Meet the (no meat) burger of your dreams: Beet Walnut Burger

Nothing beats a good veggie burger. Once you find the right recipe. They can be dry. Or, fall apart. Or take 2 hours to make. But these vegan beet black bean burgers have it all.

Store-bought veggie burgers typically come in two camps: loaded with processed soy protein or essentially protein free. It took me a while – and a lot of label reading – to find my favourites …made from actual beans and vegetables.

I really like the idea of making a homemade veggie burger but, for some reason, it’s was the one food that I pretty much always bought. One of those reasons is that veggie burgers typically take a long time to make: my (previous) favourite recipe takes like 90 minutes and a ton of steps. Not even close to reasonable. I would like to say that I spend four hours batch cooking on the weekend but in reality, I spend those four hours chasing after my kids.

Since sitting on my patio, eating a veggie burger loaded with all the fixings pretty much defines summer for me, I thought it was time I figure out how to make a simple bean burger at home.

Simple…and hella good. I’ve made it four times in the last month. And I can even find the energy to make them on a weeknight.

My beet burgers are super yummy, moist and loaded with good stuff like black beans, oats and flax. I’m a stickler for protein in a burger, because I recommend consuming protein at every meal.

This burger takes less than ten minutes to prep if you buy pre-cooked beets…don’t be a hero…buy the pre-cooked beets. Get these guys into the oven quickly and you can have a cocktail on the patio while they bake. Want a non-alcoholic sipper? Try my Watermelon Mint Chia Fresca.

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5 from 1 vote

Beet, Black Bean and Walnut Burgers

Quick and simple veggie burger! Eat good, feel good!

Course: Dinner, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Beet, Black Bean, flax, veggie burger, walnuts

Dietary Preference: Gluten-Free, vegan, vegetarian

Servings: 8 burgers

Author: Desiree Nielsen, RD

Ingredients

• 2 cans (14oz) of black beans, drained and rinsed ...or 3 cups of pre-cooked black beans
• 1 1/2 cup cooked beet chunks (about four smallish beets)
• 1/2 cup rolled oats (ensure they are pure, gluten free oats if you need a GF recipe)
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 2 tablespoons ground flax
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt *see note
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin

Imperial - Metric

Instructions

• Preheat oven (or your BBQ!) to 375 degrees
• Toss all ingredients into a food processor and pulse until about 75% blended, to leave a bit of texture in the burgers. Remove blade, stir mixture with a spatula to mix in remaining chunks. Taste and adjust seasoning if required.
• Place mixture on nonstick cookie sheet by using a half cup
  measure. Press to one inch thickness, forming eight round patties.
• Bake for 30 minutes to allow a crust to form on bottom. Then, very carefully (these are soft burgers!!) flip, reshaping if necessary, and cook for 10-15 minutes on the remaining side.
• Serve with your favourite fixings! I love a combo of Dijon and Mayo on pretty much everything...and it works here too. And in the photo, we served the burger with a mixture inspired by one of my fave Ottolenghi salads: thinly slice a small red onion and place in a bowl, along with 1/4 cup of sliced dates (I like deglet noor or medjool). Pour 2 tbsp of balsamic and a sprinkle of salt
  over them. Toss to combine and let sit for 30 minutes. AMAZING.

Notes

*note: I use unsalted beans...if yours are pre-salted, start with 1/4 tsp salt in the mix

Photo Credit: Melissa Quantz