Garden Fresh Summer Zucchini Burgers
Garden Fresh Summer Zucchini Burgers: Summer is here, and that means it’s time to fire up the grill and indulge in some delicious, juicy burgers. But for those looking for a healthier and more creative option, have you ever considered zucchini burgers? These garden fresh burgers are packed with flavor, nutrients, and are a great alternative for vegetarians. Learn how these green and versatile veggies can be transformed into a mouth-watering summer meal.
These Garden Fresh Summer Zucchini Burgers allow you to use up some of your garden bounty. If you’re growing zucchini or you have in the past you know how out of control a zucchini plant can get. Don’t you just love the one you didn’t see yesterday and now it’s the size of your arm? This juicy burger is a great way to use over sized garden zucchini. Skip throwing it in the compost pile and make juicy burgers instead! With shredded zucchini and onion and a little kick from the cayenne pepper. These Zucchini Burgers are a nice change from the big heavy hamburger.
How to Make Garden Fresh Zucchini Burgers
FRESH ZUCCHINI BURGERS INGREDIENT LIST-full recipe below in recipe card
- 2 cups zucchini (about 2 medium), shredded
- 1 medium white onion, shredded
- ½ cup dry bread crumbs
- 2 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon salt
- dash of your favorite chili pepper like cayenne pepper (I used ancho chili)
- 3 large hard boiled egg whites, chopped (optional)remove yolks
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 whole wheat hamburger buns, split ( I used Whole Wheat Sandwich Slims
- toppings (lettuce, slice of tomato and onion)
FRESH GARDEN ZUCCHINI BURGERS INSTRUCTIONS
- Place shredded zucchini and shredded onion into a cotton towel. Wring out any excess water.
- Pat with a paper towel the zucchini mixture dry. In a small bowl, combine the zucchini, onion, bread crumbs, eggs, salt and cayenne. Gently stir in cooked egg whites.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat, once the skillet and oil are hot, turn down the heat to low (I set mine at 2 on my electric stove). Drop zucchini batter (2 at a time) by scant 2/3 cupfuls into oil; press lightly to flatten.
- The first side of the first batch will brown fast (because the skillet is still hot from the initial heating) so watch it. Once you turn the burger over the skillet won’t be as hot. This will allow the burger to finish cooking. Cook the first side 5 minutes and the other side 10 minutes.
- Take the zucchini patties out of the skillet and onto a paper towel lined plate. Add remaining burgers and also the remaining tablespoon of oil. Press with spatula, cook on low 5 minutes, turn over and finish cooking 10 minutes. Place on a paper towel to drain.
- Serve on buns with toppings.
Zucchini a Very Versatile Vegetable
Put away the steamer and start really creating with this versatile summer vegetable. From savory dishes to desserts the zucchini is the perfect example of taking a fresh garden vegetable and thinking outside the box. Below you will find a small example of what you can create with zucchini. Honorable Mention: Steamed zucchini, fried zucchini and grilled zucchini.
Don’t have a garden? Visit your local farmers market for fresh vegetables.
Zucchini Burger Toppings
You can go with the traditional toppings-sliced onion, sliced tomato and a piece of lettuce. Below are a few more ideas for toppings.
- FRESH BASIL
- CHEDDAR CHEESE
- PARMESAN CHEESE
- BANANA PEPPERS
- FRIED EGG
ADDITIONAL ZUCCHINI VEGETARIAN BURGER OPTIONS
- BLACK BEANS: Drain, rinse, and pat dry one 14 ounce can of black beans. Pour into a medium bowl, using a fork smash the beans, add to the shredded zucchini and onion mixture. Proceed as directed in the recipe card.
- FLAX EGG: Mix into the zucchini burger mixture as a vegan substitute for the egg.
Scroll down to find out about a flax egg. HOW TO MAKE A FLAX EGG: What is a flax egg? Flax eggs are a mixture of flaxseed meal (ground flaxseeds) and water. The flaxseed meal absorbs the water and becomes gelatinous, similar to an egg white. These are a great vegan substitute when you don’t want to use a chicken egg in a recipe.
HOW TO MAKE A FLAX EGG:
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
- 2½ tablespoons room temperature water
- In a small bowl, stir the flaxseed meal and water together.
