Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers

June 21, 2012June 21, 2012 ~ Crystle ~ 6 Comments

I spent most of this morning looking up new recipes I could whip up with the ingredients I have on hand. I was lucky to come across Meg’s recipe for these tasty burgers. I didn’t want to use quinoa, so instead I doubled the oats portion. I also added unsweetened cocoa powder to make these taste a little bit more like my vegetarian chili. I went ahead and rolled them in Panko to help them develop a crisp exterior. And oops! I forgot the sunflower seeds, but these burgers turned out pretty tasty.

Sweet Potato Burger

Black Beans

Uncooked Veggie Burger Patties

I somehow had these prepped and cooked within minutes of my husband coming home for lunch. I love the illuminated look on his face when he comes home, sniffs the air, and asks “what’s cooking?!” Pure joy.

His veggie burger was served up on artisan bread with iceberg lettuce, 1/4 of an avocado, red onion and provolone. Mine was served in a wheat tortilla, with Dijon mustard, 1/4 of an avocado and arugula. I also threw on some chopped onions on top. It was delicious.

Here’s the recipe, via Meg at Peaches & Cake:

3 cups of sweet potatoes, peeled and mashed
1 1/2 cups of black beans, rinsed (I cook a big batch of these almost every week, but feel free to use canned)
1/2 cup yellow onion
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 1/2 cups of Panko to roll the patties in
2/3 cup rolled oats, chopped finely in a food processor
4-5 tablespoons of minced garlic
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
3 tsp. chili powder
2 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
cracked sea salt to taste
cracked pepper to taste
cayenne pepper to taste

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375°F
Line cookie sheet with parchment paper
Baked sweet potatoes can take up to 1 hour to bake at 400°, feel free to microwave them instead for about 7 minutes. Not ideal, but it works if you’re pinched for time like I was.
Place half the bean mixture in the food processor and chop until they have a mashed consistency
Add all ingredients into large mixing bowl and stir well until they are well mixed
Form into patties about 1/2″ thick, or thinner for more crisp burgers
With your Panko poured into a shallow bowl, lay your patties on the Panko, one at a time. Flip over to make sure both sides are evenly coated with Panko crumbs.
Bake for 15 minutes, flip burgers then bake for 15 more minutes.

With nearly all veggie burgers, it’s fairly easy to tweak the ingredients list to create a delicious meal. If you have a winning combo of seasonings, try it! If you prefer a spicier burger, add jalapeños! The possibilities are endless. We’re having this for dinner tonight, alongside my favorite green bean salad. Can’t wait!

Green Bean, Goat Cheese and Plum Tomato Salad

June 19, 2012December 9, 2012 ~ Crystle ~ 9 Comments

I love goat cheese. I said it. Now it’s a published fact. And maybe some of you can agree.

Unfortunately, there was a time when the green bean was one of the only vegetables to appear on my dinner plate. It was the same period of time when American cheese slices were the on-stock dairy treat and queso fresco was the only backup cheese. Blame it on a single-dad household, blame it on the Mexican heritage. We, as a relatively new American family, could not have known the dynamism of goat cheese. Hey, dad worked constantly and without Mom in the picture, we did what we could.

In this kitchen, goat cheese crumbles fall onto leafy salads. It blends into pasta dishes like an exotic macaroni and cheese, which is exactly how 8 year-old-me would describe it. It also works its way into fruit salads, sandwiches and hors d’oeuvres. It’s our #1 draft pick (can you tell we’re in the midst of the NBA Finals? Go Thunder!) in the cheese section at Trader Joe’s! We LOVE it.

This combo is one that I picked up from Pam Anderson who had a similar combo with steamed potatoes. This recipe requires only three ingredients, and salt and pepper to taste.

Of course you’ll want to rinse and chop off the ends of the green beans before you steam them. You can steam them in your rice cooker like I did, or put a metal strainer in a trusted stock pot with about an inch and a half of water, and boil covered for about 10-20 minutes. Check on them regularly. When they’re cooked, throw them into a mixing bowl with your quartered plum tomatoes (or cherry, or Roma, whatever you prefer). Mix in your goat cheese and season to taste. The goat cheese should melt and coat evenly.

The otherwise unassuming taste of green beans is enhanced by the tart flavor of the goat cheese. Tomatoes add an additional texture to the mix which overall culminates in an excellent side salad.

The beauty of this salad is that you can apply this combo to a great many ingredients. Give it a go with rigatoni instead of green beans. Try it in wheat spaghetti! The possibilities are endless.

Hope you enjoy this recipe inasmuch as I enjoyed eating it. Bon appetite!

Sprouted Lentil Bread

May 24, 2012June 21, 2012 ~ Crystle ~ 7 Comments

This week I worked on cultivating lentil sprouts. It took several days, but it was well worth the wait.

I watched the lentil-filled mason jars on the windowsill diligently, rinsing them twice a day to ensure they were cared for properly. When those tiny green leaves finally emerged at the top of the sprout, it was chow time. I immediately went to work on incorporating them into meals. For lunch, they found themselves sprinkled on our sandwiches. For dinner, they ended up on pizza. And as for the weekly baked good, I baked them into a hearty wheat loaf of delicious sprouted lentil bread.

I’ve heard of people using sprouted flour in their hippie breads, but the recipe I looked up from Trusted Earth called for simply kneading them into the dough. So I did. And it was good. Beyond good.

The crust was artisan-tough, while the interior was soft and springy. Lentil sprouts punctuated the bread with a coarse quality akin to sunflower seeds. It was a fun balance.

I had to refine the recipe a bit, mainly because when the dough hits the mixer to knead on the bread hook, the consistency has to be correct before you can let it rise. At first the dough was too dry and wouldn’t combine. So I had to add water. But I added too much water….so went the game of adding flour and water to get the consistency correct. Typical me, I overlook such things as “let rise in pan”. So I ended up letting this loaf rise 30 extra minutes total. Which in my opinion, is never a bad idea. I find that the longer you let bread rise, the better the end result. Patience is a time honored skill in bread making.

This entire process was extremely cost effective. The dried lentils turned sprouts cost less than a dollar per cup, and we all know flour, sugar etc. is equally inexpensive. The priciest ingredient is the yeast, and I started to buying that in bulk.

I thought I was a true homemaker when I bought my first bag of flour by the 5 lb. denomination, but then I bought mozzarella in a 10 lb. bag and blasted through a quarter of it in the first week. All I could do to cope with this rapid change in lifestyle was sit in the corner and rock myself gingerly, while eating veggie pizza on homemade dough.

Splendid, delicious, life changes.