Toward a more perfect vegan burger...

This summer, we're planning to stay close to home. No big road trips, no big visits...lots of time in the backyard and at the pool. If you're not going to have a lot of big adventures, you'd better have some pretty fantastic little ones. This makes perfecting summer food very important. To that end, I'm working on making perfect vegan burgers, so that when we invite non-veg friends over for cookouts, they don't suddenly have something important to do far away. (Also, several friends have recently asked me for vegan recipes, so I'm trying to accommodate them, too.) Let the experimenting begin! (I've included loose approximations of some recipes. Word of warning: I'm really not much for measuring -- I cook by feel, taste, and occasionally good sense.)

I started by making ciabatta -- very easy to do. In fact, I think it's probably the closest yeasted bread to my perennial favorite no-knead in terms of low effort. I've made burger buns before, but I really like the texture and taste of ciabatta much better...

I made tofu mayo, which is ridiculously easy and way better than the stuff in the jar. Ingredients: a box of firm silken tofu, a few teaspoons of mustard powder, a pinch of cayenne, a little agave nectar, a few splashes of apple cider vinegar. Whip that in the blender until it's smooth, then drizzle in good olive oil and continue to whip until it's very smooth and thick. Yum yum yum.

I make caramelized onions for a great pizza (caramelized onion-blue cheese-toasted walnuts), but since going vegan, that has -- sadly -- been off the menu. New use: burger topping. To make them, melt a tablespoon Earth Balance in a heavy skillet. While it's melting, slice an onion very thin (a mandoline gives perfect cuts for this purpose). Brown the onions in the

Earth Balance over medium-low heat for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to get the brown bits off the bottom. It's okay if they get a little brown, but don't burn them. After 30 minutes, add a tablespoon or so of brown sugar and about the same amount of plain yellow mustard. Cook, uncovered, for another 10 minutes. Done. Yum. (You might not want to wash this pan out yet -- I like to cook the burgers in the stuff left in the pan with a little added black pepper.)

Black bean burgers are painfully simple to make, but they do take a little time. Drain and rinse the contents of a can of black beans. Mash the beans in a large bowl (I use my hands to really mash them.) Add A1 sauce and your favorite barbecue sauce, then some breadcrumbs and some wheat gluten (Bob's Mill makes it -- you can find it in the health food section of many grocery stores.) Knead all ingredients together until you get close to the consistency of meat (usually a minute or two.) At this point, I grind in a lot -- and I mean a lot -- of black pepper, then knead for another minute. Form the mixture into a log, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. When you're ready to cook, heat a pan (to medium high) and add oil (or use the pan you cooked the caramelized onions in, and add some pepper). Cut the log into 12 equal parts and shape each bit into a flat burger. Cook in batches, about 8 minutes per batch, turning each burger about 4 minutes in (make sure each side is nicely browned.)

To assemble your beautiful burger, slice a ciabatta in half , slather each side with mayo. Spread caramelized onions on one side, one quarter of a sliced avocado on the other side. place two burgers on the onion side, add a little more mayo, then top with some fresh arugula before adding the top half of the ciabatta. Some people like a little extra barbecue sauce on the side. I can't blame them. Some people also like a beer on the side. They are wise.