Mediterranean Lentil Burgers

These Mediterranean lentil burgers boast plenty of herbs, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, lemon, and garlic. Enjoy on buns with green goddess pesto, lettuce, and tomato for the ultimate veggie burger all spring and summer long. 

Well hello to you all! This post has been a long time coming. I feel badly that I missed out on posting yesterday. This week’s posts will follow a Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday schedule instead. I have spent a lot of time developing and photographing new recipes over the past several days, which has meant that I have not dedicated much time to getting my posts written for the week. I am going to take the next few days off from creating to catch up on things! 

With Mother’s Day coming up on Sunday, I am going to be sharing a few recipes to celebrate all of the moms and motherly figures in our lives. First up is these Mediterranean Lentil Veggie Burgers! While I have a few lentil burger recipes on the blog already (Greek Lentil Walnut Burgers and Hearty Beluga Lentil Burgers), I couldn’t resist creating another one. This recipe is inspired by my Mediterranean Lentil Veggie Wraps, which is my most shared and viewed recipe so far in the history of my blog. I must admit that these burgers are in the running for my favourite veggie burger creation yet. 

mediterranean lentil veggie burgers: the details 

These veggie burgers are fresh and vibrant-tasting yet hearty and satisfying all at once. They hold together very well thanks to oat flour, cashews, and ground flax, and they crisp up nicely in the oven, too. The sun-dried tomatoes, olives, lemon, garlic, onion, and balsamic vinegar in these burgers coalesce into the perfect flavour storm. Serve them with a dollop of green goddess pesto or your favourite store-bought pesto, and you have the perfect veggie burger meal.

ingredients you’ll need 

For the lentil burgers, you’ll need cooked green lentils, raw cashews, rolled oats, extra virgin olive oil, onion, garlic, sea salt, pepper, red bell pepper, dried oregano, fresh herbs (parsley, basil, or mint are all lovely), sun-dried tomatoes, Kalamata olives, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, and ground flax. 

For serving, you’ll need buns, sliced tomato, lettuce, green goddess pesto or your favourite pesto, and any other burger accompaniments that you enjoy. Tzatziki and hummus would also be delicious. 

the method

Place the oats and cashews in a food processor fitted with the ‘S’ blade. Grind into a meal. Transfer into a large bowl. Add the cooked lentils to the food processor and pulse five times. Transfer the ground lentils into the bowl and stir to combine. 

Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and a small pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about five minutes. Add the bell pepper and cook three minutes more. Stir in the salt, pepper, oregano, fresh herbs, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, balsamic, lemon juice, and nutritional yeast. Remove from the heat. 

Transfer this mixture into the bowl of ground cashews/oats/lentils. Add the ground flax and mix well to combine. (I like to use my hands to make sure that everything gets mixed together well.)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and line one very large or two medium baking sheet(s) with parchment paper.

Form the lentil burger mixture into 6-8 patties, depending on your preferred burger size. Place each patty on the prepared baking sheet, leaving an inch of space in between each. 

Bake for 30-35 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through. The burgers are ready when they appear crispy around the edges and they slide off of the parchment paper effortlessly without leaving any residue. 

Serve on buns with any desired accompaniments. 

how nutrient-rich are these veggie burgers? 

You know that I am not a calorie counter, but I do love to know how nutritious a recipe is! You might be interested to know that one of these lentil burgers boasts 17.1 grams of protein, 11.3 grams of fibre, 91 percent of your daily vitamin B6 requirement, and 27 percent of your daily magnesium needs! You can see the full nutritional breakdown on the recipe card. 

mediterranean lentil veggie burgers: frequently asked questions

I want to make these lentil burgers, but I am allergic to nuts. Any ideas for a cashew substitute?
Raw sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds can be used instead of cashews in both the burgers and the pesto. 

Can I make these veggie burgers ahead of time? 
Yes! You can cook the burgers as directed and store them in an airtight container in the fridge for at least five days. Reheat in a skillet or in the oven at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes. 

How should I serve them if I’m avoiding bread/grains? 
Try them in a blanched collard leaf “wrap” or open-faced on socca! They are also delicious atop a bed of arugula with tomato, cucumber, and a balsamic vinaigrette. 

What should I serve on the side? 
I served them with a quinoa, bean, and veggie salad (the one from Oh She Glows Everyday, to be exact), and found it to be the perfect accompaniment. I think they would also be great with my Green Power Salad with Fennel, Cucumber, and Grapes. 

I hope that you love these Mediterranean lentil veggie burgers! If you make them, let me know how you enjoyed them by leaving a comment and rating below the post. And if you share a photo to Instagram, tag it @upbeet.kitchen and #upbeetkitchen. I love seeing what you’ve made. 

Enjoy!! 

Print

Mediterranean Lentil Burgers

---

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 1 review

• Author: Allison
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 6-8 servings 1x
• Diet: Vegan

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

Description

These Mediterranean lentil burgers boast plenty of herbs, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, lemon, and garlic. Enjoy on buns with green goddess pesto, lettuce, and tomato for the ultimate veggie burger all spring and summer long.

---

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Mediterranean Lentil Burgers

• 3 cups cooked green lentils (see note)
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cups diced yellow onion
• 5 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus a small pinch
• Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
• 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 cup fresh herbs, finely chopped (basil, parsley, mint, or a combination)
• ¼ cup pitted Kalamata olives, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds

FOR SERVING

• Burger buns
• Sliced tomato
• Lettuce or arugula
• Green Goddess Pesto or your favourite pesto
• Tzatziki
• Hummus

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

---

Instructions

1. Place the oats and cashews in a food processor fitted with the ‘S’ blade. Grind into a meal. Transfer into a large bowl. Add the cooked lentils to the food processor and pulse five times. Transfer the ground lentils into the bowl and stir to combine.
2. Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and a small pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about five minutes. Add the bell pepper and cook three minutes more. Stir in the salt, pepper, oregano, fresh herbs, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, balsamic, lemon juice, and nutritional yeast. Remove from the heat.
3. Transfer this mixture into the bowl of ground cashews/oats/lentils. Add the ground flax and mix well to combine. (I like to use my hands to make sure that everything gets mixed together well.)
4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and line one very large or two medium baking sheet(s) with parchment paper.
5. Form the lentil burger mixture into 6-8 patties, depending on your preferred burger size. Place each patty on the prepared baking sheet, leaving an inch of space in between each.
6. Bake for 30-35 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through. The burgers are ready when they appear crispy around the edges and they slide off of the parchment paper effortlessly without leaving any residue.
7. Serve on buns with any desired accompaniments.

Notes

How to cook lentils: Place 1 ¼ cups of green lentils in a medium saucepan. Cover with a few inches of water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat slightly and maintain a rolling simmer until lentils are soft and tender but not falling apart, 20-25 minutes. Stir occasionally and add more water as needed. Drain through a fine mesh sieve, measure to make sure that you have three cups, and proceed with the recipe.

• Prep Time: 25 minutes
• Cook Time: 35 minutes
• Category: Supper
• Method: Bake
• Cuisine: Mediterranean