Pumpkin and Whole Wheat Couscous Burgers
The pumpkin burgers are a tasty main course perfect for the autumn season. Here is our version with couscous. The recipe for pumpkin and whole wheat couscous burgers is by our Anna Attanasio from Giallo Zafferano.
Ingredients:
- 200 g of pumpkin pulp (already cleaned)
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 slice of onion
- 1 sprig of rosemary (optional)
- 100 g of whole wheat couscous
- 100 g of hot water
- 1 medium egg
- 30 g of grated cheese (Grana, Parmesan, or Pecorino)
- fine salt to taste
- ground black pepper to taste
- Breadcrumbs as needed (if necessary)
Preparation
Clean the pumpkin: peel it, remove the internal filaments and seeds, and cut it into cubes. Finely chop the onion and place it in a pot with the extra virgin olive oil, let it soften, then add the pumpkin cubes, lightly salt, cover, and cook for about 10 minutes, optionally add chopped rosemary needles.
If necessary for cooking, add a ladle of broth or a little hot water. When the pumpkin is cooked, mash it with a fork and let it cool. Pour the whole wheat couscous into a bowl, add a pinch of salt, add the hot water, stir, cover, and let it rehydrate for 10 minutes.
After the resting time, fluff it with a fork. Add the pumpkin pulp to the fluffed couscous, add a pinch of fine salt, a grind of black pepper, grated cheese, and the egg, and start mixing.
If the mixture is too sticky, add a few tablespoons of breadcrumbs. Pour 2 or 3 tablespoons of the mixture into a round pastry cutter with a diameter of about 8-10 cm (or a hamburger press) placed on a sheet of parchment paper. Press the mixture inside the pastry cutter with the back of a spoon, forming an even layer.
Alternatively, you can take pieces of the mixture, roll them between the palms of your hands to form a ball, and then flatten them to form the burgers.
You can cook the burgers in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, turning them after 2 minutes, or in a preheated oven at 200°C for about 12-15 minutes, turning them halfway through cooking.
