Lentil Bean Veggie Burgers…It was a surprise!

Lentil Veggie Bean Burgers

I love it when I discover something really easy and delicious, and it absolutely delights me when it happens quite by accident!  This time the accident turned out to be Lentil Bean Veggie Burgers that were “meaty” and delicious!!

Last week I made a vegetarian mixture to go over Organic brown rice and quinoa pasta.  The result  was ok, but it was not my favorite creation, and I had quite a bit left over.

The next night, I decided to make burgers out of it.  This was a complete experiment, but often it can turn out well…and it’s always a fun adventure!

I took some of the mixture and put it in a bowl, mashed it roughly by hand with my potato masher and added some spices and some garbanzo bean flour to give it some bulk.

I roughly chopped fresh organic baby spinach and mixed that in.  I shaped it into patties (it was still a bit wet despite the flour) and placed them in a heated cast iron skillet in a little olive oil and course Himalayan salt.

When they were browned on one side, I flipped them over and browned them on the other side.  To try to give them a crunchy crust, I cranked up the heat and deglazed them with a very small drizzle of white wine.  Turned them over again and deglazed again.

Can I tell you how amazingly good these were?  I loved them, Rob loved them and our friend Stubbs, who had joined us for dinner proclaimed them “phenomenal”! I served them with a fresh salad with Calamata olives, grapes and cucumbers and steamed purple and sweet potatoes with dill.

The result was so delicious, that it’s now in the recipe section on ThinStrongHealthy.com. They’re called Lentil Bean Veggie Burgers. It makes a large amount, so there’s plenty for a family meal or for several meals if it’s only two of you.  I used some anchovies, but if you’re a strict vegetarian, obviously those are optional.

You can vary the kind of beans if you have a favorite.  For the lentils, I used red instead of green lentils as they are softer, cook faster (I was in a bit of a hurry to come with dinner!), and I thought they would thicken better.  I was right about that which wasn’t so good for the initial mixture idea, but it was great for the burgers.

I’d love to know if you like them and what different beans you use.

Helping you achieve Major Wellness in your life!

Cheryl A Major, CNWC