Quinoa burger topped with gruyere, sweet potato fries, beer caramelized onions & fried egg

Ever come across a burger that blows all the other burgers out of the water? You know, the one that the second you bite into it, your brain just shuts down and your sole focus is trying to fit as much of the burger in your mouth as possible? Well, for me, this is that burger. I saw it when cruising the internet for new recipes to try. Being someone who likes to try new and weird things, I immediately gravitated to it when I saw that there was a fried egg on top. Then I noticed the sweet potato fries, the beer caramelized onions, Gruyere cheese, and a quinoa burger that has cheddar mixed in, and I was hooked. I immediately went out to the store and bought all the components to make this. I even had to make a special trip to a certain over-rated hipster grocery store the day after pay-day just to get my hands on Gruyere cheese since my local grocery story didn't have it. And let me tell you, it was well worth the trip because this burger is the best thing to ever grace my taste buds.

My pictures do not do this burger justice. Trust me, this burger is amazing. I wish I could say that it's a quick throw together meal that takes little to no work but I'd be lying if I did. Hold on though! Bear with me here. It's most definitely worth the work. When I looked over the recipe and realized what goes into making this, I made triple the burger recipe so that I could put them in the freezer to cook up at a later date. Which, I may have already done two days after making the burger for the first time. What?! They are THAT good! Plus, having the burgers already made made the rest of the process go faster. So, trust me, make a huge batch of the burgers, form them into patties, wrap them in plastic wrap, and store them in the freezer for a later date. ;)

recipe adapted from Half Baked Harvest



*makes about 4-5 burgers

quinoa burgers

• 2 cups cooked red quinoa
• 1 cup cannellini beans, mashed
• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 clove garlic, grated
• 1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 of your favorite burger buns
• 4 eggs cooked to your liking

sweet potato fries

• 4 medium sweet potatoes, cut into thin 1/2-inch thick strips
• 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
• 1/4-1/2 cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 4 tablespoon olive oil

caramelized onions

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 large sweet onions, thinly sliced
• 1 cup beer

1. In a bowl combine the quinoa, mashed cannellini beans, bread crumbs, egg, garlic, chipotle chile powder, salt and pepper. Mix well to moisten the ingredients and then mix in the shredded cheddar cheese. Mix well again and form into 4 or 5 equal burger patties. Place on a plate and put in the fridge.
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
3. Place cut potatoes in a large bowl and drizzle with oil, chipotle chile powder, cayenne, smoked paprika, salt and pepper. Gently toss with your hands or two spatulas to evenly coat. Spread on a baking sheet in one layer. Bake for 15-20 minutes, then flip and bake for 15-20 minutes more. You want the sweet potatoes to be crispy, but not burnt. If you want perfectly crisp fries I recommend spreading the sweet potatoes on a greased wire rack and baking them as directed above. But this way is a bit of a pain. Keep the sweet potato fries warm until ready to top on the burgers.
4. While the fries cook caramelize the onions. Heat large skillet. Add 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook about 15 minutes, stirring frequently, until softened.
5. At this point you want to slowly add the beer, let it cook into the onions, add more and let it cook. Do this until the 1 cup of beer is gone or the onions are caramelized to your liking and the beer has evaporated. Remove from the skillet and keep warm.
6. In the same skillet add 1 tablespoon olive oil. Grab the quinoa burgers and cook until golden and crisp, about five minutes per side. During the last minute or so of cooking add the Gruyere cheese, cover the pan and cook 2-3 minutes or until the cheese has melted.
7. To assemble the burgers, place each burger on a bun, top with equal amounts of caramelized onions and sweet potato fries. Add you egg.