Cornmeal Crusted White Bean Burgers

I'm back on the (healthy foods) wagon so I'll be posting some lighter fare in hopes of revisiting it soon. I loved the flavor of these burgers, though they are a little mushy - as in, don't think you can just toss it onto the parilla because it's kind of like grilling mashed potatoes. And to give fair warning - these are lightly fried (something I neglected to notice until after assembly).

Cornmeal Crusted Bean & Quinoa Burgers
from Eating Well

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup quinoa, picked over, soaked, scrubbed & rinsed (I may be exaggerating here but I hate gritty bites of quinoa)
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup red (I used green) onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 1/2 cups cooked white beans, well drained (I only made half of this recipe and used one can of beans - drained & rinsed)
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (I didn't have it so I used sweet paprika and a touch of cayenne)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 3 Tablespoons fresh cilantro (or substitute parsley), chopped
• 3 Tablespoons cornmeal, plus extra for coating burgers
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Freshly groung pepper to taste
• Dash of hot sauce (This was my addition and may have messed with the consistency of the burgers, but I really don't think that's what made them mushy)

Bring water to a boil and add quinoa, returning to a boil. Turn heat to low, cover and cook until water has been absorbed, about 10 minutes. Uncover and set aside. Sauté onion and garlic in 1 T oil until soft, about 3 minutes. Add beans, paprika and cumin. Mash beans to a smooth paste with a potato masher. Transfer mixture to a bowl and cool slightly. Stir in quinoa, cilantro, 3 T cornmeal, salt & pepper (and a dash of hot sauce if you'd like). Form mixture into 6 patties and coat with cornmeal. Refrigerate for 20 minutes. Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook 3 burgers at a time until brown and crisp on both sides, 2 to 4 minutes per side. 

You know, until they look like this:

The original recipe also includes a guacamole recipe, which I'm sure is lovely, but I just tossed on some avocado slices and mustard. Yum. Oh, and if you're a super good girl you would use a whole wheat bun. Whoops.

Green Bean Casserole Do-Over

A few Thanksgivings ago I made a simple (basically prefabricated) green bean casserole. This year, I took a little extra time to make one from scratch using fresh ingredients, and it paid off. I followed this Alton Brown recipe, replacing the chicken broth with veggie broth. To save a little time on the big day, I went ahead and cooked the beans a day ahead - then put them in the refrigerator in the dish I planned to use. 

Green Bean Casserole
Adapted from food network
Beans

• 1 lb / 500 grams fresh green beans, trimmed and rinsed
• 1 gallon water
• 2 Tablespoons kosher salt

Bring water and salt to a boil. If you're using table salt, you'll want to use less than this! (oops.) Cook beans to your preference (Alton blanches for 5 minutes, I boil for 8-10), drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking. 

Onion Topping

• 2 medium onions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 Tablespoons bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (or about 1/2 t. table salt)
• Nonstick spray

Preheat oven to 475F / 245C. Combine onions, flour, breadcrumbs and salt (may want to use seasoning salt) and toss to combine. Coat a sheet pan with nonstick spray and evenly spread onions on pan. I sprayed a light layer of oil on top of the onions also. Bake until golden brown, tossing every 10 minutes, for about 30 minutes. 

Mushroom Sauce

• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 12 ounces / 350 grams mushrooms, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (or less table salt!)
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 1 cup half and half (or combination of half milk, half cream)

Saute mushrooms in butter with salt and pepper until they begin to lose some liquid, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and nutmeg and cook for another 2 minutes. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute. Add broth and simmer for 1 minute. Add half and half and cook until mixture thickens - 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 1/4 of the onions and all of the beans. Pour into casserole dish (I used a deep round one - I thought 9x13 would be too big), top with remaining onions and bake at 400F / 200C until bubbly, about 15 minutes. 

Many commenters had issues with the onions burning, but I didn't have any problems. Just keep an eye on them in that hot oven and flip them whenever they're looking browned on bottom. I think this version is better than the one I grew up with and I'll never have to open a can of congealed cream of mushroom soup again...woohoo!

