Top 5 Vegan Burgers

Veggie burgers are popular with those of us who like to eat healthy, but not all veggie burgers are created equally. Many well-known brands contain cheese, egg whites, or other animal products. For people who follow a vegan lifestyle or are trying to cut down on cholesterol, these additives may not be acceptable.

Some popular producers of veggie burgers, like Boca, Morningstar Farms, Lightlife, and Yves make vegan versions, but none of them are on my favorites list. Some brands of vegan burgers are dry, tasteless, or taste too much like soy and nothing else.

Thankfully, there are some super-tasty vegan burgers currently on the market. These delicious vegan burgers are made from a mixture of soy, nuts, brown rice, and veggies. Vegan burgers without soy or gluten are also available for folks with allergies.

I've tried just about every brand and version of vegan burgers. This is a list of my top 5:

1. Amy's California Veggie Burger-There are two schools of thought when it comes to veggie burgers. Some people prefer a burger that tastes and feels like a "meat" burger, while others like a veggie burger that tastes like grains and veggies. I prefer the latter, so I'm putting this burger first. Amy's California Veggie burger is made from grains, organic vegetables, walnuts and mushrooms. These vegan burgers taste great and they stay moist after cooking. They have a good texture, and an excellent blend of spices and flavors. Calories: 140. Fat: 5 grams (0.5 gram saturated).

2. Amy's All American Veggie Burger-If what you're craving is a grilled, hickory-smoked veggie burger, this vegan version fits the bill. This is a firm, hearty burger that will stand up to grilling. The All American contains soy, organic grains, and organic vegetables. These re the tastiest "meat" type vegan burgers I've tried. Calories: 120. Fat: 3 grams (0 saturated).

3. Sunshine Burgers Garden Herb-Sunshine Burgers are not by any means meat imitations. The main ingredient of them is sunflowers. For instance, the Herb Burger contains only organic sunflower seeds, carrots, brown rice, herbs, and sea salt. They contain no gluten or soy. Maybe the reason I like these so much is because each little burger contains 13 grams of fat. But it's good fat, so it's okay! Sunshine Burgers can be found at Whole Foods or other healthy food stores. Calories: 190. Fat: 13 grams (1.5 grams saturated).

4. Amy's Texas Veggie Burger-This is a barbecue flavored vegan burger made from soy, grains, and vegetables. Like the other Amy's burgers, these are superior to almost all the other vegan burgers on the the market. These burgers are hearty enough to throw on the grill. Calories: 120. Fat: 2.5 grams (0 saturated).

5. Gardenburger Garden Vegan Burger-Gardenburger has been around forever and is readily available in grocery stores with natural food sections. I like this burger because of the kind of crispy outsides of the burgers after you cook them. They're also pretty tasty for how low in calories they are. Calories: 80. Fat: 1 gram (0 saturated).