Guest Post Friday Feast: Black Bean Burgers

Della, me, Mary, Courtney and Sarah at Graham and Claire’s wedding

I had so many good friends contribute to the guest posts that the worst part was scheduling each on the calendar… I wanted them all to come out at once! Especially the Friday Feasts when there was only one day for each week to show the recipes, I had to decide the appropriate order. I’ve been very excited about this post and wanted to save it for March because it was close to the spring-time, when perhaps our grills would be out again! This recipe for black bean burgers seems to couple well in my mind with warmer temperatures and increased time spent outside.

This guest post is written by another great friend of mine, Courtney. Courtney and her husband Jeff live in South Bend with their two very attractive children, Rebecca and John. (Rebecca makes her Kate Schmate premiere below!) Jeff and Courtney both went to Vanderbilt with me and JD, but we weren’t very close then. Our mutual love of food, Vanderbilt basketball, plus our good friends has really strengthened our friendship over the past few years. 

I just have to say, Courtney is really cool. She’s an amazing cook, a calm and fun mom, and a very thoughtful friend. I’m extremely blessed to have her in my life. Here is her great recipe for black bean burgers featuring her helpful assistant.

I love a good burger. I do enjoy red meat, but this meatless, black bean burger is one of the best veggie burgers I’ve had. We always have some grocery store brand veggie burgers in our freezer and they pale in comparison to these black bean burgers. Not only are they delicious and have the perfect amount of spice, but they are also super healthy!  On top of that, it took only about 15 minutes to make. The patties can also be made in advance – so you can do the prep work a day or so ahead of time, then just cook them up on the stove when you are ready to eat them. I also fully cooked a batch the other week and froze half of them for a rainy day!

We topped our burgers with some melted cheddar cheese, sliced avocado and lettuce. Next time, I might try some roasted red peppers as well! I served them with a side roasted garlic red potatoes. The burger recipe comes from a blog – www.annies-eats.com – that I check almost daily. Great pictures, great meal descriptions, and tasty outcomes.

Ingredients
¾ cup panko
3 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. olive oil, divided
2 (15 oz.) cans black beans, drained and rinsed, divided
2 large eggs
1 tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely diced
¼ cup fresh cilantro, minced
1 shallot, minced (I used quarter of an onion b/c it’s what I had on hand)

Directions:

• Gather your ingredients.

• Place a medium skillet over medium-high heat.  Combine the panko with 2 teaspoons of the olive oil and mix with a fork to blend.  Add the mixture to the skillet and toast the panko, stirring frequently, until light golden brown.  Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

• Place 2½ cups of the beans in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher or a fork until mostly smooth.  In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, 1 tablespoon of the oil, cumin, salt and cayenne.  Whisk to blend.  Add the egg mixture, toasted panko, the remaining ½ cup beans, bell pepper, cilantro and shallot to the bowl with the mashed beans.  Stir together until evenly combined.

• Use a 1/3 cup measurer to scoop out one pattie’s serving at a time.  Lightly pack into 1/2 inch thick patties.  (At this point the patties can be covered tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 24 hours before cooking.)  Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering.  Carefully lay 3 or 4 of the patties in the skillet and cook until well browned on both sides, about 8 minutes total.

• Transfer the cooked burgers to a plate, tent with foil, and repeat with the remaining oil and bean patties.  Serve warm. They are a little delicate, so be careful lifting them out of the pan.

ENJOY!!

Source: Annies Eats.