Black Bean Burgers

I’m not sure if it is obvious or not, but I’m trying to find a bit of a balance with my blog. My goal is to provide you with thought provoking health information related to fake vs. real foods. In addition, I’ve really fallen for this world of food blogging and it has helped me gain a renewed love of cooking which had been wavering since my move abroad due to various barriers.

So my plan is to feature a few real foods with recipes each week along with plenty of posts about health and wellness. Have some thoughts? Tell me what you think in the comments today. I’m open to all suggestions and opinions.

Now on to today’s subject – Black Beans!!

Black beans are so popular these days they seem to be a staple in most of our kitchens. I happen to love them. I have them in anything from salsa to salads to my scrambled egg omelets.

We can’t forget that they fall into that category of black foods which offer so many health benefits. In addition, to the protein and fiber those rich, dark pigments provide us with unique set of disease fighting antioxidants.

I’ve had a black bean burger recipe sitting out on my counter forever. I finally got around to trying it late last week and they were so great! They were featured in the August issue of Shape magazine and I highly recommend them.

They tend to have a bit of a summer feel, I know, but they could be just the lighter fair you are looking for among all the heavy comfort food around at the moment.

I followed the recipe pretty closely, however, I used white onion instead of red and I also cooked them in a little olive oil. The recipe had a pico de gallo with it, but I just used some of the same ingredients to make my own salsa. I also skipped the tortillas that the original recipe called for.

Black Bean Burgers
Slightly modified from a recipe at Shape.com

1 tbsp olive oil
16 oz. cooked black beans
1/3 cup onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup panko bread crumbs
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp salt
Dash of pepper

Sautee the onion and garlic in a little olive oil until slightly browned and tender. Mix all ingredients in a bowl, mashing the black beans as you combine everything together (I had to add about a tablespoon of water for moisture). Shape into 4 patties and cook in skillet coated with olive oil until browned on each side and heated through. Top with salsa.

For the salsa, simply chop the following ingredients and toss together with lime juice, salt and pepper.
Tomato
Onion
Avocado
Jarred jalapeños
Cilantro