Vegan Bean Walnut Mushroom Burgers

For Spring Break, Desi, Jay and I drove up to Niagara Falls via Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Erie, New York. It’s a road trip Desi and I have made many times before, often with relatives visiting from India who are eager to see – usually in equal measure – the falls and the Sri Venkateshwara Temple in Pittsburgh, one of the oldest Hindu temples here in the United States, and a key American landmark for many south Indians. 🙂 Desi and I skipped the temple this time, but we did stop long enough in Pittsburgh to take Jay up and down the cable car at the Duquesne Incline. From up top, you have stunning views of this beautiful city of rivers and bridges, one of our favorites. Our road trips are often breathtakingly speedy– we cover a lot of ground each day (we once drove up and down to Niagara in a day and a half, to accommodate a couple of friends from India on a tight schedule), and this one is no different. This morning, we started out in Erie, which sits along beautiful Lake Erie, one of America’s five Great Lakes. After visiting the Presque Park Isle and seeing not one but two lovely lighthouses (have I told you I’d go to the ends of the earth to see a lighthouse, I love them so), we started out for Buffalo, home to yet another lighthouse, and on to Niagara Falls, our final destination. Tonight, we walked down, with hundreds of tourists, to see the falls lit up at night. For Jay, who is visiting the falls for the first time, it was an awe-inspiring experience. I look forward even more to tomorrow, and to showing him the falls by day, in their natural splendor. It’s a sight that needs no gilding, with neon lights or otherwise, and it never fails to take my breath away. When we do road trips, I try and pack a couple of days’ meals so we can at least start out eating healthier meals than the food one tends to grab at highway rest stops. These delicious Bean Walnut Mushroom Burgers were in our cooler, along with slices of my vegan carrot cake, and together they made the trip that much more fun. Check to get new recipe updates by email.

I have a great many delicious, hefty, grillable veggie burger recipes that I’ve shared with you on this blog, and these Bean Walnut Mushroom Burgers are a proud addition to that list. They are utterly flavorful, have great texture from the beans, walnuts, and mushrooms, and they hold up beautifully on the grill. I flavor them with pantry staples: dijon mustard, garlic powder, tomato ketchup, thyme, salt, and pepper. That’s it, really, other than the beans, walnuts, and mushrooms, of course. I am off to bed now, I can’t wait any longer to see the falls tomorrow. I hope you’ll try these Bean Walnut Mushroom Burgers, and do let me know if you make them. Top them with some cole slaw, like this delicious carrot and golden beet slaw for extra deliciousness.