Homemade sweet potato buns + burgers {vegan}

(cliccate qui per la versione italiana)

Guys, this a special one! I prepared this recipe over a year ago but for some reason never shared it. It took me foooorever to write down the recipe, but at last here it is. I’d been desperately wanting to make sweet potato buns and, while browsing the interweb to find inspiration, I came across Lady&Pups, Mandy Lee’s brainchild food blog. If you’re not familiar with this beauty please get on it, you will not be disappointed. It’s not vegetarian, let alone vegan, but full of super original recipes and fabulous photographs. I decided to try my luck and veganise these sweet potato buns that, in the original recipe, call for eggs and butter, and that Mandy paired with Mexican chorizo and garlic shrimps while I made sweet potato burgers (cuz you can never have too much sweet potato, am I rite?). To my utter surprise I succeeded in my experiment at the first go!! A true miracle. I was so nervous and excited when they came out of the oven. I had heart-shaped eyes.

Veganising recipes is not always simple, especially in savory baked goods, I find, so I don’t do it often. I got lucky here!

Regarding the burgers I don’t have much to say except they are delicious and super easy and require no fuss whatsoever. Buns and burgers balance each other out here, haha!

Note: I tried making these buns with orange, white and purple sweet potatoes and the best ones are the orange kind, which are fluffier and more moist.

HOMEMADE SWEET POTATO BUNS + BURGERS {vegan}
by Marta Giaccone

Recipe
yields 6 buns + 6 burgers
prep time: 30 mins, cook time: 1 hr 5 mins, total time: 1 hr 35 mins + 3 hrs proofing

Sweet potato buns (adapted from Lady&Pups)
1 tbsp ground chia or flax seeds
3 tbsp water
2 + ¼ cup / 415 gr flour
1 + 1/8 tsp / 6 gr instant dry yeast
¾ tsp / 3 gr salt
½ cup / 125 gr sweet potato, cooked and mashed
½ cup / 125 ml plant-based milk
3 tbsp / 42 gr coconut oil, softened
1 tbsp maple syrup

Method

1. Cook the sweet potato by washing and either peeling and steaming it or pricking it with a fork all over, wrapping it in foil and baking it at 400°F/200°C for about 40 minutes or until tender. Scoop out the flesh.
2. Create the “chia egg”: whisk together chia seeds and water in a small bowl and let it sit for a few minutes until a gel forms.
3. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl: flour, yeast and salt, and whisk well. Add cooked sweet potato, maple syrup, milk, chia egg and whisk again to combine. Add softened coconut oil and knead it in, 1 tbsp at a time. Continue kneading for about 5 minutes until the dough is elastic and smooth (and a little sticky).
4. Place dough in a large, slightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let proof until doubled in size at room temperature (about 2 hrs) or in the fridge (about 18-24 hrs).
5. Transfer dough to a floured surface, punch out the air and knead for a minute. Divide it into 6 equal portions and shape each into a ball (to create a smooth top, stretch the surface of the dough and tuck it underneath itself).
6. Place the 6 dough balls (as far from each other as possible as they will rise) on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and cover with plastic wrap so they won’t dry.
7. Let proof again at room temperature until doubled in size (1 hr or 2 hrs if the dough was refrigerated overnight).
8. Preheat oven to 375°F/180°C.
9. Brush the balls with vegetable milk and sprinkle some sesame seeds (optional).
10. Bake until slightly golden, about 20-25 minutes. Let cool.

Sweet potato burgers
2 cans cooked chickpeas
1 cup / 250 gr sweet potato, cooked
1 onion
½ cup / 30 gr chickpea flour
2 tsp ground chia seeds (optional)
salt
evo oil
lemon juice
handful fresh parsley, chopped

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375°F/180°C.
2. Chop and sauté onion with 1 tbsp oil and a pinch of salt over low heat.
3. Combine and mash chickpeas and sweet potato together in a large bowl with a fork (I like to keep the mix a bit chunky).
4. Add chia seeds (optional), chopped parsley, a squeeze of lemon, salt and 1 tbsp olive oil. Taste and season as needed.
5. Add a little bit of chickpea flour but only if the mix doesn’t stick together enough. I made these a few times and I only needed the flour once.
6. Divide into 6 equal portions, shape into burgers and bake on a lined and lightly oiled baking sheet for about 25 minutes, carefully flipping after 15 minutes.

Caramelised onions
2 onions, any color
1 tbsp maple syrup (or other sweetener)
evoo
salt

Method

1. Make the caramelised onions: chop onions, add 2 tbsp evoo to a pan over medium heat, add onions along with a pinch of salt, stir.
2. Let cook, covered, over low heat for about 10 minutes or until translucent. Add 1 tbsp maple syrup, stir and keep cooking for 5 mins more. Remove from heat.

Dressing
2 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water
pinch salt

Method

1. Make the dressing by whisking all ingredients with a fork in a small bowl.

Extra ingredients
tomatoes
rocket salad
fresh coriander
purple cabbage