- Allow mixture to sit for 7 to 10 minutes at room temperature, until thickened into a gel-like consistency (it’s okay if it sits for up to an hour). This makes the equivalent of one egg.
- Stir into the zucchini mixture and continue making the burgers as instructed.
MORE DELICIOUS RECIPES USING FRESH ZUCCHINI
Garden Fresh Summer Zucchini Burgers
These Zucchini Burgers are perfect for those over sized garden zucchini. Skip throwing it in the compost pile and make juicy burgers instead!
Ingredients
- 2 cups zucchini (about 2 medium), shredded
- 1 medium onion, shredded
- ½ cup dry bread crumbs
- 2 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon salt
- dash of your favorite chili pepper like cayenne pepper (i used ancho chili)
- 3 large hard cooked egg whites, chopped (optional)
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 4 whole wheat hamburger buns, split ( I used Whole Wheat Sandwich Slims
- toppings (lettuce, tomato and onion)
Instructions
- Drain zucchini and onion, squeeze out any excess liquid.
- Pat dry. In a small bowl, combine the zucchini, onion, bread crumbs, eggs, salt and cayenne. Gently stir in cooked egg whites.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat, once the skillet and oil is hot, turn down the heat to low (I set mine at 2 on my electric stove). Drop batter (2 at a time) by scant 2/3 cupfuls into oil; press lightly to flatten.
- The first side of the first batch will brown fast (becasue the skillet is still hot from the initial heating) so watch it. Once you turn the burger over the skillet won't be as hot. This will allow the burger to finish cooking. Cook the first side 5 minutes and the other side 10 minutes.
- Take the burgers out of the and onto a paper towel lined plate. Add remaining burgers and also the remaining tablespoon of oil. Press with spatula, cook on low 5 minutes, turn and finish cooking 10 minutes. Place on a paper towel to drain.
- Serve on buns with toppings.
I love zucchini and am always looking for more recipes to make when the bumper crops comes in and I’m being invaded by them. Thank you for sharing this delicious looking burger.
Consider yourself hugged,
http://simpleesue.com/frivolous-friday-bacon-corn-pancakes/
I love this! Why didn’t I think of this? I am using this for the summer. My zucchini is in the ground ready to take off! Thank you for sharing. You should bring this over to Tumbleweed Contessa’s party. http://www.tumbleweedcontessa.com/blog/
Linda
omg omg !!!!! i love it – we just had these for dinner and my 4 year old daughter loved them 🙂
Hi Jenn, I’m so glad you and your daughter loved them. I thought they were pretty delish myself. Thanks for your commit and have a wonderful evening. 🙂
This looks fabulous and so healthy. I, too, have been looking for new ways to use zucs and this looks like a good one. Do you have the nutritional values to go with this? I am on a weight loss program and try to keep track of calories, carbs etc. Thanks!
Hi Claire, The calories are 314 with the bun! 12g fat, 40g carbs. Good luck! 🙂
I just tried these and they were amazing. Thank you!
Hi Lisa,
I’m so glad you liked them. I thought they were pretty tasty too. 🙂
Just have to say these were fantastic!!!! Wish I had more zucchini!! Thanks!
Wow, Sheryl, these look so delicious and I can’t believe how low in calories something that looks this good is! I have to get some zucchini! Pinning and sharing – have a happy Friday and a great weekend!
What a unique idea! I need to try these. Thanks for the dinner inspiration! 🙂
What a great idea to use zucchini in burgers! Love these, Sheryl!
I just had to come back here to print out another copy of this recipe because I am making these for dinner tonight and my first copy has food stains all over it and is hard to read (the true sign of a well-used recipe!). I’ve been making these the last two summers with zucchini from the garden and the time is here again! These are really delicious and unique, and even my husband loves them enough to ignore the fact that there’s no meat in them. :o) Thanks for posting this great recipe!
Lol…Megan. I know what you mean about no meat. Oh well our husbands will live. HA! I’m glad you love the recipe as much as I do. 🙂
Thank you for delicious recipe!
You’re Welcome Martha♥
Everything is better in a burger! Especially vegetables! These look great.
Thank You Mik!