Anthony Sedlak’s World Famous Burger – Veganized!

Hey, it’s vegan Jessica again!  I spent this past weekend with my family at our cabin on Saltspring Island where forced some delicious vegan food on my relatives.  I made Jen’s Chili Non Carne, which we enjoyed again and again all weekend, the Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Avocado Icing, and this next recipe, which is a vegan take on Food Network chef (and local hottie) Anthony Sedlak’s World Famous Burger.  Check out my mom’s funny blog post on a cooking class she took with him.

Anthony Sedlak’s World Famous Burger (Veganized) with Homemade BBQ Sauce and Cabbage Celeriac Coleslaw

Be warned: The BBQ sauce is quite labour intensive but it’s worth it! The original recipe contains Worcestershire sauce, which was omitted to make it vegan.

BBQ Sauce

1 head garlic

1 large Vidalia onion, cut into large slices

1 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

1 cup cider vinegar

3 bay leaves

½ cinnamon stick

1 ½ cups ketchup

¼ cup bourbon, plus a splash to finish sauce

2 tbsp chopped chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

2 tbsp molasses

½ cup brown sugar

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp smoked paprika

Preheat oven to 400F. Slice ½ inch off the top of the garlic.  Place Vidalia onion slices and head of garlic (cut side up) on separate pieces of aluminum foil. Drizzle each with olive oil and salt and pepper, and wrap tightly. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until tender. Remove from oven, let cool, and squeeze out roasted garlic cloves. Discard skin. Maintain oven temperature.

Meanwhile, in a medium oven proof saucepan, simmer cider vinegar with bay leaves and cinnamon stick until liquid has reduced by half, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove bay leaves and cinnamon.

Add ketchup, bourbon, chipotle peppers in sauce, molasses to reduced cider vinegar.  Stir to combine. Add brown sugar, cumin, coriander, pepper and paprika. Stir to combine. Add reserved roasted garlic and onions. Puree with a hand-help immersion blender until smooth.

Transfer mixture to preheated oven and let sauce reduce 20 to 30 minutes, or until slightly charred around edges. Remove from oven, season with salt and pepper and a splash of bourbon.

Cabbage Celeriac Coleslaw

½ head celeriac, peeled and julienned

¼ head cabbage, core removed and julienned

1 ½ tbsp kosher salt

½ small red onion, thinly sliced

¼ cup Veganaise

2 tbsp cider vinegar

1 tbsp grainy mustard

1 tsp ground cumin

chopped cilantro for garnish

salt and pepper

In a large bowl, toss celeriac and cabbage with salt. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes, then rinse and drain. In a small bowl, soak red onion in water for 10 minutes, then drain.

In a large bowl, toss celeriac, cabbage and red onion together.

In a small bowl, combine Veganaise, cider vinegar, grainy mustard and cumin. Add dressing to coleslaw and toss to combine. Garnish with fresh cilantro and season with salt and pepper.

Burger Assembly

I used barbecued portobellos (marinated in olive oil, salt and pepper) for the patty, but your favourite vegan patty will do. Spread BBQ sauce on toasted buns, place patty, put coleslaw on top (I sandwiched the coleslaw between two portobellos). Serve with fries.

Deeeelicious!

~ The Vegan Project