Homemade Sweet Potato Black Bean Veggie Burgers

So…. we’re trying to decide what to have for dinner – something we haven’t had in awhile.  ”Turkey Burger’s” my boyfriend suggests, but the sound of turkey doesn’t seem so appealing to me.  I’m craving veggies.  I’m craving a sweet potato black bean veggie burger! 

Done.  Burgers it is.  Turkey for him and a sweet potato black bean veggie for me!

They’re really simple to make.  Obviously, more time consuming than putting together a homemade turkey burger (turkey, onions and seasonings), but so worth it.

Ingredients:

15 oz black beans, drained and rinsed

3 cups cubed sweet potatoes

½ medium onion finely chopped

½ cup carrots, peppers (red, green, yellow, orange – you choose) and mushrooms

2 finely minced garlic cloves

½ cup cooked quinoa

6 tbsp partially ground oats

2 tbsp sunflower seeds

½ tsp salt

black pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp oregano

¼ tsp coriander

1 tsp chili powder

1 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

• Cut sweet potato into about 1” cubes, leaving skin on.  Steam until tender.
• Rinse ½ cup quinoa in mesh wire strainer.  Add 1cup water and rinsed quinoa to pot.  Turn heat to med-high and bring to a boil.  Stir once, reduce heat to simmer and cover with lid. Cook for 15 minutes.  Remove from heat and let sit for about 5 min.  Uncover and fluff with fork.
• Pulse oats in blender until you have a half way consistency like that of flower.
• In bowl, mash half of beans until paste-like. Add the rest, slightly mashing and stirring to combine. You want to leave a little less than half the beans in their whole form for texture.
• In another bowl, mash sweet potato.  Don’t over mash – you don’t want a cream substance.
• Stir in salt, pepper, oregano, coriander, chili powder and olive oil to beans
• Add onion, garlic, carrots*, peppers*, mushrooms*, mashed sweet potato, quinoa, sunflower seeds, and ground oats to bean mixture.
• Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking
• From into burgers and place onto lightly oiled baking sheet.  You should get about 8 medium/large burgers.
• Bake on each side for 15 min, flipping once.
• Remove from oven and enjoy!

* steam carrots, peppers and mushrooms for 5 minutes (depending on the level of doneness you want your veggies). I like to leave them a little raw. This way they’re not overly mushy after you bake your burgers.

These tasty burgers can also be pan cooked.  Just add a dash of olive oil and cook on each side for 5-8 minutes until golden brown.

Inspired by http://edibleperspective.com/2011/07/the-burger/