Burgers can come in so many varieties, especially when they are not made from minced meat. I find vegetable burgers absolutely delicious! When I go out for a burger meal with friends or family I often choose the non-meat option, because some flavour combinations seem more enticing than the meaty counterpart. People who don’t know me that well then often assume I am a vegetarian – which I am not. I love meat but feel that it is not necessary to eat it every day (and it is better for the environment). I’ve had a slightly altered version of this black bean burger recipe in my somewhat scattered notes that never resembled a proper recipe collection. However, I managed to retrieve the basic components of the recipe from the depths of my mind and decided to add walnuts to the mix as I find they go very well with savoury dishes. Walnuts are rich in omega-3 fats (to protect from cancers, arthritis and skin diseases) and fibre and the taste is just fabulous! Why not also try adding sunflower or pumpkin seeds to the bean burger mix? Or try if you prefer almonds or hazelnuts over walnuts!

Ingredients:
For 8 small patties

• 250g black beans (cooked)
• 1/2 middle-sized onion, finely chopped
• 50g breadcrumbs (alternatively oats)
• Large handful fresh parsley
• 1 large egg
• Salt, pepper
• 1 large or 2 small garlic cloves
• Splash olive oil (for the frying pan)
• 40g walnuts, roughly chopped

To serve:

• Small handful rocket for each patty
• Olive oil
• Small handful walnuts
• 1 tbsp. hoummus
• 1 large tomato slice for each patty
• Baked pumpkin wedges (with oil and sea salt)

Instructions:

1. If you couldn’t find tinned, already cooked black beans, soak dry black beans overnight. Drain and cook for approx. 45-50 minutes until soft, drain again and mesh them.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine mashed beans, breadcrumbs, chopped onion and garlic, parsley, chopped walnuts and the egg. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Use a tablespoon, or better a fork, to stir the mixture until the egg is evenly distributed the texture is smooth.
4. Use your hands to form 8 small patties.
5. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C.
6. Chop up the pumpkin into chunks, grease them with olive oil and place them on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Sprinkle the pumpkin wedges with sea salt and bake for approx. 30 minutes.
7. In the meantime, add some olive oil to the frying pan and fry the patties on each side for several minutes until golden brown.
8. Put them in the oven next to the pumpkin wedges after about 20 minutes cooking time, so that the patties will bake in the oven for at least 10 minutes.
9. Serve the patties on rocket or baby leaf salad, a large slice of tomato topped up with a large teaspoon of hoummus. Sprinkle some extra olive oil on top and a few more walnuts.
10. I would recommend not storing the bean burgers but rather consuming them fresh, because re-heated bean burger patties tend to turn extremely dry.

Author: Danica Utermohlen
Picture credits: Danica Utermohlen