Meatless Monday Meatless Sliders
Sunday, September 26, 2010 at 8:26PM 
It’s Meatless Monday and we’re havin’ a slider party! And yes, folks that’s a meatless slider. Inside that lovely little homemade dinner roll is a scrumptious little veggie burger topped with smoked Gouda and drizzled with a very tasty tamari soy reduction. More about that reduction later, but the little veggie burger inside our slider was one of the best I’ve had. I got the recipe from the files of the Culinary School of the Rockies (see sidebar), and unlike other veggie burgers I’ve tasted, this one was super moist and flavorful. It also held together really well.
Our tasty little mini burger is comprised of a combination of breadcrumbs, eggs, grated carrots, chopped mushrooms, toasted hazelnuts, grated onion and a little milk. The original recipe called for chopped walnuts, but I had some toasted hazelnuts in the freezer and they were a very flavorful addition.
Of course, you can top these sliders with anything you want, but that tamari sauce may have just stolen the show. It’s very potent, so just a little drizzle is all you need, but it’s exactly what transforms these from being very good into the realm of the extraordinary. You certainly don’t have to make your own dinner rolls. I used the Cooks Illustrated recipe and they were really wonderful. But any little roll will do. (They just have to be fresh and warm.)
Although these sliders would be perfect for your next Meatless Monday Night Football party, I think they’re good enough for any party. And I’m pretty sure you’re not going to miss the meat.
Meatless Sliders
Ingredients:
4 cups whole wheat bread crumbs
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts, hazelnuts or almonds
2 cups grated carrots
1 cup finely chopped mushrooms (food processor works great for this)
4 Tbs. grated onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
3 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup + 1 Tbs. milk
Olive oil for cooking
Sliced smoked Gouda Cheese
20 dinner rolls
Tamari reduction sauce (optional, not really)
Place the nuts in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped Combine the nuts with the ingredients and form into little burgers. Heat olive oil in a medium skillet until brown the burgers on all sides. Place a slice of cheese on each burger and heat until cheese melts. Place on buns and drizzle with the tamari reduction.
Tamari Reduction:
1 tbsp. grapeseed oil
1 tbsp. butter
½ cup mirin
½ tsp. tarragon
½ tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. Pollen Ranch Fennel Pollen
3 tbsp.aged tamari soy sauce
Place skillet over medium heat. Add grapeseed oil and butter to skillet and heat. Add the mirin, turn heat up to medium high and cook until sticky bubbles form. Lower heat to medium and add tarragon, pepper and fennel pollen. Add tamari and continue to cook another 5-10 minutes, until the sauce becomes thick and a little syrup-y.
Reader Comments (5)
These look great! Really different, and perfect for those nights when you're meatless.
I gotta say, these little things were really tasty!! Amazing flavors in such a small little package. Those are good looking husband fingers holding on to that tiny burger too! When do we get to eat these again?
Yes, those are very good-looking husband fingers in that photo :) And I can promise you that we're going to be eating these again VERY soon. Glad you liked them.
I thought it was chicken at first glance! I'm so intrigued by this, I have to try them, I know they're good because the husband confirmed it, but I want those perfect buns you made!
Those little buns really were amazing, Marie. I used a recipe from Cook's Illustrated and there's a link to that recipe there in the post. The recipe makes enough of those buns to use for other things too. We loved 'em.