Smoky, garlicky, and full of flavor. The tofu in these burgers absolutely MUST be the smoked kind, otherwise the flavour will be bland.

Makes 6-8 burgers

Ingredients

• 2 medium-large sweet potatoes or yams (the larger the potato the more patties you’ll get without having to adjust any of the other ingredients)
• 210g smoked tofu (1 block) (its gotta be smoked or the taste of these burgers isn’t that great)
• ¼ cup raw shelled sunflower seeds (roasted is fine)
• ¼ cup raw shelled pumpkin seeds (roasted is fine)
• ¼ cup raw unsalted cashews (if you use salted cashews leave out the ¼ tsp of salt)
• 1-2 TBSP Olive oil (depending on how much oil you will tolerate)*
• 5-8  garlic cloves (more if you love garlic)
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper

The oil can actually be left out completely.  I have a convection oven that dries things out a bit, so I like to add a little oil to keep the edges crispy rather than dry.

Instructions

Baking the Sweet Potato and Garlic

Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).

Cut sweet potatoes in half.  Leave peel on.  Cook in a baking dish, lightly covered with foil for 50-60 minutes until soft.  Remove from oven and let cool then peel (I like to eat the yummy peel).   Or bake it your own way!

Meanwhile, wrap garlic cloves in foil.  Place in oven with sweet potatoes for 15 minutes of cooking time (I like to put them in at the end, then I don’t forget them).  Remove from oven, let cool, peel, and chop the bottom end off each clove.

Assembling Burgers

Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C)

Either mash sweet potatoes by hand until creamy or run them through the food processor.  Place mashed potatoes in a bowl.

Crumble the tofu into cashew sized pieces and then place in a food processor  with all seeds, cashews, salt, pepper, and garlic cloves.  Pulse about 17 times or until every thing is in pieces that are slightly bigger than the sunflower seeds.  Add this mixture into the bowl with the sweet potato and mix thoroughly. Add olive oil to bowl and mix.

Using wet hands, form into patties that are about 3” wide and ¾” high.  Place on silicon baking sheet or parchment paper on a regular baking sheet and bake at 400°F for 30-40 minutes until lightly browned.  The burgers will be fairly soft, so handle carefully when removing them from the baking sheet.

Serve warm topped with vegan mayo alongside a Spring Greens Salad with Balsamic Vinegar or Balsamic vinaigrette.