9 months & Black Bean Burgers

Wedding Count Down: 9 Months!

This is single digits. This means it feels really, really, real. Wow.

In my 10 months post I gave myself a few goals of what I wanted to get done & I think I did a pretty good job:

• still find a band I have found great bands but they are all over my budget.
• still find a videography Done! Once it gets closer I need to watch a ton of videos and pick my style.
• address & mail my save the dates Dropped them off yesterday at the post office
• figure out a honeymoon destination  Now Geoff gets to book it :)
• finalize bridesmaid dresses LOVE them. I may keep them for myself.
• get my body in shape HA I did get back in the gym & had a few good workouts but that's it...

I blurred out the details :)

I even got a few of my DIY projects done. I borrowed Mama Pink Strings sewing machine & went to work. Needless to say we haven't eaten dinner at the dining table in over a week. I also ordered the most amazing initials. I may be more excited to hang them in our house post wedding...

Now for goals this month:

• Order bridesmaid dresses 
• Order my wedding shoes, this may be plural (hope Mama Green Bean isn't reading this on vacation)
• GET A PASSPORT 
• Determine information to go on invitations 
• Still find a band
• Photo booth sewing project
• Finish goodie bag prep
• Get in shape. hahaha. I have a bad feeling this will be every month...

This may appear to be a lot but the only toughie besides the band (any suggestions?)  is getting a passport. I had one years ago & at some point it went MIA. Now I need to figure out the process for lost passports.

All of this listing has got me hungry. Good thing dinner last night (some how) turned out AMAZING.

The idea started when our avocado tree that produced zero avocados last year has grown some of the most amazing avocados this past week. Lots of them.

With publix selling avocados for $2.50 a piece I could be making some money (for more wedding shoes perhaps) but no we are selfish and would rather eat copious amounts of healthy fats, multiple times a day. My method of choice? The spoon. Why eat extra calories when you can eat it straight?

Ok. You can only eat so much via the spoon method before you decide to upgrade. Upgrade to what you may ask? Black bean burgers!

I had extremely high hopes for these burgers. I can't eat many frozen black bean burgers because so many include corn or soy & I can't eat either and they are pricey. Mama Pink String makes very yummy black bean burgers but they contain brown rice which is great but I didn't have any cooked rice & I just wanted beans.

This is what began the "just throw everything into the food processor method". Don't do this. I put the beans in first then added the onion, garlic, jalapeno, carrots,  & flax. I know you are always supposed to process the veg before you add beans and such but I just wasn't really paying attention. After processing, I still had chunks of veg and bean dip consistency. I even contemplated heating it up and calling it a dip but one can only eat so many dips with a spoon. I then proceeded to grind some gluten free oats in the blender and folded them in with spices. That was what it needed. I was so proud. We may have opened a bottle of bubbly to celebrate.

Black Bean Burgers

4 cups cooked black beans, rinsed
1/4 onion
1 glove garlic
1/2 jalapeno
1/2 cup carrots
1 tablespoon ground flax
2/3 cup ground oats, do not process to flour
1 tablespoon cumin
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Process pre chopped onion, garlic, jalapeno, and carrot until small pieces remain and ingredients are combined.

Add beans, flax and cumin process until beans are broken down. Don't take to a hummus stage but leave slightly chunky.

Transfer to a bowl and stir in the oats and season to taste with salt.

With wet hands form beans into patties and place on a cookie sheet. I was able to make 8.

You can now refrigerate until ready to cook or cook immediately for about 15 minutes or until exterior is crispy and burgers are warmed through.

This may not look like the most appealing burger but are hamburgers very attractive? Exactly. Serve with guac and salsa with or with out a bun and you have a winner. Geoff ate two! He had grilled a bunch of chicken for lunch for the next few days and I think he also did that as a back up plan "just in case". Smart man. But he just ate the burgers. Yay.

Guac to burger ratio 1:1. Alongside the burgers we had my favorite side: baked sweet potato fries. To make just slice sweet potatoes with skin on (wash well because the skin is good for you!), spray with olive oil and season as desired. I seasoned this batch with cumin, chili powder and salt. Bake for around 25 to 30 minutes depending on how large your slices are and be sure to flip halfway through.  Every time I make them, I wish I would have made more. Typical.

Enjoy! This weekend I plan on working in the living room to give a living room Where We Are now.

.live creatively well.
-nicole