Southwest Bean Burgers

Ingredients:

1 cup dry kidney beans, sorted
1 tablespoon plus 4 teaspoon canola oil, divided
4 scallions, chopped, whites and greens divided
3 large cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 jalapeno, minced, seeded if desired
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons chili powder
¾ teaspoon salt
1 4.5-ounce can diced green chilies
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup almond meal or almond flour such as Bob’s Red Mill
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice

Instructions:

Soak beans in cold water 8 hours or overnight. Drain, rinse and place in a large saucepan. Cover with a generous amount of cold water and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, uncovered until the beans are tender, 40 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes. This will vary depending on the freshness of the beans and length of soaking time. Drain beans and refrigerate, uncovered, until cold and dried out, at least 2 hours. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add scallion whites, garlic, onion and jalapeno and cook, stirring often until starting to brown and soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in chili powder and salt and remove from the heat.

Place the beans, green chilies, egg, almond meal, cilantro, lime juice, and the onion mixture in a the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade attachment. Cover and process in quick pulses to form thick coarse paste, about 25 quick pulses. There will still be some whole beans intact. Stir by hand to mix any undistributed ingredients throughout the mixture.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. Heat 2 teaspoons canola in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Drop bean mixture into the hot oil by a scant 2/3 cup to create 3 mounds and cook, undisturbed until the bottoms are browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Carefully flip the burgers and continue cooking, gently pressing down with a spatula to flatten into patties. Adjust the heat as necessary to prevent scorching until the patties are hot all the way through and browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the patties to the sprayed baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm while the other batch is browning. Wipe out the skillet with a clean towel and return to the heat. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons canola oil and heat. Cook the remaining 3 burgers in the same manner as the first batch, adjusting heat as necessary to prevent scorching. Serve with guacamole.

Makes 6 burgers.

From healthyseasonalcooking.com