Black & Tan Burgers

 

Hi Friends!

I was first inspired to make tonight's dinner when I read AliGirl's post about her Garbanzo Burgers a couple weeks ago. Since the hubby likes black bean burgers, I thought maybe I would make a spin on her burgers and make them half garbanzo/half black bean burgers. I planned on making them today and while I was sitting in class I came up with the brilliant name: Black and Tan Burgers (based on the color of the beans, not to be confused with the drink...although I think my brain subliminally thought of the name because for Christmas I got my mom a tool to help make your own black and tans with beer! it's a sneaky mind i've got up there...)

Anyways, as I was thinking about what else to put in the burgers, I remembered reading a post a while back on Basil Vodka about Julie's Black Bean Burgers that got rave reviews. I looked them up and decided the sweet potatoes would be a good addition but I wasn't too sure about the oatmeal.


So here's what I started with (plus an egg, that I forgot to put in the picture):

 I defrosted some beans from the freezer (the amount was about equal to the amount in a can) and put them in a big bowl with about 3/4 of a can of chickpeas...see the black and tan??

I partially mashed them up with a potato masher:

 I added some garlic, half a green pepper and about 1/4 of an onion:

 Then I shredded about half a sweet potato and added that to the mix:

 For spices I added 1 Tbsp chili powder, 1 Tbsp cumin, about 2 tsp paprika and some black pepper:

Top it off with about 1/2 a cup of breadcrumbs and an egg:

 Mix, smoosh and shape into patties. I made five medium-sized burgers. Stick them in the freezer for 1/2 an hour or so until firm, then saute in a hot pan.

 Top with some pepperjack cheese and tomato:

That onion was annoying me by causing a glare so I gave the plate a little twist :)

These burgers had potential...but they just weren't quite there. I think next time I would add a little Worchestershire sauce or maybe mix in some bbq sauce to make them a little more moist. They also could have used a little more spice. All in all, they're a work in progress...but hey, you can't get everything right the first time, right? Plus, we had leftover fish chowder that the hubby and I are both thoroughly enjoying so everything was fine :)

What do you think I should do to make these burgers better?

Enjoy!
--Lindsay--