I love veggie burgers — and after a few too many gardenburgers at restaurants with no other vegetarian options, a good homemade one* is amazing.

So when I joined another play food swap I immediately thought of making some felt veggie burgers (since Pearl is also a fan), and after a brief and unproductive flirtation with the idea of tempeh tacos, it was on to the burger pattern-making, cutting and stitching!

I started with a tiny version of each piece (bread x 2, swiss cheese, burger, and lettuce) so I could get the proportions right and try out a few stitching and cutting ideas. Once I liked them (I really love the tiny ones),

I made my real patterns and watched basketball while I cut out 56 (I think?) felt pieces.

A quick trip upstairs to the sewing machine, a baby break, and a last round of lettuce leaves later,

I had all seven burgers finished — one for Pearl to keep, and six to swap!

I didn’t have any sandwich bags, so some pink ribbon had to do instead. (I used red ribbon for my fortune cookies a few months ago, come to think of it.)

So they’re packed up and ready to take to the post office, and I think I might try a side of sweet potato fries next. And I’ll definitely post photos when I get the rest of the play food — the sneak peeks I’ve seen look awesome!

(here’s what I got last time, in a bigger swap)

*My favorites are the one at Detour, the seasonal one at the New Seasons deli (which I had for dinner tonight) and the Chez Gourmet pecan flavor, but I really miss the Monster Burger from the long-gone Daily Grind. Anyone who used to work there want to share the recipe with a fan? Or do you have a favorite to share?