Tasty Tuesday!

Roasted Beet and Tofu Burgers

     This will be the first Tasty Tuesday post made during my trip to Guyana. Well...I'm actually making this post from the comfort of my Baltimore kitchen a week in advance but you know what I mean. This week I bring you beet and tofu burgers. I know...sounds weird but try it! I promise you will become a fan.

     I've always been a fan of beets but never really knew what to do with them. Being from the south, I only consumed beets of the pickled variety or cut them up into salads. After reading a little about beets (yes, I take time out of my day to read about beets) I found out just how versatile they are. Beets can be processed into table sugar, used a performance enhancer for athletes and race horses, and can be used a natural coloring agent in food, among other things The coloring agent part explains why I ended up with pink hands making this. Sorry for not taking more pictures by the way but I like the color of my camera the way it is..

     I came across this recipe on the blog Fat Free Vegan and I knew I had to give it a shot. I will have to warn you now that this is not a quick recipe that you can whip up right after work and I modified it a little from the original. This takes a bit of time but you can make the patties in advance. Beets are a hearty vegetable so will probably still be in season for a little while longer. Take advantage while you can because very soon the only seasonal vegetable will be turnips!

• 2-3 medium sized beets
• 1 onion (or 3 small)
• 1 head of garlic (that's head, not clove)
• 1 package of tofu
• 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 2 tablespoons corn starch
• 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees. Trim the beets using a vegetable peeler if you have one and remove the stems and leaves. Remove the excess skin from the onions, and trim the top off of a head of garlic. Wrap each item in foil, place on a baking sheet, and put in the oven for about an hour. Once the time is up remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.
2. While they are cooling, crumble the tofu and add the reaming ingredients. Finely chop the onions, remove the garlic cloves, and mash the beets into the tofu creating a "ground beef" like consistency. This is the part where your hands will turn pink. 
3. Shape the mixture into patties (whatever size you like), place on a baking sheet, and bake for 30 minutes. 
4. Create your favorite burger with whatever condiments you have on hand.

The only picture I took before my hands turned pink

Take care of yourself and each other...