I am a sucker for holidays so I wanted to do something for Valentines Day. The idea came to mind for heart shaped buns and patties in Valentines colours and this is what I came up with. I am pretty pleased, meets my requirements for holiday themed food!

img_7383

Beet Buns (Makes 6-12 buns depending on size):

1 beet (boiled, save the cooking water)

1.5 teaspoons yeast

1 tablespoon agave nectar

2 tablespoons vital wheat gluten

2 cups whole what flour

1 cup buckwheat flour

Heat 1 cup of the beet cooking water to lukewarm, add the yeast and agave and let stand until bubbly (hooray for pink bubbles!)

Meanwile, puree 1/2 of your beet with some of the cooking water to make beet puree (you will need 4 tablespoons)

Spoon the wheat gluten into one of the measuring cups and top with flour. Measure out remaining flour into a bowl (I used a food processor) and add the beet cooking water and yeast mixture and 4 tablespoons of beet puree. Knead until smooth and elastic.

Place in a bowl and cover, put in a wamr spot and allow to rise for 60 minutes (or until doubled in size)

Remove from bowl, shape into your desired final fun shape and allow to rise again (doubled in size)

Place on baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes

Beet Patties (makes 6-10 depending on size):

These patties make for a pretty substantial main dish; complete protein from the quinoa, a good dose of omegas from the hemp seeds and all the vitamins found in beets.

1 onion, diced

4 med-large mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons dried thyme

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

3/4 cup cooked quinoa

 3/4 cup grated raw beet

1/4 cup shelled hempseeds

1 cup breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons barbeque sauce

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Saute onion, mushrooms, garlic and thyme until mushrooms release juices and pan starts to dry out. Add balsamic vinegar, cook for a minute or so longer. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Place all ingredients in food processor and pulse until ingredients well combined and stick together easily.

Chill for 1 hour or overnight.

Shape into patties and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes, then flip and bake for 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

I am also entering this in the Vegetable Love contest over at Fatfree Vegan Kitchen. http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2009/02/vegetable-love-2009.html

-K

About these ads