Black Bean Quinoa Burgers Recipe

I've seen quite a few black bean quinoa burger recipes recently on Facebook, Pinterest and in Vegetarian Times Magazine.  I figured I should stop fantasizing about them and just make some already.  Glad I did!  In typical Debi fashion, I adapted my recipe based on a few that I've seen and made it my own.

Crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside.  Perfect!

 I love quinoa.  It's a nutritional powerhouse food and I'm happy to incorporate it into my meals.  Black beans are another healthy food and they pair very well with quinoa.  A few spices, onion, garlic and my favorite oil - coconut - and I was off & running.  Well, off & cooking actually.

Ingredients:

• 1 can of salt-free organic black beans (I like Eden Organic brand)
• 1.5 cups cooked quinoa
• 1/4 cup diced onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• generous sprinkle of steak seasoning (I like Omaha Steaks seasoning)
• coconut oil
• 3T salt-free tomato sauce or paste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  In a small saucepan over medium heat, add 1/2T coconut oil.  Saute onion for about three minutes until translucent then add garlic.  Remove from heat before the garlic begins to brown.

Rinse beans very well under cold water and drain.  In a mixing bowl, add 3/4 of the beans and mash with a potato masher.  Add cooked quinoa, onion & garlic, cumin, steak seasoning and tomato sauce.  Mix well and add rest of the whole beans.  Once those are incorporated, set the bowl aside.

Take a baking sheet and line with non-stick foil (not necessary, but helpful).  Brush foil with coconut oil.  Scoop the quinoa black bean mixture into round heaps onto the pan (mine made 4 good sized burgers).  Brush the tops of the mounds with a little more coconut oil and use a spatula to press them into burgers.  (I rolled mine by hand and formed them into patties - but it was messy.  You can choose how you prefer to make your burgers).

Place baking sheet on top rack in oven and bake the burgers for about 10 minutes.  Flip burgers and cook an additional 8 to 10 minutes.  I turned on the broiler for the last 6 minutes of cooking time to make the burgers crispier.  (I'd recommend that step!)

Serve with a Greek yogurt sauce or guacamole.  These can go on a bun or in a lettuce wrap.  Whatever suits your fancy.  I skipped the bread and topped mine with homemade guacamole.  I also served it with fresh, local corn on the cob and chard sauteed in coconut oil with a drizzle of Bragg's Liquid Aminos.

Here's how I made my guac tonight.  Since it was only for Josh & me, I only used one avocado.  Mash avocado by hand and add around 1/4 cup (or a little less) diced red onion.  Add a sprinkle of granulated garlic & cumin.  I chopped a small yellow tomato and tossed that in there.  When I make guac, I usually add the juice of a lime and diced jalapeno but I omitted those tonight since it was such a small batch.

Helping hands mashing the beans

Mashed beans

Coconut Oil - I use it for everything!

This is what your onion & garlic should look like

Here's the mixture with all ingredients added & mixed

I love storing my greens in vases of water - it looks beautiful in the kitchen

Homemade guacamole

My dinner plate!

Cooked perfectly!