PALUTENA - Green Goddess Greek Veggie Burger

Complexity: ★★☆☆☆

My immediate thought for Palutena was to make something with green goddess dressing - I mean, it couldn't be more perfect for the divine, green-haired lady herself! Plus you know how much I enjoy puns when coming up with these recipe ideas! The green color of all the fresh herbs in this sauce are a perfect fit for Palutena.

The Kid Icarus series is inspired by Greek mythology, so I went in a similar direction as my recipe for Pit by making a dish inspired by Greek cuisine. This naturally led me to the idea of making a spin on a Greek salad, also known as horiatiki, but with green goddess dressing instead of the usual olive oil.

But I wanted to do something a little more unique, and honestly, a salad just didn't seem right for Palutena. In Kid Icarus Uprising, she's depicted as having quite a voracious appetite - she and Pit always seem to be thinking about food! In fact, in 2012, Nintendo released a full animated short called "Palutena's Revolting Dinner," which was all about how Palutena's fondness for food often leads her into trouble! I don't think a simple salad would cut it for the Goddess of Light - so I decided to make a horiatiki-inspired veggie burger!

This burger patty is made with chickpeas (giving it a sort of falafel vibe), as well as shredded carrot - a nod to the mischievous carrots that come to life in the previously mentioned Kid Icarus animated short! I flavored it with oregano, the classic herb used in Greek salad, and used all of the traditional ingredients as toppings: tomato, cucumber, red onion, kalamata olives, and crumbled feta cheese!

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INGREDIENTS

Green Goddess Sauce:

• 1 egg yolk

• ½ lemon, juiced

• 1 tsp Dijon mustard

• ¼ cup light olive oil

• 1 cup fresh parsley leaves

• ¼ cup chives, minced

• 2 tbsp tarragon, chopped

• 2 tbsp oregano, chopped

• 1 tbsp mint, chopped

• 1 tbsp capers

• 2 tsp anchovy paste, or 1-2 whole anchovies (if you want it fully vegetarian, use a few drops of vegan worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, or tamari instead)

• 3 cloves garlic

• 2 tsp salt

• 1 tsp black pepper

• ¾ cup Greek yogurt

Greek Veggie Patties:

• 4 cups dried chick peas

• 3-5 cloves garlic, minced

• The juice of half a lemon

• 1 large egg

• 1 cup oat flour (or just blend whole oats into the mixture)

• 1 cup grated carrot (about one medium carrot)

• 1 small red onion, finely chopped

• 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped

• ¼ cup parsley, finely chopped

• 2 tsp dried oregano

• 1 tbsp salt

• 1 tsp black pepper

• Vegetable oil

• Hamburger buns

Burger Toppings:

• Shredded iceberg lettuce

• Sliced cucumber

• Sliced red onion

• Sliced tomato

• Crumbled feta cheese

• Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced

PREPARATION

For green goddess sauce:

1. Add egg yolk, lemon juice, and mustard to a blender. Pulse several times until smooth.

2. Gradually stream in the olive oil while continue to blend until emulsified.

3. Add parsley, chives, tarragon, oregano, mint, capers, anchovy paste, garlic, salt, and pepper. Puree until smooth and homogenous.

4. Mix in the Greek yogurt until fully combined. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For veggie patties:

1. Soak and cook chickpeas according to package directions (this may require several hours of soaking in advance, so plan ahead! or, save time by using drained canned chickpeas.)

2. Add chickpeas to a food processer and puree until smooth.

3. Add garlic, lemon juice, egg, oat flour, salt, and pepper. Process for a few more minutes until well combined.

4. Add carrot, red onion, bell pepper, parsley, and oregano. Pulse a few times, enough to incorporated everything while still leaving some individual pieces.

5. Form into hockey puck shaped patties. Heat oil in a large skillet and fry veggie patties, about 5 minutes on each side, until golden brown.

6. Add to a toasted hamburger bun, top with green goddess sauce and your choice of toppings: lettuce, tomato, cucumber, red onion, kalamata olives, and crumbled feta cheese!