Northstar Burger

I have had many veggie burgers in my life...but this one is EXCELLENT...and probably one of my all time favorites!  It is a staple in our household, especially as warm weather arrives, seeming to beckon my taste buds to crave a nice, big burger.   It is a copy-cat recipe inspired from the famous Northstar Burger at Northstar Cafe in Columbus.  Don't let the ingredients frighten you.  The beets are such an amazing source of nutrition and they add a mildly sweet flavor to this burger.  Seeing that it is packed with wonderfully nutritious beans, grains, and vegetables it is truly a burger to LIVE for...not to die for ;)  This burger is an excellent way to sneak some health veggies into your family's meal without them even noticing it.

Ingredients:

3/4 - 1 cup cooked brown rice 

1 onion, diced small

3 large red beets (about 1 lb)

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

juice from 1/2 lemon

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

1 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp dried thyme

2 Tbsp all purpose flour

whole wheat buns

burger toppings (lettuce, tomato, onion, etc)

spicy brown mustard

Directions:

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Wash beets and cut off stems.  Place beets in aluminum foil, lightly spraying with oil prior to sealing the foil pouch closed.  Place foil pouch on cookie sheet and roast in the oven for 45-60 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 10 minutes.  Peel skins from beets (the skins should come off very easily at this point).  Slice the beets.

Meanwhile, place onion and garlic in skillet with a bit of oil.  Heat over medium-high heat until onions are tender and garlic is fragrant.  

Place black beans and sliced beets into a large bowl.  Mash together with a potato masher.  Add rice, cooked onion and garlic mixture, lemon juice, olive oil, and all the spices.  Mix together.  Add flour and continue to mix until you see no more dry flour.  

Heat a large skillet over high heat.  Add a few Tbsp of olive oil.  Using your hands, scoop out about a cup of the burger mixture and shape into a patty using your palms.  Set it in the pan, where it should immediately begin to sizzle (if it doesn't sizzle, then wait a minute or two before cooking any more to allow the pan to heat the oil).  Add as many patties as the pan will allow.  Once all patties have been added, reduce heat just a touch and cook for ~2 minutes and then flip.  You should see a nice crust on the cooked side.  Cook the other side for an additional 2 minutes.  Burgers are fragile, but just reshape with spatula if needed.

Serve burgers atop whole wheat buns with spicy brown mustard, lettuce, tomato, onion, etc.  We had these with sweet potato fries, which was a hit for my toddler.  Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from: http://www.thekitchn.com/restaurant-reproduction-bestev-96967