If you are wondering how a recipe for a delicious Mediterranean white bean burger comes about, it’s easy. You first go to make the recipe for Chickpea Salad from Oh She Glows and you accidentally open a can of cannellini beans instead of garbanzo beans. Then, you should have all the fixings for a Greek salad in your fridge, plus kale. I make a lot of Greek salads, so I was in luck. This is actually how this recipe came to be. It was kind of serendipitous, opening the cannellini beans instead. A few weeks ago I was thinking about how I need to make a white bean burger. I was going to go with something more south of the border at first, with hot peppers, cilantro and roasted corn. But the cilantro in my fridge was a little limp, so I opted for a more Mediterranean taste.
This is pretty easy to make and if you love olives, you’ll enjoy this a lot. Don’t like olives? Leave them out! Or sub them for artichokes, peppers, or whatever you like. I made mini burgers, or sliders, and the recipe made almost 8.
Enjoy!
Ingredients:
1 can cannellini beans
1 cup chopped kale
2 cloves garlic, chopped
5-6 kalamata olives, chopped
2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup Italian bread drumbs
Salt, Pepper & Olive Oil
Hummus for topping (optional)
Directions:
Rinse cannellini beans and pat dry. Make sure they are dry so there is less moisture and you can form the burger patties. Mash the beans with a potato masher or fork. The beans don’t have to be mashed completely.
Meanwhile in a medium fying pan heat chopped garlic and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a pan over medium low heat. Saute 5-7 minutes. Add chopped kale and cook for 10 minutes until kale is wilted. Stir well.
Combine kale, chopped olives, feta cheese and bread crumbs into bowl with mashed beans. Combine well. If it’s too thick and you can’t form a burger patty shape with bean mixture, add more bread crumbs until it’s thicker.
In the same frying pan used for kale, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Form bean mixture into patties and place in pan. Cook 3-5 minutes on each side until crispy.
Serve on whole weat bun with hummus smeared on top (I used Trader Joe’s Roasted Garlic Hummus) and enjoy!
Mashed beans on far left, kale ready for saute in the middle and mixed burger ingredients on the far right.
Fresh burger patties in the pan. I like mine crispy so I go for a golden color.
This is no ordinary burger, so it needs no ordinary topping. A slab of cheddar cheese and some ketcup and mayo would not cut it. A dollop of hummus and perhaps some sliced pepperoncini peppers really creates a perfect flavor. I loved this burger and I had enough leftover to each for lunch and dinner.
Mangia!
By Bianca