Vegan Mac and Cheese Burgers

 Happy 4th of July! To celebrate I decided to make the most American food I could imagine: a burger (their national dish) made of a soft-pretzel bun, mushroom bacon and a mac and cheese fritter. 

This recipe explains how to make the mac and cheese fritters, roasted tomato and pepper aioli, and mushroom bacon, to make the perfect vegan 4th of July burger! Everything is entirely made out of plants- even the macaroni is made from lentils!

Mushroom Bacon

Roasted tomato, pepper and garlic aioli 

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• 2 Pretzel buns (I use this recipe from Love and Lemons)
• Salad leaves

For the mac and cheese fritters:

• 120g dried macaroni (I make my own lentil pasta for extra protein)
• 60g raw cashews
• 60g carrot, peeled and chopped (~1 large)
• 4 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp melted vegan butter
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tbsp tapioca starch 
• 4-6 tbsp of water
• 4 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
• 4 tbsp flour
• breadcrumbs for coating

For the roasted tomato aioli:

• 12 cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1/2 medium red onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• drizzle olive oil
• dried herbs
• handful toasted walnuts
• spices (I used paprika and chilli flakes)
• a splash of balsamic vinegar
• juice of half a lemon
• 6 tbsp vegan mayo: I used this recipe
• salt and pepper

For the mushroom bacon:

• 150g chestnut or portobello mushrooms, sliced 
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp soy sauce 
• 1-2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp brown sugar or maple syrup (or more/less to taste)
• salt and pepper

Method:

To make the mac and cheese fritters:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil, and add the cashews and chopped carrot. Boil for 10-12 minutes. 
2. Drain and add to a high-speed blender with the nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, melted butter, garlic powder, salt, tapioca starch, and 4 tbsp of the water. Blend until smooth- you may need to add more water. 
3. Cook the pasta, drain, and add back to the pot. Pour the blended mixture over the pasta and stir them together over a low heat, until the sauce thickens. 
4. Remove from heat and leave in the fridge to firm up for at least 2 hours. Prepare the aioli and mushroom bacon as you wait. 
5. Make the fritters: Shape the cooled mac and cheese into 2 patties. I did this by wrapping them tightly in cling film until they were the correct shape, and then leaving them in the freezer for about 15 minutes.  
6. Place the almond milk, flour and breadcrumbs into 3 separate bowls. Dip each fritter first in the flour, then in the almond milk, and finally press into the breadcrumbs until lightly coated. 
7. Bake these in the oven at 200C for about 20-25 minutes, until the breadcrumb coating is golden and the mac and cheese is fully heated. 

To make the aioli:

1. Preheat the oven to 200C.
2. Prepare the vegetables: chop the tomato, pepper and onion into quarters, peel 3 of the garlic cloves, and add all the vegetables to a large baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil and seasoning (salt, pepper, and a pinch of dried mixed herbs).
3. Roast for about 30-40 minutes. Leave the oven on to make the mushroom bacon.
4. Let the roasted vegetables cool for about 20 minutes before blending with a handful of walnuts, spices, a splash of balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, the remaining garlic clove (minced) and the vegan mayonnaise. 
5. Leave in the fridge until ready to use. 

To make the mushroom bacon:

1. In a bowl, toss the sliced mushrooms with the oil, soy sauce, maple syrup, spices and seasoning. Ensure all the mushrooms are well coated.
2. Spread onto a lined baking tray and bake in the oven for up to 25 minutes, until they are crispy.
3. Again, leave the oven on to cook the mac-and-cheese fritters. 

Assemble:

1. Spread some of the aioli on both sides of the pretzel bun, then stack salad leaves, a mac and cheese fritter, and the mushroom bacon. Add more aioli to taste.

Enjoy! And happy 4th of July :)