Beat-the-Blahs Basic Black Bean Patties

Here it is, at long last, our favorite vegan recipe. We usually eat this once a week and pair it with a carrot salad, rice, and applesauce. I use the applesauce like an actual sauce and spoon it right over the bean cakes and rice.

Beat-the-Blahs Basic Black Bean Patties

From Apocalypse Chow: How to Eat Well When the Power Goes Out
By Jon Robertson with Robin Robertson
Reprinted with permission from Robin Robertson

“These incredibly tasty patties can be served with a variety of sauces. It all depends on what flavor you’re in the mood for. The spicy peanut sauce works great, but so do the salsa and barbecue sauce.”

One 16-ounce can diced white potatoes, drained
One 15.5-ounce can black beans, drained (and rinsed, if possible)
1 tablespoon dehydrated minced onion
1 teaspoon dried parsley
¼ cup dried bread crumbs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil

1. In a large bowl mash the potatoes and beans with a potato ricer until broken up. Add the onion, parsley, and bread crumbs, and then salt and pepper to taste. Mix until well combined.

2. Divide the mixture into 6 equal portions and use your hands to shape into patties.

3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the bean patties until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels and serve hot with your favorite sauce.

Makes 6 patties.

Apocalypse Chow is one of my favorite cookbooks since it has recipes that use non-perishable ingredients AND, since the recipes are delicious and filling, oh, and vegan, it has opened my eyes to the possibility that we might just be able to start phasing meat out of our diet. It also has lots of advice about emergency preparedness and how to, as the title states, eat well when the power goes out, which is a situation you can easily find yourself in living in a hurricane prone area. The power not only can go out, it can go out for an extended period of time! Unfortunately the book is now out of print.

Fortunately Robin Robertson has several other cookbooks. I'm currently enjoying reading through the recipes in Vegan Planet. I haven't tried any of them out yet because I haven't had it very long, but several of them look promising for our Meatless Mondays.

PS: I actually tried to do the picture thing for the Black Bean Patties but they didn't come out well so I'm not posting them at this point. My photography skills need some work if I'm going to live up to the food blogs!! ;)