Quinoa Black Bean Burger

The last time I went to Trader Joe's, they had a sign posted for a recipe contest using quinoa- so of course, I felt compelled to come up with something to submit! The constraints are that we can only use 7 main ingredients and it has to take less than 20 mins to prepare (excluding cooking time). So, given how much I shop at Trader Joe's, I rummaged through my pantry and came up with ingredients to make quinoa black bean burgers. You can make a big batch of these burgers and freeze them. Just let them cool, then place them in and airtight container- separate the burgers with wax paper so they don’t stick together. Note: I used all the ingredients from Trader Joe's because of the contest guidelines, but you can use non-Trader Joe's ingredients and it should still work!

Ingredients

2 cans black beans (15 oz each), drained and rinsed well (~3 cups)

1 bottle (10 oz) roasted red pepper & artichoke tapenade

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp sunflower seeds

1.5 tbsp Trader Joe's 21 seasoning salute

1 cup fire-roasted frozen corn

1 cup quinoa

1 tsp sea salt 

2 cups water

Directions

1.  In a small saucepan, bring 1/2 tsp salt, water, and quinoa to a boil.  Turn the heat down to a simmer.  Cover and cook for 12-15 min, until the rings appear on the outside of the grains.

2.  While the quinoa is cooking, mash the black beans in a large bowl until they come together (it will look like one big lump with only a few whole beans left).  Mix in the roasted red pepper & artichoke tapenade, garlic, 21 seasoning salute, 1/2 tsp salt, and corn.  Once the quinoa is cooked, mix it in.  Note: The mix will be soft, so you won't be able to form patties using your hands.

3.  Lightly spray a cookie sheet with oil.  Drop ~1/2 cup of the mix onto the sheet and use a spoon to pat it into the shape of a patty that is about 1/2-inch thick.

4.  Bake at 350 for 20 mins.  Gently flip and bake for 10 more mins.  Let them cool slightly before taking them off the sheet.

5.  To reheat patties: No need to defrost if they are frozen.  I put about 1 tbsp of water on a non-stick pan/skillet and heat it on med-high until one side is done, then repeat on the other side.