Well hi there! I know we’ve been introduced before, but allow me the honor of saying it is great to be back on A Life and I can’t wait to share a couple of recipes with you guys!
My name is Talia, I am C’s youngest sis! When I am not in school or working downtown, I enjoy music, friends, family, writing, and stalking A Life (although let’s be real, I do that from my desk at the office too).
A vegetarian for nearly sixteen years now, I’ve gone from being a 5-year-old who would eat spaghetti, cheese pizza, and nothing else, to a 20-year-old who enjoys whipping up new and different meat-free, good-for-you recipes in the kitchen whenever I have a spare moment. One of my favorite pastimes is finding ways to take entrees which are typically meat-focused and magically turn them vegetarian. And voila! My new obsession with “burgers” has been formed.
With the rise in popularity of healthy and lean proteins like quinoa, lentils, and beans, it’s easy to see why burgers are slowly but surely becoming more and more vegetarian every day. I’ve had my fair share of lentil burgers, chickpea and chive burgers, mushroom burgers, veggie and brown rice burgers, and black bean burgers and all have turned out pretty fabulous, if I do say so myself. So I was naturally curious when I stumbled across a burger recipe featuring an ingredient I’ve never seen in patty-form before: Sweet potato.
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Burgers are a new take on the typical black bean burger. I put these together in just a few minutes after a workout one night, and they were a total hit at our house! The creamy sweetness of the potato was balanced by the savory, salty black beans and the tangy cilantro, all combining to create a rich, delicious, and healthy meal! Be sure to buy or whip up some pico de gallo for a topping—the tartness of the lime juice cuts the flavors nicely!!
- 3 medium-sized sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 2-inch chunks (Check Trader Joe’s for pre-chunked sweet potatoes—such a time-saver!)
- 1 cup of canned black beans, divided into two ½ cup servings
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ½ tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp cumin
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
- 2 green onions, white and green parts, finely chopped
- 1-2 tbsp cilantro, roughly chopped
- 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more if you need it
- Pico de gallo
- Hint: Do this ahead: Fill a medium saucepan with water, add the sweet potato chunks and cover. Cook over a medium-high heat for 15-20 minutes until very tender. Drain in a colander until very dry.
- Once dry, place sweet potato chunks in a large bowl with 1/2 cup of the black beans and mash with a potato masher to break up the big bits. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of beans, salt and pepper, breadcrumbs, flour, chili powder, cumin, garlic, cilantro and green onions, and mix with your hands to form a smooth batter. Make sure that the breadcrumbs and flour are mixed throughout and there are not huge chunks of potato. If the mixture is too wet, add more flour. It should be quite sticky.
- In a non-stick skillet, heat some extra virgin olive oil over a medium-high heat. Form round, flat patties about 3-inches in diameter (if they are too thick, they will burn before they finish cooking). Cook 3-4 minutes per side, until golden brown. You can also save any extra patties on a covered plate; they can stay in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Serve the patties over a bed of greens/veggies topped with some fresh cilantro and a spoonful of pico de gallo (salsa is a good option, too).
My parents didn’t miss the meat…did you?
Didn’t think so
-Talia
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Courtney
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Yum Talia, this looks delicious! Will you make me some when I get home? Thanks again!
Of course Court! Let’s have a cooking date when you get back 🙂
Great guest post! I may try these next week with my SIL – she loves sweet potatoes!