White Bean and Spinach Veggie Burgers

This White Bean and Spinach Veggie Burgers recipe makes a mild, flavorful burger that is equally good in pita sandwiches, on English muffins, rolls, or served without any bread at all. Embellish with your favorite fixings—lettuce, sliced tomatoes, hot sauce, ketchup, mustard, vegan mayo, etc. Kids who are open to green foods might enjoy eating these out of hand. Leftovers are delicious used in sandwiches for brown bag lunches.

White Bean and Spinach Veggie Burgers

Makes: 12

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup oatmeal
• 8–10 oz organic baby spinach, rinsed
• 1 (15–16 oz) can cannellini or great northern beans, drained and rinsed
• ⅓ cup wheat germ, quinoa flakes, or hemp seeds
• 2 scallions, minced
• 1 tbsp fresh dill, minced, or 1 tsp dried
• 1 tbsp salt-free seasoning blend (such as Frontier or Mrs. Dash)
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• olive oil, if sautéing

Instructions

1. If you plan to bake these, preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Combine the oatmeal and ⅔ cup boiling water in a cup. Let stand.
3. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, steam the spinach with just the water clinging to the leaves until just wilted, then drain. Transfer to a cutting board and chop finely.
4. Mash the beans well in a mixing bowl. Add the oatmeal, chopped spinach, and the remaining ingredients (except the oil, of course) and stir until thoroughly mixed.
5. To cook on the stovetop: Heat just enough oil to coat the bottom of a large, nonstick skillet. When sizzling hot, drop the burger mixture onto skillet in ¼ cup portions and flatten lightly to 3- to 4-inch rounds. Cook on both sides over medium heat until nicely browned, being especially careful not to flip before the first side is nice and solidly golden brown. Transfer the cooked burgers to a plate lined with paper towels and repeat until all the burgers are cooked.
6. To bake: Drop the burger mixture in ¼ portions onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and flatten lightly to 3- to 4-inch rounds. Bake in a preheated 400°F oven for 15 minutes on one side, then flip carefully and bake for 10 to 15 minutes longer on the other side.
7. Serve the burgers at once as suggested in the headnote, above.

• Here are lots more vegan burger recipes.