Black Bean Burger

I'm teaching a class on cooking with black beans tomorrow, and I thought that I would try to make a veggie burger for the main entree. I  decided that since the rest of my menu for the class was pretty heavy on the Tex-Mex flavors, I would go a different route. I have to say that though I'm usually pretty good at thinking outside of the box when it comes to cooking, I really hated to part with my lime, chipotle and cumin. In fact, though the burger itself doesn't include any of these flavors, I couldn't resist putting a heap of guacamole on top. The burger was crispy on the outside, smooth and moist on the inside, and altogether pretty good.

Black Bean Burger

1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 medium onion

2 cloves garlic

2 mushrooms, diced

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 cup breadcrumbs

2 T. fresh parsley

salt and pepper

olive oil

Saute onions and garlic in olive oil till slightly softened. Add mushrooms. Meanwhile, take black beans and mash them with a potato masher or hands until somewhat smooth. Add onion mixture to the black beans and stir. Add all remaining ingredients and combine.

Heat 2 T. of olive oil in a saute pan. Form burger shaped patties and drop in to hot pan. Fry on each side until browned. Serve on a ciabatta bun with tomato, spinach, and melted provolone .....or top with guacamole!