Black Bean and Barley Veggie Burgers

Before tonight I'd never had a veggie burger... ever.  I've always been wary of ordering one at a random restaurant since I hear so many bad things about veggie burgers.  That being said, I love beans and barley so I figured they couldn't be that bad if they had plenty of flavor and stayed moist.  So I decided to give them a try.  These were definitely a success.  And I'll be eating plenty more veggie burgers in the future. :)

My Burgers

Continuing with my quest to eliminate as much sodium as possible, I cooked dried beans so that they didn't add a lot of sodium (I actually added no salt to the beans as they were cooking).  I also cooked the barley without adding any salt.  This could certainly be made with canned beans if you don't want to go to all the trouble of soaking and cooking the beans.

Overall, this meal took just under 2 hours to make, start to finish.  But the first almost hour and a half was spent cooking the beans and barley so actually making the burgers was pretty quick and easy.  I used whole wheat buns and topped these with sliced avocado (drizzled with lime juice to keep it from turning brown), tomato (on mine), and onions (on Jeremy's). 

Jeremy's Burgers

I took the extra step of toasting the buns in the oven since I already had the burgers in the oven to bake.  This recipe made 5 burgers so we have 1 left over for another meal.  This was definitely an easy recipe. Once everything was mixed it just took a few minutes in the oven and we were eating.  I am very pleased with the results. :) 

Jeremy usually isn't a fan of barley but he loved these.  I'm not sure what he expected but he was very happy with them and even finished off my second burger when I got full.  He said they just tasted like he was eating something mexican and was very happy that they were still moist.  The only issue is that they fell apart a little while we were eating them so I'll have to work on binding them a bit more. But they were great!  I will definitely be making these again.  (I'll probably even work with different beans and seasonings to change it up!)

The Burgers After Baking

Recipe:

1 1/2 c. black beans, divided

3/4 c. cooked pearl barley

1 egg

1 tbs. olive oil

1 tbs. dried parsley

1/4 onion, minced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbs. ground cumin

3/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/4 c. crushed tortilla chips

1/4 c. Italian style breadcrumbs

1. Preheat oven to 475.

2. Place 3/4 c. black beans in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher until smooth.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix with a spatula until fully combined.

3. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.

4. Using a 1/2 c. measuring cup, portion out the mixture, forming them into 1/2" thick patties.

5. Spray the tops of the burgers with cooking spray.

6. Bake for 20 minutes until slightly crisp on top.

7. Serve topped with your choice of toppings.