Wondrous Nature’s Gift: Radiant Sunflower, Part 2 of 3 – Vegan Artichoke and Sunflower Seed Patty Burger & Vegan Sunflower Seed Basil Pesto Pasta

Today, we will use these marvelous sunflower seeds to make some very tasty comfort foods. Let’s start with our first dish, Vegan Artichoke, and Sunflower Seed Patty Burgers.

We will first make the vegan patties. Start by using a blender to puree the vegetables. Put in half a cup of cubed carrots, half a cup of basil leaves, one cup of oil to marinate the artichoke hearts, and one cup of cubed cooked potatoes. Cover the lid and puree for one minute. Then we add one tablespoon of fruit vinegar, half a tablespoon of vegan Dijon mustard, half a cup of sunflower seeds, half a tablespoon of olive oil, half a teaspoon of smoked paprika, half a teaspoon of cumin powder, and half a tablespoon of white vegan miso. Puree for 20 seconds.

Next, we will fry the patties. When the bottom of the vegan patties turns golden brown, top it with one slice of vegan cheese on each one and leave them in the pan for one more minute until the vegan cheese slices begin to melt.

Spread a generous amount of vegan mayonnaise on both sides of the bun. Place some lettuce leaves on the bottom half of the bun, then add the fried vegan patties with vegan cheese slices, a tomato slice, another layer of lettuce leaves, a handful of sunflower sprouts, and finally cover with the top side of the bun. Use a skewer to secure the burger bun. Voilà, our delicious homemade vegan burger is ready.

Now we will cook our second dish, Vegan Sunflower Seed Basil Pesto. First, we put two cups of freshly washed basil leaves into the blender and use a spatula to press down. Then add half a cup of raw or roasted sunflower seeds, half a tablespoon of nutritional yeast, salt to taste, some freshly ground mixed peppers, half a cup of olive oil, and half a tablespoon of lemon juice.

Let’s sauté the vegetables first. It’s time to cook the pasta. When the pasta is cooked, let the water drain away and transfer the pasta into a large bowl. Add three to four tablespoons of Sunflower Seed Basil Pesto and drizzle a similar amount of boiled water onto the pasta. Toss the pasta and pesto until well mixed. To plate the pasta, first place some freshly cut lettuce leaves, the pesto tossed pasta and some of the stir-fried veggies. Finally, sprinkle some sunflower seeds and garnish with fresh basil leaves. Here is our delicious and aromatic Vegan Pasta with Sunflower Seed Basil Pesto.