn (I used canned, sodium free, a whole can)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Fresh Tomato Salsa, optional (recipe follows) – I topped my burger with prepared green salsa
1/2 cup canned unseasoned pumpkin puree – I used about 1 ¼ cups of fresh acorn squash, mashed well
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack or Cheddar cheese – I used soy cheese
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1/2 cup fine dry breadcrumbs – I used whole wheat panko breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley – didn’t have this
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
6 8-inch flour tortillas (soft-taco size) – we ate these open-faced on a slice of whole wheat bread
2 cups shredded lettuce – didn’t have this

1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in bell pepper, corn, garlic, chili powder and cumin; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes more. Transfer to a large bowl; let cool to room temperature, about 10 minutes. (This made a lot, since I used a whole can of corn. I froze half in a container and will use it in a future recipe)

2. Meanwhile, prepare Fresh Tomato Salsa, if using.

3. Add pumpkin, cheese, wheat germ, breadcrumbs, parsley, salt and pepper to the onion mixture; mix well. With dampened hands, form the vegetable mixture into six 1/2-inch-thick patties, using about 1/2 cup for each. (We made 6 patties, but since I used larger ingredient measurements, our patties were a bit bigger)

4. Preheat oven to 325°F. Stack tortillas and wrap in aluminum foil. Place in the oven for about 15 minutes to heat through. (Alternatively, stack tortillas between two damp paper towels; microwave on high for 30 to 60 seconds, or until heated through.)5. Using 2 teaspoons oil per batch, cook 2 to 4 patties at a time in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned and heated through, about 4 minutes per side. Adjust heat as necessary for even browning. (We also continued cooking these for about 10 more minutes in the toaster oven so they’d be nice and browned and cooked through) Wrap the patties in tortillas and serve immediately, garnished with lettuce and Fresh Tomato Salsa, if desired.

Nutrition Information Per serving: 331 calories; 13 g total fat (3 g sat, 6 g mono); 8 mg cholesterol; 45 g carbohydrate; 12 g protein; 4 g fiber; 587 mg sodium; 407 mg potassium.

Nutrition bonus: Vitamin A (100% daily value), Vitamin C (45% dv), Folate 34% dv), Selenium (30% dv), Calcium & Iron (20% dv), Magnesium & Zinc (16% dv).