Last year I made a cherry chutney that a lot of people liked, but I hated it after pitting all those cherries and cooking them in vinegar for an hour. Ugh, the smell of warm vinegar! For those of you who enjoyed it, here's the recipe.

Quinoa Is Good For You!

Being a superfood, quinoa is totally good for you. The tricky part is getting it clean - I have to pick it over for rocks and other random debris, then soak it for a few minutes (skimming off any floaters), and rinse in a wire mesh colander. I also give it a bit of a scrub between my hands while soaking to get rid of any clinging saponin.

Double Broccoli Quinoa

adapted from 101 Cookbooks

• 3/4 cup quinoa, cleaned
• 3 cups broccoli, cut into small florets and steamed
• 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup parmesan
• salt
• juice of half a lemon
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream

After cleaning quinoa, bring to a boil with 1 1/2 cups water and a big pinch of salt, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes - it's done when you can see the curlicues. To make the broccoli pesto, puree 1 1/2 cups steamed broccoli with nuts, parmesan, salt, and lemon juice in a food processor. Drizzle in the olive oil and cream and pulse until smooth. Toss pesto and quinoa with the remaining florets. Add extra salt, lemon juice, or parmesan, as you prefer. I added a few dashes of Al Wok seasoning (brand is Indo Deli), which includes garlic, coriander, ginger, onion, and basil.

Quinoa with Black Beans

adapted from All Recipes

• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• splash of olive oil
• 1/2 cup quinoa, cleaned
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• dash of cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup corn kernels
• 1 1/2-2 cups cooked black beans
• handful of chopped fresh cilantro or parsley

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in onion and garlic and saute until lightly browned - about 6 minutes. Add quinoa and cover with stock. Season with cumin, cayenne, and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in corn (if using frozen, simmer until heated through), beans and herb. Then, pat yourself on the back for making such a healthy meal and reward yourself with dessert.

Chili sin Carne

It's been chilly out and I needed something to warm me to my bones - something with spice! This recipe uses a packaged blend of finely chopped dried chilies and other spices that I found at Falabella (Narda Lepes, no 2 HOT) in place of chili powder - only because I couldn't find anything close enough in powder form. The same amount of chili powder can be substituted. The other spices include oregano and cayenne pepper (among other stuff) so I'd toss a little of that in too. I also used dried beans but you could use one can of each - black and kidney beans, drained.

I used fresh tomatoes, peeled and crushed, because I read that canned tomatoes are actually somewhat toxic due to BPA. To easily peel tomatoes, cut an X into the bottom and drop into boiling water for about 15 seconds. Remove and, using a fork and knife, immediately peel skin off. It should almost fall off in 4 pieces. Cut out the core, chop up and smush a little with a fork. Let these rest in a bowl for a little while before adding to chili - they'll get a little juicy.

Chili sin Carne

• 1 T. olive oil
• 1 large onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 cup bell pepper (I used half of a red and half of a green)
• 1 carrot
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 zucchini (zapallito)
• 1 c. corn
• 2 T. chili mix
• 3/4 T. cumin
• Big pinch of salt and a few twists of the pepper mill
• 3 tomatoes, peeled and chopped (and smashed)
• Beans*
• Tomato paste to taste (I used about 2 T.) or use a greater quantity of tomato puree
• 1 c. vegetable stock
• 1 T. apple cider vinegar

*3-4 c. cooked or canned beans - I used about 1 1/2 c. (combined) dried black beans and kidney beans. Either soak overnight or bring to a boil, cover, remove from heat and let sit for an hour. Then simmer for one and a half hours - being careful not to let them dry up.

Chop and then saute onion, garlic, pepper and carrot in oil along with bay leaf until they start to soften. Add chopped zucchini and corn kernels and cook until soft, about 7 minutes. Add chili powder, cumin, and s&p and cook for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, cooked beans, stock, and tomato paste. Simmer for 30 minutes. Taste to adjust seasonings. Stir in cider vinegar and add water if you want it thiner. Simmer another 5 minutes or so. Remove bay leaf. Add cornbread (I only used 1 T. of sugar with this recipe) and toppings!

