Chickpea Spinach Burgers - Seriously - I Promise They Are Delicous

Ok we are always looking for variations on burgers in our house because our kids love them.  For our kids we slap a piece of cheese on top and they will eat it up no matter what type of veggies we put in there. I stumbled across this gem the other day and we love it. I know it sounds strange, but give it a try and see what you think.  I like to make mine while the kids eat lunch, store in the fridge, and cook up right before dinner.  

Here's What You Need:

-1 medium onion

-3 cloves garlic crushed

-1 15 oz can chickpeas drained and rinsed

-1 bag of spinach leaves

-1 carrot grated

Here is my carrot - I got tired of grating and you can see where I just sliced after a bit!

-1.5 tablespoon soy sauce 

- 1 tsp cumin

- 2 tablespoons of peanut butter

- 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast

-1/2 cup whole wheat flour

(can add in 1 tsp hot sauce, but I leave that out)

Here's What You Do:

1.  Saute the onion in water on a pan over medium heat until soft.  

Then add in your garlic and cook for another minute.

2.  Add in chickpeas, spinach, and carrot and cook until the spinach is fully wilted and the carrot is soft.

3.  Dump all of this into a mixing bowl and add in the soy sauce, cumin, peanut butter, nutritional yeast, hot sauce (if using), and flour.

4.  Allow this mixture to cool (this is where I pop mine in the fridge and finish right before dinner).

5.  In spoonfuls about 1/3 cup full, form the mixture into thick patties and lightly pan fry using extra virgin olive oil over medium heat until browned on both sides.

I served mine up with a whole wheat bun, a bit of spinach on top (you can never have too much spinach), a sweet potato and steamed veggies. I forgot to take a final picture because I was too hungry and these smelled too good.  This meal is delicious and satisfies my need for a juicy sandwich in a healthy way. Come on and give it a try! I want to hear what you think.  

ps - sorry for the pictures. I know I need a better camera than my phone to really make these look as good as they are.  Soon - soon I'll upgrade my camera!

Love, 

We have a new challenge starting up January 27th. I'm so excited because it is obvious (I mean look at those before and afters) that this stuff works. I love seeing my challengers reach the goals they are setting for themselves.  So proud of each of them and I want YOU to be my next before/after success story. Leave a comment here and I'll send you more information.  

Original recipe from here:http://taleoftwovegans.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/chickpea-spinach-burgers/

Black Bean Burgers with Tortilla Breading

A friend sent me this recipe and we love it.  It makes hearty, flavorful burgers.  The prep time is longer than the burger found here, but the result is a thicker, better burger. So if short on time, the other burgers are a quick fix. But these burgers stand the test of heartiness.  

 Here is what you need:

Breading Ingredients 

• 2 15 ounce cans black beans
• 6 tablespoons of salsa
• 6 tablespoons of onions finely diced
• 3/4 cup of red peppers finely diced
• 3 tablespoons of cilantro chopped
• 1 1/2 cups of plain dry breadcrumbs
• 1 large clove garlic minced
• 1/4 cup poblano peppers (I didn't do that because of spices with kids)
• 1/2 tsp hot sauce (I didn't do that either)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• For the tortilla chip breading mix 1 1/2 cups of tortilla chips crushed and 1 tsp ground cumin

Here is what you do:

All mashed up and ready to form!

• Drain and rinse the beans in cold water. 
• Add drained beans and all other ingredients except for tortilla chip breading into a mixing bowl. 
• Blend well by mashing some of the beans to form a thick mixture.
• We formed 7 patties but the original recipe called for 6.
• Roll the patties into the tortilla mixture.
• Heat skillet and saute the patties in just enough oil to brown cakes and heat through!  
• Serve with fresh salsa!

All browned up and ready to eat!

Let me know what you think about these guys. We really like them. They fill us up in a healthy clean way. I love the flavor and the little bit of crunch we get!  Tonight we served on whole wheat buns with sweet potato fries and steamed veggies.  Try them - remember what I say!  Action.Changes.Things!

Love ya!