I used to buy a ton of frozen veggie burgers.  They were easy, they were fast, they were healthy, right?

Well, after some careful consideration I realized that, for me, the long lists weren’t the best option.

So, I started my hunt for something better.

Sunshine Burgers are a favorite of one of my favorites.  I did a little research and found out that they were in fact ‘simply natural.’ They’re also dairy free, soy free, wheat free and dairy free.

Check out the story of the founder, Carol, and her youth as a closet vegetarian.  Too cute.

Well, Carol was kind enough to send me some coupons to try the products so I made the trek (ahem block and a half walk) to Whole Foods to pick up a box.

They come in original, garden herb, southwest, barbecue, falafel and breakfast.

The Southwest Burger sounded just about right for me, so I went for it!

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Ingredients: Organic Ground Raw Sun-flower Seeds, Organic Brown Rice, Organic Carrots, Organic Black Beans, Organic Bell Peppers, Organic Cilantro, Organic Garlic, Organic Jalepeno Peppers, Organic Ground Cumin Seeds, Organic Onion, Sea Salt

Oh my, these are so good.  They’re not at all like the other veggie burgers I’ve tried.  This wasn’t trying to mimic meat at all, which is a good thing to me (if I wanted some, that’s what I’d have, generally).  Instead, it was just a really hearty patty with great flavor.  I love the spices in this dish, so it was an easy sell for me though.  I also loved the addition of Jalapeño peppers which gave the burger some heat without making it spicy.  I would liken the texture to a homemade bean burger but better with the addition of the ground sun-flower seeds. (Plus I like when you can see the ingredients in a burger- and not just this patty of something).

I would try to recreate this, but Carol got it right…. I’ll just stick with her :)