Save some for leftovers - it's even better on day 2!

Turning a Side Dish into Dinner

To turn green beans with almonds into a main course, I tossed in a couple handfuls of wheat pasta - it goes well with these flavors.

Warning: if you like your beans crunchy, then you know how to alter.

• 3 c. fresh green beans, ends snapped off
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
  
• 2 T. e.v. olive oil
  
• Salt and pepper to taste
  
• 3 handfuls of corkscrew wheat pasta (about 1 c.)
  
• 1/2 c. chopped almonds, toasted
  

Drop beans in well-salted boiling water and cook for 10 minutes. (Alternatively, you can steam the beans). In the meantime, saute onion in oil, seasoning with salt, pepper, and additional seasonings such as Seasoned Salt (copycat recipe) or even a little veggie powder, until the onion begins to soften. Add pasta to boiling beans (or steaming water) and continue to cook until al dente. Add beans, pasta, and 1/4-1/2 c. bean/pasta cooking water to the onion and saute together for a few minutes, giving the flavors a chance to come together. Add more salt as needed, or choose to garnish it with parmesan cheese. Once most of liquid has evaporated, sprinkle almonds on top and serve.

If you're not a vegetarian, you would probably be interested in adding bacon or using bacon grease in this recipe!

Creamy Black Beans

Argentina is very far from Mexico and though these countries share a language, they certainly don't share comida. The other day, I passed one of the few Mexican restaurants in town and the lunch special was gnocchi. Needless to say, I'm missing take-out beans and rice. I do have to say that I had a very tasty mushroom quesadilla at Davis UP last week, but no beans on the menu. So here's what I came up with:

• 3/4 c. dried black beans
• 2 T. olive oil
  
• 1 small to medium onion, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 c. vegetable stock
• 1- 2 c. water
• 1 t. cumin
• 1/2 t. dried oregano
• 1 t. rock salt (optional)
  
• 1/2 c. Casan crem light

Soak beans in water overnight, drain and rinse. Saute onion and garlic with olive oil in a large pot, after 5 minutes add pepper, continue to saute on medium heat until tender (about 10 minutes total). Add beans, stock, cumin, oregano, and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil and drop heat to low. Cover and simmer, adding water as necessary (every 20-30 minutes) to keep beans from getting dry. Simmer until beans are tender, mine usually take about 2 hours. Add Casan crem (or sour cream for those in the US) and serve. You could also cook the beans ahead and, when ready to serve, heat them back up and add cream.


I sometimes serve with rice and other times use the beans for burritos. For an Argentine twist, I stuff them, along with cheese, into empanadas. I also have left out the bell pepper and used a big pinch of red pepper flakes, and that's tasty too. But my favorite way to eat these is rolled-up in a big tortilla.

Black Bean Burritos with Zucchini and Red Pepper



The last time that Guille and I attempted burrito night, we didn't end up eating until midnight. So, instead of attempting salsa and guacamole again, I added the veggies in the fridge to dress up our beans. It made for a very flavorful, yet lighter and faster homemade burrito.


For assembly, in addition to creamy black beans you'll need:

• Flour tortillas (I only made 4 big ones with this recipe)
  
• 1 T. veg oil (I was going for a lighter flavor but you could use evoo)
  
• 2 zucchini, chopped
  
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• Juice of half a lemon (a lime would be delish here too)
  
• Salt & pepper to taste
  
• cheese of your liking

Saute red pepper in oil for about 5 minutes before adding the zucchini. Add juice and season with s&p. Continue to cook on medium low, stirring often, until the zucchini starts to soften and brown. I like to melt the cheese right onto my tortilla while its cooking, but only if it will be immediately eaten! Then add all of the stuffings, fold and bite!