Black Bean Burgers and Cilantro Lime Quinoa

Somewhere in the midst of pantry cleaning, I found myself with 2 cans of black beans and little idea what to do with them, but knowing I wanted to try something new.  In the process, I managed to craft a delicious, vegetarian (not vegan) meal that you might enjoy.  Call it Mexican with a healthy twist.

Black Bean Burgers (adapted from here) Makes 5-6 patties

Ingredients

• 1 shallot, finely diced
• olive oil
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 cans (878g total, or about 31 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 tbsp cilantro
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp hot sauce (I use Frank’s Red Hot)
• seasoning salt

Directions

Cook shallot with 1 tbsp olive oil, in a frying pan on medium heat, until lightly caramelized.  Add garlic and cook another 30 seconds.  Take off heat, and set aside.

In a bowl, mash beans with a fork.  Add in cooled shallot mix, cilantro, egg, salt, pepper, cumin, and hot sauce, mix thoroughly.

Shape into patties (it gets messy), and place on some wax paper for easy cleanup.  Sprinkle with seasoning salt.

Heat up more olive oil in the frying pan on med-high.  Cook patties until golden brown and crispy on both sides.

Optionally, top with sour cream or salsa.

Cilantro Lime Quinoa (Serves 4)

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 tsp vegetable oil
• 3 tbsp cilantro
• lime juice, ¾ of a lime

1. In a pot, bring the quinoa and vegetable broth to a boil.
2. Once boiling, allow to cook covered for 15-20 minutes.
3. In the meantime, mix together vegetable oil, cilantro, and lime juice.
4. Once quinoa is cooked, let it sit for a few minutes to cool, then fluff with a fork and mix in cilantro lime sauce well.

We’re not a family of vegetarians at all, but I tried these black bean burgers purely out of experiment, and they were quite tasty!  Plus, the leftovers were perfect to pack as a lunch – Nick had cheese on top of his, and I topped mine with salsa.  And I am loving this quinoa recipe right now – it reminds me of the delicious cilantro lime rice at Chipotle, but is even healthier.  I’ve also done that recipe by simply cooking brown rice, and then adding the same sauce, and again, delicious.  So delicious I’ve had it by itself as an entire meal.

Do you guys have any favourite summer recipes?