Veggie Black Bean Burgers

I've found a burger I really like - we ate them wrapped in lettuce after we covered them in dill pickle slices, ketchup, (relish on my husband's), onion slices and fresh summer tomato. Sorry I didn't photograph the process, but I was just not thinking that it would turn out as well as it did. So I'm posting the recipe, and next time I promise I'll add the way things looked as I go along. This started with a can of black beans (organic, low salt) drained and dumped in a bowl. It would need more salt if you cook your own black beans. I ended up with 7 burgers .. but you could fix that by making them all just a little smaller and get 8 out of it. We ate 3 between the two of us, and froze 4. (I'm so excited about that!)

Veggie Black Bean Burgers (makes 7-8)

Mash together in a medium sized bowl:
1 can black beans
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
1/4 cup roasted corn
1/4 cup chick pea flour
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
1/3 tsp salt

CHOP & THEN STEAM IN A STEAMER BASKET
Small bits but not too finely chopped:
1 small golden zucchini
1 medium-small carrot
1 small stalk of broccoli (1/2 cup?)
2/3 of a small sweet potato
(you could add a little mushroom... or red pepper ... or hot pepper)

Once this is softened, add it to the beans, and combine well.
ADD: 1/4 - 1/3 cup masa harina (flour made from roasted corn - Bob's Red Mill makes a nice one)

Spread about 1/2 cup masa harina on a plate, form patties and gently place one side and then the other in the corn meal. Cook in a non-stick saute or fry pan for about 10 minutes, turning gently. Cook less if you are going to freeze and reheat ... OH YUM!  I promise I'll show you how beautiful these were all wrapped in fresh lettuce and dressed up the way a burger should be!!

Veggie Black Bean Burger Nutrition Facts Serving Size: 1 Serving (118g) Amount Per Serving % Daily Value* Calories 96 5% Total Fat 1g 1% Saturated Fat 0g 1% Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 0% Sodium 381mg 16% Total Carbohydrate 19g 6% Dietary Fiber 5g 21% Sugars 3g 0% Protein 5g 10% Vitamin A 11% • Vitamin C 20% Calcium 4% • Iron 10% * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calories needs. courtesy of cronometer.com using my data.

New Pasta! Black Bean "Spaghetti Shape"

I recently discovered a new way to eat black beans, and a new way to enjoy pasta all in the same bite. It's a little out of the ordinary for me to talk up a particular product, but I'm loving this one and hope it sticks around a while.  This is a "spaghetti shape" that is made entirely of black beans, yes, organic and yes, gluten free.

What could be nicer than sauteed broccoli rabe and garlic on black bean spaghetti shapes? We ate them with grilled red peppers, yellow summer squash and oyster mushrooms, and a cucumber salad, but you could really put anything on these and be thrilled. The texture is wonderful! Flavor great! Protein content terrific! Calories from carbohydrates low! WOW!

I'm loving these new possibilities with "black bean spaghetti shape!"

We roasted some onion slices, button mushrooms, poblano peppers, grape tomatoes and yellow summer squash; tore up some fresh basil, and it was an instant delicious dinner with these noodles.

Since originally posting this, we made black beans and rice in noodle form! Rice sticks and black bean spaghetti shapes cook similarly in boiling water a few minutes, then rinse. You can do anything you want with this -- salsa and guacamole or fresh tomato, basil and fried onions -- but we had an amazing success by stirring in kimchee! What a marvelous dish!

Where to find them?  Well, I bought my first one at the Park Slope Food Coop in Brooklyn, New York but I bought a case of them from this link:  Plum Market!

Black Bean Spaghetti Shape (Noodle) Nutrition Facts Serving Size: 1 Serving (56g) Amount Per Serving % Daily Value* Calories 180 9% Total Fat 2g 3% Saturated Fat 1g 5% Trans Fat Cholesterol 0% Sodium 4mg 0% Total Carbohydrate 17g 6% Dietary Fiber 12g 48% Sugars 5g 0% Protein 25g 50% Vitamin A 0% • Vitamin C 1% Calcium 13% • Iron 36% * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calories needs.courtesy of cronometer.com using my data.