Black Bean Burger with a Vegan Chipotle Sauce

HAPPY MEATLESS MONDAY! One of the main things I try to keep at a minimum is red meat. This is just personal preference but I have felt a million times better since doing so! I have to be honest though, I do love me a juicy burger and fries! Well, with this black bean burger, you will not miss red meat at all! Especially if you make it with moms homemade black beans.

The sauce was a total experiment as well and I loved it! I will definitely be making it again but may use as a fry dipping sauce! It was definitely that final touch this burger needed. My favorite part though, the husband ins’t complaining about missing meat, so I definitely won with this one 😉

Ingredients

• 4 C homemade black beans, rinsed and patted dry (or 2-14 oz cans)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 small green bell pepper, chopped (3/4 cup)
• 1 small onion, chopped (1 cup)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1/2 C gluten-free bread crumbs
• 1 small sweet potato, cooked & mashed (about 1/3 cup)
• 2 Tbsp BBQ sauce
• salt/pepper, to taste

Vegan Chipotle Aioli:

• 1 Chipotle in adobo sauce, finely minced (or 1 1/2 tsp of chipotle powder)
• 3 1/2 Tbsp tahini
• 3 Tbsp coconut aminos
• 1/2 Tbsp agave
• 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 2 Tbsp water
• salt, to taste

Toppings:

• Sautéed Bell Peppers and Onions
• Lettuce
• Tomato Slices
• Vegan Cheese
• Jalapeño Slices
• Vegan Bun: Dave’s Killer Bread

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spread your beans onto a lined baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes until slightly dried out.
2. In the meantime, peel and cube up your sweet potato. Place in a small pot with water and boil until soft. Drain and mash. Set aside.
3. Next, heat your olive oil over medium high heat. Sauté your chopped bell pepper, onion, and garlic for about 5 minutes. Once translucent, remove and place in a food processor. Add in your cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, bread crumbs, BBQ sauce, salt/pepper, and 1/3 C of your mashed sweet potato.
4. Pulse everything together until well mixed. Add in your black beans and pulse to mix. You may need to scrape the sides and mix in-between pulses. You will see some larger chunks and that is okay!
5. Over an aluminum foil sheet, greased, form your patties. Each patty will be about 1/3 cup of mixture. I find it easier to lightly grease my hands with olive oil prior to forming mixture as it may sometimes feel a little wet and then I will finish shaping on the p sheet itself.
6. TO GRILL: Place aluminum sheet with patties on them directly onto your grill. Grill each side for about 8 minutes, total 16 minutes.
7. TO BAKE: You can also bake your patties by preheating oven to 375 degrees. Cook each side for 10 minutes, total of 20 minutes.

For sauce:

1. In a small bowl, whisk your chipotle, tahini, coco aminos, agave, lemon juice, garlic powder, ground ginger, and pinch of salt. Your mixture will turn into a peanut butter type of consistency.
2. Now add in your water and gently whisk until thinned out. If you prefer a thinner sauce, simply add a little more water as needed. Taste for salt.

Notes:

TO FREEZE: After cooking, you can place each patty in-between parchment paper and freeze up to 3 months! You can then thaw in the fridge and reheat as desired. I prefer to reheat in a pan over medium heat.