Classic Black Bean Burgers

"Freedom is being you without anyone's permission"

Happy 4th of July to my American readers and happy belated Canada Day to my fellow Canadians.

The first long weekend of summer has come and hopefully you soaked up every wonderful minute! My fav part of both these holidays is the fireworks - they never cease to amaze me and make me feel so happy to celebrate in such beautiful countries. We are truly lucky.

Summer weekends can be tough times to eat healthy and keep up with your #goals. Its the perfect time to stick to the 80/20 rule - try to eat healthy 80% of the time and the other 20% enjoy yourself and relax.

Easy ways to do this?

• stay away from creamy salads or dishes
• fill half your plate with veggies
• drink a glass of water between every alcoholic bevy
• only take a couple bites to "taste" dessert

These small steps help keep the Monday morning food guilt at bay so you can continue to look and feel great all summer long.

Today's recipe is a plant based take on a classic long weekend food - the burger. Subbing out beef for black beans is healthier for you and for the planet.

This classic Black Bean Burger is meat and dairy free and tastes great. It is full of clean protein, iron, B-vitamins, fibre and antioxidants - healthy things you don't get all of from a beef burger. If you make them a couple hours in advance and put them in the fridge they cook up beautifully on the grill. If you are stuck on time, you can cook them in a skillet on the stove with a touch of olive oil or bake them in the oven right after making them. Top them how you would your fav burger - I like a little mashed avocado, red onion, tomato and lettuce. Enjoy.

Classic Black Bean Burger

Ingredients

1/2 large white onion diced
1 1/2 15oz can of organic black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup of brown rice flour

1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1 piece of Ezekiel sprouted grain bread or gluten free bread, crumbled
1 teaspoon of garlic powder

1/2 tsp oregano

1 Tbsp of olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

Sauté the onions in the olive oil over medium heat until soft, season with fresh sea salt and pepper and remove from heat. Set aside and keep the skillet with the oil in it out.

In a large mixing bowl mash the beans until almost smooth, add the bread crumbles, nutritional yeast, the cooked onions and seasonings and mix well. Slowly add the flour - the mixture will become thick and you may have to mix with your hands. Once all ingredients are combined, form the mixture into patties about 1/2 inch thick.

Place the patties in the pan you used to sauté the onions and cook them on medium heat until they are crispy on each side. You can also bake them in the oven on a parchment covered cookie sheet at 400 for 10 minutes a side. If you want to cook them on the grill, put them in the fridge for about an hour to set - then grill on medium low heat for about 4-5 minutes a side until they are browned on each side. You do not need to refrigerate them if you are cooking them in the oven or on the stove. 

Tips

For a gluten free burger, substitute GF bread for the Ezekiel bread and use a couple of lettuce leaves for a bun. Top with your fav burger toppings or maybe some avocado and salsa for a twist! This recipe makes 4 burgers - if you have some left over save it to break up over your salad for lunch the next day - so delish! You can make the burgers in the morning and keep them in the fridge until you are ready to cook them or make them up to a week in advance and freeze them until you cook them.

Love this healthy recipe? 

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