I’m currently obsessed with butter beans – have you tried them? Am I the only one that’s just getting into them? I’ve been eating them on salads all week, and I can’t get enough. They’re giant, creamy, and perfect in every way. That’s what she said.
So far I’ve only been able to find them canned, but I’m in search of dried ones so I can make this recipe: Large Lima Beans in Tomato Sauce.
Have a great weekend!
While looking back at the posts from the last month I realized that I’ve hardly posting anything but carbohydrate- or sugar-laden (but awesome) recipes: cranberry-walnut-quinoa bread, pita bread, mac and cheese, pizza dough, sugar cookies, cupcakes, and bagels – oh my! If you were beginning to worry about my health and well-being, I can assure you that my diet consists of more than flour and sugar. It’s just that perfectly browned, crusty loaves of bread are much more fun to photograph and talk about than the veggie wrap that I ate for lunch or the tuna salad I ate for dinner. Trust me, tuna salad does not photograph well. It takes something like these black bean burgers that are not only delicious and photograph well but are also a little more involved than a mixed greens salad or a veggie sandwich for me to mention it on here. I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you how to wash some lettuce leaves, chop some vegetables, and throw them in a big bowl. How to make a decent bean burger is a different story, though, and this recipe is definitely worth sharing.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve always had a fear of making bean burgers. I don’t think I’ve ever tried to make them before, and it’s because I’ve long been under the impression that bean burgers were finicky things that were bound to end up dry and crumbly. If the rumors are true, these burgers are an exception to that rule. They were extremely easy to throw together, and they kept together well in the pan. No crumbling and no dryness; just crispy outsides and slightly creamy insides. For any Minneapolis readers, these are somewhat similar to the southwestern veggie burger at Joe’s Garage, just without the corn and falafel. And the chipotle sauce. And all the other toppings. Ok, they’re basically only similar in that they are lightly fried black bean burgers and I wrapped mine in a tortilla, but they’ve got a leg up on the Joe’s Garage burger because making them at home takes away the temptation to order french fries with basil aioli to eat on the side – a sure win for your arteries.
You could easily play around with the types of beans and seasonings in these burgers. If you want something more falafel-like, you could swap out the black beans for garbanzos. A chopped jalapeno would be a great addition, especially if you topped the burger with salsa and sour cream. Let me know if you come up with anything good!
Black Bean Burgers
Adapted from Gourmet, Feb. 2009
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 tbsp plain yogurt
2 1/2 tbsp rolled oats
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
Vegetable oil for cooking
Buns or tortillas
Lettuce, cucumbers, and cilantro-yogurt sauce for serving (see below)
(Makes two large burgers)
Cilantro-Yogurt Sauce
2-3 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2-3/4 cup plain yogurt
Combine half the beans with the yogurt, oats, cumin, oregano, and cayenne in a food processor. Pulse until it forms a paste. You could also do this by hand, roughly chopping the oats, mashing the beans, and stirring everything together.
Combine the paste with the remaining beans and cilantro. Season with salt, if needed.
Form the mixture into two patties. For lighter appetites or if you’re serving a couple of sides, you could easily stretch this into three patties.
For the yogurt sauce combine the cilantro, cucumber, and garlic in a small bowl.
Add yogurt until you get the desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper.
Heat 2-3 tbsp of vegetable oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers add the burgers to the pan, and cook them until they’re slightly browned and crisp, flipping once. It will take about five minutes total.
Get the buns or tortillas ready while the burgers are cooking.
I broke up about 3/4 of a burger to fit on a medium tortilla, which turned out to be the perfect amount.
I have a bad habit of dousing anything in a tortilla or anything slightly resembling falafel with hot sauce. When I’m at home my falafel hot sauce of choice (as opposed to my egg hot sauce of choice or Mexican food hot sauce of choice) is Red Hot, and when dining out I’ll take whatever kind is available. In an effort to make myself appreciate a broader spectrum of flavors I held off on the red stuff, and I’m really happy that I did. The yogurt sauce and the crisp veggies were the perfect accompaniment to the burger. It’s amazing what you can taste when you’re not preoccupied with your burning mouth and clearing sinuses.
In the days leading up to spring break I was looking for quick, easy meals that I could make out of items in my cupboard. As easy as it would have been to run to Chipotle, I wanted to use up my last couple of eggs and some milk that was maybe a day or two past its expiration date. Great news: I’m still alive!
I’d had a craving for burgers and was initially leaning toward black bean burgers, so I pulled Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything off the shelf and found a few recipes. A few pages beyond the bean burgers, though, I discovered bean griddlecakes. They both sounded appealing and would have been easy to make with ingredients that I had on hand, but I opted for the griddlecakes since they didn’t require the use of my food processor. When I’m faced with having to wash all of the parts of my food processor or having to wash a big bowl, the big bowl almost always wins. Sometimes the easy route does pay off, this time in the form of savory pancakes.
Bean Griddlecakes
From Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything
2 cups cooked or canned beans, drained and dried well
1 cup milk
1 egg
2 tbsp melted butter or olive oil, plus more for cooking
1 cup all-purpose flour
Salt & pepper
Note: Makes about 4 servings
Roughly mash up the beans in a large bowl. I used 1 can of great northern beans and then added black beans until I had 2 cups. Next time I might try using all black beans or maybe pinto beans. Use whatever you have around.
Add the milk, egg, and melted butter. Stir to combine.
Add the flour. Season with salt & pepper. Bittman warns you to keep in mind how salty the beans may be so you don’t over-salt them. I hardly added any salt, and they definitely needed more. If you’re using canned beans I would add at least a teaspoon.
Stir everything together with a fork just until the flour is folded in.
Heat a skillet or griddle to medium-high. Use a little butter or oil to grease the surface, and ladle out a few pancakes.
When bubbles start to form on the surface, flip them and cook until golden. It should take around 4 minutes per side depending on the size of the pancakes.
Serve with salsa, grated cheese, plain yogurt, sour cream, or anything else you can think of.
