Black Bean Burgers

With quite an interest in the vegan diet recently, I purchased Veganomicon : The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. Although I am not a vegan, I have loved exploring the vegan recipes! I'm trying new and delicious flavors and foods I would have never imagined to try!

So I was browsing through the book and found a recipe for black bean burgers. I have always wanted to try these! 

Ingredients

• 1 (15-oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 vital wheat gluten
• 1/2 cup plain whole wheat bread crumbs
• 1 tsp chile powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro (optional)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 small onion
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, mash the beans with a fork until no whole beans remain (do not puree).
2. Add the wheat gluten, bread crumbs, chile powder, cumin, water, tomato paste, and cilantro, but do not mix yet.
3. Use a microplane grater to grate the garlic in and use a box grater to grate the onion in.
4. Mix everything together with a fork. Proceed to knead with your hands until the mixture is mixed well and firm (about 1 minute).
5. Preheat a pan over medium heat.
6. Divide the burger mixture into 4 or 6 patties (depending on your preferred burger size). Roll each piece into a firm ball. Use your palm to press the ball down on a clean surface to form a patty about 1-1/2 inches thick until the patty is flat on both sides.
7. Pour a thin layer of olive oil into the pan. Cook the patties for 5 minutes on each side, gently but firmly pressing down on them with a spatula. Once cooked, the patties should be very firm when you press down on them.

I ate these two nights in a row. The first night David grilled them for me. I served the burgers with avocado, sliced red onion and tomato. The second night I cooked the burgers stove-top and served them with a mixture of mashed avocado and fresh salsa (a guacomole-type of dip). Both methods worked out well!