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These baked vegetarian Tzatziki and Feta Chickpea Burgers are the perfect low calorie alternative to beef burgers! In each burger we have a Mediterranean chickpea patty stacked atop a heap of tangy Tzatziki sauce. Finished with creamy crumbled feta and loaded with crisp veggies.
Don't get me wrong, we all love a good ol' juicy hamburger every now and again. But, what if you're trying to lose weight and the calories in those bad boys are just too high? Or maybe you're simply wanting to cut meat out of your diet. These chickpea burgers are a great alternative! No, they don't taste like a regular hamburger, but I can assure you they still taste absolutely amazing!
What makes these Chickpea Burgers so great?
Two things: they taste really good, and they are lower calorie than your average hamburger. What makes these taste so great is the combination of tatziki and feta with the spicy greek seasoning in the chickpea burger. The thing that typically makes real burgers taste so good is the fat content. However, the more fat you add the higher the calories. One gram of fat contains 9 calories; that's double the amount compared to carbs and protein. So how is this the better choice when trying to lose weight? It's simple, calories in vs.calories out. With this burger we are stripping away the fat from the beef and adding it back in with the homemade Tzatziki and feta which are lower calorie dense sources of fat. Additionally, we are bumping up our fibre intake through the chickpeas, which we wouldn't have gotten from the beef.
These Tzatziki and Feta Chickpea Burgers are:
- Creamy
- Cheesy
- Savoury
- Healthy
- Low Fat
- Lower Calorie
- Gluten Free
- Vegetarian
- Extremely filling
- Oh so very satisfying
Make them flip proof.
The first time I made these, they were a mess! I ended up with each patty crumbling into a mound that couldn't be salvaged. The trick I've found is to make sure you use a binding agent, such as oats and to make sure you don't dry out the burgers. Let's be honest this can be an art and a science all at once! I recommend is using the broiler as outlined in the recipe card--and keep your eyes on them. Baking these will definitely increase your chances of drying out the patties. Additionally, to help you out in moulding the perfect patty and pressing them super compact, click here to buy the best burger press.
Check out our other amazing recipes:
Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Bites
Please leave me a comment if you made this recipe and don’t forget to share a picture of your creation with @Fiftyshadesofyumm on Facebook and Instagram using #Fiftyshadesofyumm.
ENJOY AND HAPPY COOKING!
Recipe
Tzatziki and Feta Chickpea Burger
Equipment
- Food processor
Ingredients
Tzatziki
- 500 mL Sour cream or plain greek yogurt
- 1 Long English cucumber Shredded
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- 2 tablespoon Dill weed Fresh is best
- 2 teaspoon Salt see note
Chickpea Burgers
- 540 mL Chickpeas drained and rinsed
- ¼ Red bell pepper
- ⅛ cup Fresh parsley
- 1 Large Egg
- ⅛ Cup Quick oats
- ½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper ground
- 1 teaspoon Basil
- 1 teaspoon Oregano
- 1 teaspoon Dill weed
- 1 tsp Salt
Burger toppings
- Feta cheese crumbled
- Cucumber sliced
- Red onion sliced
- Arugula
Instructions
For the Tzatziki sauce
- Shred the enire cucumber using a cheese grater and place shreds in a thin layer on a plate. springle liberally with half of the salt (1tsp). Let cucumber sit for 5 minutes to draw out the water.
- After five minutes has passed transfer the cucumber to a double layer of paper towel and wrap it up to completely cover all of the cucumber. Over the sink, start to squeeze the water out of the cucumber. Your paper towel may rip, just get a new piece and continue. You want to keep sqeezing the cucumber to make sure all of the water is out and the cucumber is completely dried out. This step may take some time and some elbow grease! DO NOT skip this step or else your tzatziki sauce wil be extremely runny.
- Once you're sure that the cucumber is dried out combine it in a medium size bowl along with the sour cream, lemon juice, dill weed and remaining 1 teaspoon of salt. Mix well together and serve with your completed chickpea burgers
For the Chickpea Patties
- In your food processor add the can of drained and rinsed chickpeas red bell pepper and parsley. Pulse until all the chickpeas are mashed. There shouldnt be any chunks of chickpeas left.
- Empty the chickpea mixture into a medium sized bowl and add the egg. Mix to well combine the egg. Your mixture should now be very sticky at this point. Add in the oats, cayenne, oergano, basil, dill weed, and salt. Mix together until everything is well combined.
- Place small handfulls of the completed mixture into your burger press or use your hands to form patties to your desired size and thickness. I usually divide into five equal parts and form patties accordingly. Place the patties in a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet and Broil on low for 10-14 minutes flipping halfway. Spray each patty with a thin layer of cooking oil spray for extra crispy burgers.
- Enjoy with the Tzatziki saue, crumbled feta, sliced cucumber, red onion, and fresh arugula
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