The Betty Crocker Project : Caesar Salad Burger

A while back, I kinda freaked out about the vegan version of Betty's Caesar Salad Dressing. I mean, I talked about it for days. When people came over for Passover, I talked their faces off about how much I loved this salad dressing. Seriously - no faces! I publicly broke up with Paul Newman because of this salad dressing. This salad dressing is that good.

So, I was sitting there looking at this package of Match Vegan Ground Burger and my heart began to skipping around my chest. Caesar Salad Burgers? I'm in!

Was it all I dreamed it would be? Yeah - I think it was.

Does this recipe make a lot of food, so much so that Dan and I will eating leftover burgers today? Yes. Yes, we will be eating burgers for the next few days. Not that I'm complaining. I just ran out of quesadillas.

I think this burger could doll up a BBQ and bring something new to the traditional veggie burger. This week, IDA featured a bunch of Meet The Shannons 4th of July BBQ ideas. If you haven't seen it yet, take a minute to read it. I contribute to the newsletter and blog a lot, so be sure and check them out!

OK. Enough chatter. Let's eat!

Caesar Salad Burger

• 2-3 Cups Vegan Ground Beef (Not crumbles but the more paste-formed kind. We used Match Vegan Meats Ground Burger and it was fabulous! I mean really, really good. I think Lightlife's Gimme Lean Burger would also rock your face. I'm saying 2-3 Cups because different brands come in different package sizes.)
• 2 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley (chopped)
• 1/2 Cup Caesar Dressing (I recommend our Betty Version - it's vegan and uses lemon juice instead of vinegar, which I'm not sure would be as good. You'll want to halve this: one having most of the herbs and garlic in it, and the other being mostly liquid.)
• 1/4 Teaspoon Lemon Pepper
• 1 Tablespoon Faux Parmesan Cheese
• 1 Red Onion (sliced into rings)
• 1-2 Leaves of Romaine Lettuce per Burger
• 1-2 Slices of Tomatoes per Burger
• 1 Slice of Toffuti Cheese or 1 Tablespoon Shredded Daiya Cheese per Burger
• 4-6 Sandwich Buns (We used organic whole wheat buns, but I think onion rolls or even an everything bagel would be good.)
• Olive Oil for Cooking

Make your Caesar Salad Dressing per this recipe.

In a large bowl, mix Fake Burger, Parsley, Faux Parmesan Cheese, 1/4 a Cup of Caesar Salad Dressing (make sure you get most of the garlic and herbs in the burger mix; the other half, not used yet, should be mostly liquid) and Lemon Pepper. You'll want to mix this with your hands, kneading it like bread. You'll want to mix it really thoroughly. Form the Burger Mix into 4-6 patties - it all kinda of depends on how big you want your burger patties to be. Place them in a shallow dish and pour the remaining Caesar Salad Dressing over the patties. Let them sit for less than a minute. You should flip the Burgers a few times to make sure they get an even coasting.

In your infamous little cast iron skillet, heat about 2-3 tablespoons of Olive Oil at a medium heat. Brown the Burgers in the hot Olive Oil. Flip them a few times so they get evenly cooked. When the burgers look almost ready, toss the Red Onion Rings in there and let them cook. If the Onions get tender before the Burgers are ready, move them on top of the cooking Burger Patties. It'll keep them from burning, but also warm, and it'll flavor the Burgers a little.

Toast your buns. Then build your Burger inside the toasty bun in this order: Burger, Fake Cheese, Onions, Lettuce, and Tomato.

Happy 4th everybody!