Spicy Mexican Bean Burgers

I'm a huge fan of veggie burgers. 

Or as The Donald would say,
Uuuuuge.

They are so versatile, filling & packed full of nutrient dense whole foods. They leave you satiated and satisfied without a single ounce of guilt, & they are so simple. You can add pretty much any combo of veggies to mashed up beans, a little flour or oats & some spices to come up with delicious homemade burger.

Plus they are a buttload cheaper than the veggie burgers you can buy at the supermarket. And you can double the batch and freeze the burgers so you always have a quick, healthy option for when you are short & looking for a quick fix.

Spicy Veggie Burgers {6 large patties}

• 1 can Eden Organic black beans
• 1 medium carrot, grated or chopped
• 1/4-1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 2 cooked medium to large sweet potatoes, about the size of a fist or a little larger
• 1 cup sweetcorn, I used Trader Joe's frozen super sweetcorn
• 2 tsp of your favorite spices. I used a mix of cumin, coriander and chilli.
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Approx. 1/3 oats, more or less in order to achieve a consistency allowing you to form patties

Preheat oven to 375-400 degrees. My oven seems to cook things slower than normal, so I cranked it up to 400.

Chop up your taters into small cubes and cook until tender, or if you are short on time (or just starving) you can nuke them in the microwave until tender. 

While the potaties cook, you can prep the rest of your ingredients (minus the oats!). Add together the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and roughly mash them together. 

Add in your cooked potatoes and mash the mixture until lumpy.

Add in as much or little oats needed to get the batter to a consistency that will allow you to form it into patties. It took me approximately 1/4-1/3 cup of oats.

Using your hands divide the mixture into 6 even sections and flatten them into burger shaped patties with your hands.

I would suggest baking the patties, but if you are strapped for time then cooking them in a skillet with a little oil works good too. I find that the patties turn out more firm/stick together better when baked over pan frying. Place patties onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for approximately 20-30 minutes. Flipping them over at 15 minutes.

You'll know they are done when they have a light golden brown coating on the outside of the burger.

You can eat them on a bun with whatever fixin' you want, on top of a salad (a la my lunch today), or plain like me. I found the hummus to be the perfect slightly spicy compliment to the patty. But I don't think you could really go wrong with your condiment choices. This burger shines. :)

& would you check out those nutrition stats?! =)

I paired my burger with some garlicky greens & mushrooms. Just a couple mushrooms sliced and cooked with a clove of garlic, a little pepper & a splash of liquid aminos. Adding in loads of spinach halfway thru cooking the mushrooms. Saute until greens are wilted & you're ready to dig in!