I really wanted a more "meaty" burger, not so much that I wanted a burger that was like meat but I wanted one that was more textured. I also wanted a protein burger with lots of mushroom flavour.
So I experimented and came up with this. These are not quick, but can be made in advance, and actually are better when made the day before:
Mushroom Nut Burgers
Preparation ingredients:
6 -8 dried Shitaki Mushrooms, including stems; broken into pieces & soaked in hot water with
1 tblsp miso
Soak mushrooms 'til softened (1-2 hours is best)
1/2 cup ground flax soaked in 1 cup of warm water, this will make a gooey mix which thickens in about 20 min
1/2 cup cooked quinoa
Other ingredients:
1/2 cup of chopped nuts, any nuts you like, preferably raw unsalted. Mixed nut are best, as cashews are soft & creamy, almonds crunchy & other nuts add different textures
4-6 brown or crimini mushrooms roughly chopped
1/2 small onion chopped
3-6 cloves of garlic or more sliced
2 tbsp. wheat free Tamari
1 tsp liquid smoke (optional)
1 tbsp apple sauce
ground chillies/ cayenne to taste
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup of almond meal/ground almonds or more to thicken to right consistency
olive oil for fying
Making the burgers:
Once Shitaki mushrooms have softened chop the stems into small pieces, make sure the rest of the mushrrom pieces are not too huge but big enough to give some texture. Place mushrooms and their stock in a large bowl with the quinoa and the flax mix. This is a bit sloppy.
In a frying pan toast chopped nuts, stirring frequently until just browning, be careful not to burn them.  Add to quinoa mix.
In same pan add a drip of olive oil, just to stop any sticking. Cook mushrooms, onions and garlic 'til browned. Add to the quinoa mix.
Add tamari, liquid smoke, apple sauce and seasoning.
Add ground almonds and leave to sit for 15 minutes.
If the mixture is still too wet add more ground almond.
Cover bowl and put in fridge for at least 1 hour or overnight
Cooking the burgers:
Take a heaped tablespoon of mix and with hands form in to a ball, then flatten to make patty. I usually cook one first to make sure the seasoning is right and  it is not too wet still, if so add more seasoning and/or almond meal and wait 15 mins before cooking the rest.
Fry 3-6 patties in a little oil on a low heat turning after 5-8 minutes. They should be brown & crispy on the outside, hot and textured on the inside. I served them with salad.
I also made this into mini laves and it was really good with roasted  sweet potatoes, veg and vegan gravy.