Meatless Monday: Black Bean Burgers with Mango Salsa

It's Meatless Monday!!

This week's recipe is Black Bean Burgers with Mango Salsa

This is a Cooking Light recipe that my sister made while we were visiting her in Boston last month.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 burger)

Ingredients

2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained

3/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, divided3/4 cup (3 ounces)

shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1/4 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 medium jalapeño pepper, finely chopped

2 large egg whites

Cooking spray

1 1/4 cups chopped peeled mango (about 1 medium)

3 tablespoons chopped shallots

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice1 avocado, peeled and chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

6 (2-ounce) whole-wheat hamburger buns, lightly toasted

6 green leaf lettuce leaves

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Place black beans in a medium bowl; mash with a fork. Stir in 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro and the next 7 ingredients (through egg whites). Shape bean mixture into 6 (1/2-inch-thick) patties. Arrange patties on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes, carefully turning once.

3. Combine remaining 1/4 cup cilantro, mango, and the next 4 ingredients (through minced garlic) in a medium bowl. Place a patty on bottom half of each hamburger bun; top each with 1 lettuce leaf, 1/3 cup salsa, and top half of bun.

Lisa's Notes:
 
*Use a potato masher instead of fork to mash the beans.
 
*Definitely toast the rolls. It makes a difference. The burgers are soft, so it's a nice contrast to have a toasted roll. It's also why a big crisp leaf of lettuce is nice.
 
*Personally I would rather have the garlic cooked in the burger than raw in the salsa.
 
*I would use parsley in the burgers instead of cilantro, but that's because I don't really like cilantro.
 
*We left the shallots out because I hate them. I hate anything in the onion family. I don't think hate is a strong enough word. :)