I am in love with beans! I often eat them for breakfast and lunch to power-pack my day with fiber. And fiber is the key to a healthy lifestyle. It will improve your cholesterol levels, lower your risk for heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes. Many cancers can be prevented or even reversed by getting 30-40 grams of fiber every day.
Beans are the easiest and fastest way we can load up with fiber. And their flavors just can’t be beat! Did you know there are 101 different beans around the world? That’s a whole lot of options for enjoying plant strong cuisine. And that means, I have so many ways to make bean burgers.
I’ve been having so much fun lately making many bean burgers. Quite often I use garbanzos or kidney beans as a base. Or I might blend 2 beans together, like black beans with kidneys or garbanzos with cannellini. This Savory Bean Burgers has come out of my many kitchen experiments. My husband are son gave it a thumb’s up and so did our club members at our recent “Burger Heaven Cooking Class.”
I prefer to mash the beans by hand rather than pureeing them in the blender or food processor. It gives them more “chew factor” when you leave some whole pieces in there and mash them only lightly. I start out by microwaving the beans for about a minute. This softens the outer coating, making it easier to mash them by hand. First, I’ll do some large mashing, using a potato masher. Then I’ll fine tune the beans by mashing with the tines of a fork. But I make sure that I have some whole beans and partially mashed beans so my burgers will have more texture. Adding mushrooms to the mixture also adds to the texture.
You could also add 1/2 cup of ground nuts to rev up the texture more. But I made this burger to be more on the low-calorie side, so I left out nuts and seeds in this one. But it’s not weak in flavor. You’ll find the seasonings make this a #1 burger your family will enjoy, especially when you pair it with a Mediterranean pesto or a no-oil hummus. I hope you’ll be enjoying it at your next picnic or family get together. You can also freeze leftovers or make a double batch to enjoy later in the week.
Savory Bean Burger
Ingredients
- 15 ounce can of garbanzos
- 1 cup rolled oats can be gluten-free
- 1 cup cornflakes crumbs
- 1 cup of chopped onions
- 2 1/2 cups of chopped mushrooms
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 tsp salt or salt substitute
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp oregano
- 2 tsp paprika
- 2 tsp sage
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp basil
Instructions
- Heat the beans in a small bowl in the microwave for 1 minute (to soften the beans). Mash them with a potato masher. Add the oats, cornflake crumbs and tomato paste; mix well. Then stir in the onions, mushrooms, and all the seasonings except for the dried or fresh parsley. Add this mixture to a food processor, 2-3 cups at a time to make it easier for processing.
- Put the burger mix back into a bowl and stir in the parsley until it is well mixed. Using a large spoon, break off a clump; roll it in a smooth ball and flatten it into a burger shape with your hand. Place the burgers onto a non-stick griddle or frying pan. Brown on both sides over a medium-high heat. Depending on your griddle, this may take only 2-3 minutes for each side. Serve immediately with our New Start ketchup, Mediterranean Pesto or our low-fat mayo. These are great as an entrée or in a bun with all the fixings.
- CHEF'S NOTE: A yummy variation is to add 1 cup of shredded baby spinach leaves. This recipe makes a dozen 3 inch burgers. They are great with a hummus, a low-fat mayo or Mediterranean pesto. You can find recipes for all of these toppings on our website.
