Serves: 4
Difficulty: Easy
Burger buns:
375ml (1½ cups) almond flour or ground almonds
75ml psyllium husks
10ml (2 tsp) baking powder
5ml (1 tsp) salt
3 egg whites
22.5ml (4½ tsp) white wine vinegar
⅞ cup boiling water (quite specific)
1 egg, beaten, for brushing
15ml (1 tbsp) sesame seeds, optional
Burger patties:
800g best-quality beef mince
1 onion, finely chopped
10g chopped parsley
2 eggs
Salt and pepper
45ml (3 tbsp) butter, for frying
Toppings:
8 pieces crispy bacon
4 thick slices of cheddar cheese
4 pieces of lettuce
2 tomatoes, sliced
4 gherkins sliced
1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
A little butter for the rolls
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. To make the burger buns, combine the ground almonds, psyllium husks, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Sieve them well. If not enough ground almond gets through the sieve, replace it with some more. Add the egg whites and vinegar to the dry ingredients and mix well. Add the boiling water, stirring until the mixture is a doughy consistency.
3. Grease a baking tray and wet your hand to shape the dough into burger buns. Place them on the tray, brush each one with a little beaten egg and sprinkle a few sesame seeds on top, if you like.
4. Bake the buns for about 55 minutes until golden and cooked through. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
5. In a bowl, mix together the burger patty ingredients, except the butter, using your hands. Heat a little butter in a frying pan and fry off a teaspoon of the mixture. Taste it for seasoning. Add a little more salt and pepper if necessary.
6. Shape the prepared mince into 4 generous burger patties. Expect them to thicken as they cook, so make them a little thinner than the end size you want.
7. Heat the butter in a frying pan and fry the patties for about 4 minutes per side. Make sure they are dark and golden. Lay the bacon and cheese over each patty and place a lid over the pan for a minute. This will heat the bacon through and melt the cheese.
8. While the patties are cooking, construct your burgers. Start with lettuce, tomato, gherkin and sliced onion, layered with homemade ketchup and mayo. Top the pile with the cheesy beef patty and any other toppings that take your fancy. Finish with the top of the burger bun.
• Recipe courtesy of Jonno Proudfoot, co-author of 'The Real Meal Revolution'...