Lentil-Mushroom Sliders with homemade buns

This post and the two following are all about great food for summer get-togethers.

I love tiny food and I've been wanting to make sliders since I first became aware of the trend a few years ago.  These would be a good way to get your friends and family to try something new. It's hard to resist food when it's so miniscule and cute.

I based these on my veggie loaf recipe, replacing the celery with mushrooms and the brown rice with quinoa. Adding the quinoa means dirtying another pan, but they also hold together better than burgers with rice in them. They freeze well and it only takes 2 or 3 to make an entrée-sized serving.

I made homemade buns for them, basing those on the Millet-Pepita Bread.  

I'm linking this up with Meatless Mondays and Vegan Mondays. This is also going to My Legume Love Affair, created by Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook and hosted this month by Aqua of Served with Love.

Lentil-Mushroom Sliders

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup diced onion

4 ounces cremini mushrooms, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup lentils

2 cups vegetable broth, divided

1/2 cup quinoa

1/3 cup walnuts

2/3 cup rolled oats

2 tablespoons ground flax seeds

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon sage

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon thyme

1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste

Heat olive oil in a pot. Sauté onion until tender, about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté a minute. Stir in lentils and 1 cup vegetable broth. Bring to a low boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes or until lentils are tender.

In a small pan with a tight-fitting lid, bring quinoa and 1 cup vegetable broth to a low boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 minutes or until quinoa absorbs the broth.

Pulse walnuts in the food processor until most of them are a powder. (This works best with frozen walnuts.) Transfer to a bowl. Add remaining ingredients, rolled oats through salt. Stir in the quinoa when it's cooked.

Transfer the cooked lentils to the food processor and pulse to mash them, leaving the mixture a bit chunky. Stir into the quinoa mixture.

Form into balls about 1-3/4 inch in diameter, then flatten into patties about 2-1/2 inches across. Brush a baking sheet with olive oil, put down the patties, and brush the tops with more olive oil. Broil for 5-6 minutes a side.

Makes 18-20 patties, 6-10 servings. 

Sesame-Millet Slider Buns

1 cup warm water, about 105 F

1-1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 cup white flour

1/3 cup millet

1/3 cup sesame seeds

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons agave nectar

1 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons vital wheat gluten

1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour (or more as needed)

In a large bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together water, yeast and white flour with a fork. Cover and let stand for 45 minutes to 1 hour. This sponge will bubble up and double in volume.

Add millet, sesame seeds, oil, agave nectar, salt and vital wheat gluten and mix into the sponge with a fork. If you're using a stand mixer with dough hooks to knead, turn it on now. Work the whole wheat flour into the rest of the ingredients.

Knead with a mixer on low for 5 minutes or turn dough out on a floured surface and knead by hand for 10 minutes. If your dough is too sticky to work with, add more whole wheat flour a tablespoon or two at a time. When the dough has been kneaded enough it will not stick to your hands and will spring back when touched.

Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover loosely with a clean dishcloth or paper towel. Set aside to rise until dough doubles in size, about 1 hour.

Divide dough into 18-20 balls and flatten to about 1/2 inch thick and 2-1/2 inches across. Place the buns on a cookie sheet with the sides touching and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.  Heat oven to 375 F. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden on top.