Black Bean Burgers

I have decided that I am only going to eat organic grass-fed beef, organic free range chicken and eggs and wild caught fish. Needless to say...I will not be eating those these very often because they are dang expensive!

So I have decided to go semi-vegetarian and get my protein from other plant and animal sources. I found a recipe for black bean burgers and tweaked it to my liking. They are delicious! I am going to make some huge batches and freeze them.

Black Bean Burgers

1 can of black beans (1 1/2 C)

1 C brown rice (or quinoa, which is faster to cook)

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 onion, diced

1/2 green pepper diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 C flour or bread crumbs (I used gluten free bread crumbs)

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp garlic salt

2 tsp olive oil

dash of hot pepper sauce (optional)

Heat 1 tsp of the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Sauté the onions, green pepper and garlic until just softened. In a medium bowl mash the black beans with a fork. Add the onions, garlic and peppers and the remaining ingredients. Mix well.

Form 6 patties. Heat the other teaspoon of olive oil over medium heat. Place the patties on the pan and cook 4 minutes on each side.

You can eat these as a hamburger using a bun or by themselves. I melted mozzarella cheese on mine, then topped it with a little salsa. Avocado or guacamole would be delicious too.

Coconut Flour Carrot Cake - GF

My sister that hates any "healthy desserts" loved this cake. It is moist and yummy!

Gluten Free Carrot Cake

1/2 C butter, melted

1/2 C coconut milk

12 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 C sweetener (I used 1/2 palm sugar and 1/2 agave)

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1 C sifted coconut flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 C finely grated carrots

1 C crushed pineapple, drained

1/2 C nuts, chopped

Frosting

Combine butter, coconut milk, eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl mix together sweeteners and spices; stir into wet mixture. Combine coconut flour with baking powder and whisk into batter until there are no lumps. Fold in carrots, pineapple and nuts. Pour batter equally into 2 greased 8 or 9x1 1/2 - inch layer cake pans or one 9x9x2-inch pan. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until knife inserted into center comes out clean. Cool. Cover with Cream Cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

This delicious frosting is easy to make and saves you 3,000 calories over the sugar equivalent and tastes better.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick) at room temperature

8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature

1 tbsp. lemon juice

2/3 cup agave

Steps:

Put all ingredients into a large bowl and blend until smooth with an electric mixer. Refrigerate until ready to use.