Spinach Veggie Burgers

Quick update: the spinach veggie burgers were talked about for at least several days after the first batch, so they were made again. This makes it on the list of faves for future lists of weekly meals. Nico, this time around, I got some pics. 



Served alongside some garlic-chive mashed potatoes



Spinach Veggie Burgers



Patties ready to hit the frying pan. The extra oil helps the patties not stick to the pan.



Yum





Karl, the ever discerning food critic, made the following statements after a few bites of these spinach veggie burgers:

OMFG! These are ridiculous!

What is in these? Ice cream?!

These could win over a meat addict.

To me, these tasted like spanakopita veggie patties - all the yum of spanakopita, without all the work.  I was excited to try these when I saw them on Kate's Mainly Veggie blog.  I found myself nodding in agreement with her love for spinach and feta and how they were meant to be together.  I enjoyed these because they have everything that I would want in a veggie burger: texture that is more like vegetables and less like meat, a hearty patty that is packed with flavor, but doesn't dry out when cooked, a patty that can stand alone, or get served on a bun.
These turned out awesome.  Below, I have written out my version of the recipe with ingredients I had or could find easily here. I threw together some breadcrumbs to mimic stuffing, so I have incorporated the spices below.  I really liked the way the fresh spinach turned out.


Ingredients:
Yield: 4 large patties, or 6-8 medium ones. 
1 large bag fresh spinach (baby spinach is fine), washed and drained OR 1 10 oz package frozen spinach, thawed.
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp olive oil
2 slices hearty whole-grain bread, cut into 1 cm chunks, plus
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs (you can use 1 cup herb-seasoned stuffing instead) see note below
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp green zatar (optional)
1 tsp dried onion flakes
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dill
1 tsp oregano
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup to 3/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
fresh pepper
1/4 cup flour (optional)
Note: the breadcrumbs plus Panko should total 1 and 1/2 cups


Directions:
1. Preheat broiler.
2. Place the bread crumbs plus Panko in an oven-safe pan. Mix in the salt, green zatar, onion flakes, garlic powder, dill and oregano.  Stir to combine and set under broiler until lightly toasted and dried out (about 5-10 minutes).  Watch carefully to avoid burning. 
3. Wash the spinach and set in a large colander to drain. 
4. Heat up a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add in spinach (you may need to do this in batches). Cook the spinach until wilted, and most of the water has evaporated.
5. Remove the cooked spinach, allowing it to drain in a colander. Once cool, squeeze out extra water.
6. In a large mixing bowl, add in 1/4 cup olive oil, breadcrumbs, spinach, eggs, and feta. Top with fresh cracked black pepper.  Stir to combine everything. If the mixture is too dry, you can add in extra breadcrumbs. The right consistency is when you can make a patty without it falling apart.
7. Heat up the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
8. Carefully, place the patties in the pan and cook 3-5 minutes per side.


Serve immediately.