Black Soy Bean Burgers

Ingredients (makes 8 4-inch burgers):

• 1 1/2 Cups cooked black soy beans (may use either 1 15 oz can OR soak 1/2 Cup dried black soy beans over night)
• 1 Cup cooked black rice (follow instructions on your package)
• 1 Cup baby greens (I used a mix of baby kale, spinach, and beet greens), chopped
• 2 medium sweet potatoes, diced
• 2 medium carrots, diced
• 2 bell peppers, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 – 4 serrano peppers (amount depends on personal heat tolerance, I used 4), diced
• 2 Tablespoons safflower oil + more as needed
• 1 Tablespoon chilli powder
• 3 teaspoons smoked  paprika
• Sea salt & black pepper, to taste
• 1 Cup gluten-free bread crumbs, in a bowl set aside

Directions:

1. In your saute pan on medium-high heat, add your safflower oil, minced garlic,  diced sweet potatoes, bell peppers, serrano peppers, and saute until tender (about 7 minutes).  Add in 1 cup of your soaked black soy beans and lower the heat to low-medium.  Add your baby greens, chilli powder, salt, and pepper to taste.  Saute for 10-12 minutes.  Taste a bite of your burger mix and adjust any seasonings as necessary. 
2. Add the ingredients in your saute pan & prepared black rice into your food processor and pulse until smooth.  Add in the remaining 1/2 Cup of black soy beans and pulse 3-5 times, until incorporated.  Taste a spoonful and adjust any seasonings as necessary. 
3. Now to form our burgers!  I like to keep a small bowl of water nearby to wet my hands in (I’ve found the burger mix doesn’t stick to my hands as much this way).  For each burger, with wet hands, use 1/3 Cup of your filling and form into patties that are 1/2 inch thick, about 4 inches wide.  Dust each side of your burger with your bread crumbs.
4. These burgers are great both sauteed in a cast iron skillet or baked.  I opted to saute mine until a nice crust formed on each side.  If you prefer to bake them, preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and bake 15-20 minutes on each side, until golden. These are great frozen, too! Double or triple the recipe and form your burgers.  Lay a piece of parchment or wax paper between them and place in freezer-proof bags.  When ready to eat, preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for 15 -20 minutes on one side and carefully flip over.  Bake for another 15-20 minutes, until each side is golden.

5. Enjoy eating whole!