Keen for Quinoa Part II

As promised, here is another delicious quinoa recipe to try for dinner. This recipe was a bit time consuming (it took about an hour), but so worth it. Though John still prefers a "real" burger, he loved this one too!

Sweet Potato Quinoa Burgers

The original recipe came from The Naked Kitchen (aka clean eating!)

I served my quinoa burgers in a toasted pita, with sweet potato fries (recipe below) and green beans.

Ingredients:

Makes 10 burgers

1 can (15 ounces) no salt added black beans, drained and rinsed

            3 cups cubed sweet potatoes, peeled (about 3 regular sized potatoes)

            3/4 cup sweet corn, frozen or fresh

            1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped

            3 cloves garlic, minced

            1/2 cup cooked quinoa

            1 tbsp olive oil

            heaping 1/3 cup finely ground rolled oats 

            2 tbsp roasted sunflower seeds

            1/4 tsp sea salt

            fresh black pepper to taste

            1 tsp cumin

            1 tsp oregano

            1 tsp chili powder

            1/4 tsp cayenne 

            1 tbsp hot sauce 

Preparation:

1. Fill a large pot 3/4 full of water and bring to a boil on the stove. Add the sweet potatoes and lower the heat to simmering.  Let the potatoes cook for about 20-30 minutes. Drain the potatoes and set aside to cool. Once your potatoes have cooled use a fork to mash them. You want them mashed but not creamy.
2. While potatoes are cooking, in a large mixing bowl add half of the black beans and mash them with a fork. Add the rest of the beans and the remaining ingredients. Stir until just combined.
3. Form the mixture into 10 balls.  Each burger should be about 1/2″ thick. 

4. Heat a grill pan over medium heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray or tbsp. of oil. 
5. Place patties on grill pan and cook for about 10 minutes, flipping halfway through, or until golden brown.

These burgers will keep in the fridge for 5 days. Simply let the burgers cool, place them in a sealed container, and stick them in the fridge. You can also store them in freezer bags in the freezer for up to 6 months. To reheat, place the burgers on a baking sheet and cook at 350 degrees until they are heated all the way through. 

Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients:

Serves 4

2 sweet potatoes (or 1 large one)

Sea salt

Ground black pepper

Olive oil

Preparation

Preheat over to 425 degrees. Peel sweet potatoes and cut lengthwise into fry shapes. Put them on a baking sheet and sprinkle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake for about 30 minutes, turning halfway through, or until they start to brown and turn a bit crispy.