Black bean and quinoa burgers for vegetarians…NOT!

Not that vegetarians can’t eat them but gone are the days, when veggie burgers were the sole property of hard-core vegetarians. Frankly, as a meat lover, nothing will send me running faster, in the other direction, than the opportunity to bite into a great big dried out tofu burger – YUCK! When I see the pre-packaged ‘veggie’ burgers at the supermarket, I shiver at the thought of someone actually having to eat one. They’d be more aptly named, ‘sawdust sausage’. I don’t want to get in trouble for outing the flavour and texture deficiencies of the tofu based burgers that I’ve chocked down, but I call it as I taste it! Happily, soybean curd isn’t the only option when you’re wanting to downsize your meat consumption but still want a burger with the works.

Black beans, quinoa, a mix of fabulous spices and flavours creates a scrumptious burger. Full disclosure: it’s still beans and vegetables. Your not going to see burger juice oozing after you take a bite. Notwithstanding, the flavour is off-the-charts. Dress it up as funky as you like, close your eyes and bite…

BLACK BEAN AND QUINOA BURGERS
Makes 8 patties

½ cup quinoa
1½ cups water
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 19 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained, divided
1½ cups water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon freshly groung pepper
¼ teaspoon dried summer savoury
¼ teaspoon ground fennel seed
¼ teaspoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon sriracha sauce
1 egg, whisked until frothy
2 tablespoons pepitas, coarsely chopped
8 crusty hamburger buns

THE STEPS:

• Stir quinoa and 1½ cups water in a small saucepan.
• Place over high heat and bring to a boil.
• Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until all liquid is absorbed. – about 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, place extra virgin olive oil and shallot in medium nonstick skillet, and cook over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Stir in ¾ cup black beans, garlic, spices, and 1½ cups water.
• Simmer until most of liquid has evaporated. – about 10 minutes.

• Transfer bean-onion mixture to the bowl of your food processor.
• Add ¾ cup cooked quinoa, and process until smooth.

• Transfer to a large mixing bowl, and stir in remaining quinoa, remaining black beans, tomato paste, sriracha, egg and chopped pepitas.
• Preheat oven to 400°F
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

• Using a large ice cream scoop, shape bean mixture into 8 – ½ cup patties.
• Place on prepared baking sheet.
• Bake 10 minutes, or until patties are crisp on top.
• Flip patties and bake 10 minutes more until both sides are crisp and brown.
• Serve on crusty buns.

THE LOVE: Use the back of a large spoon that’s been dipped in water to slightly flatten the scoops into burgers. The water will keep the ‘burger’ from sticking to the spoon.

Thanks for reading.

photography by michelle