When I first tried to become vegetarian (many years ago), the concept was so new to me that I didn’t really know what to eat. My go-to easy “meals” were those tiny cardboard-flavored frozen veggie burgers. I’d eat them for dinner and I’d bring them to cookouts… they tasted terrible and everyone around me thought I was a little crazy. It wasn’t long until I quit frozen veggie burgers altogether.

A few weeks ago, we gave the Beyond Burger a whirl and wow(!), have plant-based burgers come a long way!

First off, you’ll actually find them in the meat case of the grocery store (which is a place I’m not usually accustomed to going). Second – they really do have a burger-like taste and texture even though they’re completely vegan, made with no soy, gluten, or GMO ingredients – the main protein is pea protein and the pink color comes from beet juice. They’re juicy and substantial, and a quick solution for late summer grilling because you literally just bring them home and put them on the grill. Easy as that.

To go with our burgers, I made a simple guacamole topping:

A tip for grilling the Beyond Burger – they’re easiest to handle if you keep them chilled in the fridge until the moment you’re ready to throw them on the grill.

Because every good burger meal needs some fries, we made some spicy grilled sweet potato wedges to go on the side. The trick is to parboil the sweet potatoes before slicing and grilling. This way, the wedges become fully cooked as the outside chars. After they come off the grill, I sprinkled them with chili powder, smoked paprika, and a little cayenne.

At 20 grams of plant protein per patty, this was really a substantial (and fun!) grilling meal. Click here to find The Beyond Burger at a grocery store near you.