This post is a part of  the mega Blogging Marathon and A-Z challenge. I have chosen ‘popular American dishes’ as my theme.

I can’t believe we are at the last leg of our journey here. My catching up with others journey will happen only next month, but yeah, for most part, we are almost there at the end. Four more posts and its over! The first thing I am going to do is schedule posts for the next three days. At the moment, the plan is to put everything up in the blog and be as prepared as you can be. Be ready! That’s the motto. I can already feel the change!

And you can already guess my intro for tomorrow. Its going to be about the forces in nature that prevented me from being on time. Why I was not able to schedule the posts or even get around editing the pictures or worse…what prevented me from getting the cooking done! Ah well.. I have always been a “last minuter” (I am coining that term if there isn’t one already) and I don’t see things changing anytime soon. It hasn’t changed for almost four decades now and we don’t have to rush and assume its going to change from tomorrow :D.

While I am getting ready with excuses for tomorrow, you can check out a fabulous veggie burger recipe. Nailed that ‘V’, didn’t I? ;-)

Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a pan.Saute one chopped medium red onion and one chopped red bell pepper. You can add carrots or any other veggies if you prefer. Set aside once its cooked. Mash 1.5 cups cooked black beans(or beans of your choice) with a fork or in a food processor. You want most of it mashed, but not all.

Add the mashed beans to 3/4 cup cooked rice. Now add the cooked bell pepper mix, along with 1 teaspoon chilli powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, salt and pepper. Combine everything well with your hands or a wooden spoon. Depending upon the moisture of the bean mix, you can add 1/4- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs.

Add 1/4 cup oats if desired. It adds some texture to the patty. Divide the mixture into 4-­5 equal parts. Shape each one into a nice flat patty. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a pan and cook the patties on medium­-low heat. Cook both sides and drain on a kitchen napkin when done.

Flip over, cook both sides and drain on a kitchen napkin when done. I made more smaller patties compared to 5 bigger patties. For sauce, mix 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise with 1 teaspoon each of ketchup and yellow mustard. At the time of serving, spread the sauce on the burger buns. Layer it with cucumber slices(you can make pickle out of it and use, I didn’t!), the patty, slices of tomatoes and onion and then top with the other half of the bun. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2-3 tablespoons oil, divided
• one medium red onion, chopped
• one medium red bell pepper, chopped
• one medium carrot, chopped fine
• 1.5 cups black beans(or beans of your choice), cooked
• 3/4 cup cooked rice
• 1/4 cup oats
• 1/4 -1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 1 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper

To serve:

• a sauce made of mayo, ketchup and mustard
• burger buns
• sliced cucumber, tomato and onions

Method:

1. Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a pan.Saute one chopped medium red onion and one chopped red bell pepper. Set aside once its cooked.
2. Mash 1 cup cooked black beans with a fork or in a food processor. You want most of it mashed, but not all.Add the mashed beans to 3/4 cup cooked rice. Now add the cooked bell pepper mix, along with 1 teaspoon chilli powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, salt and pepper.
3. Combine everything well with your hands or a wooden spoon. Depending upon the moisture of the bean mix, you can add 1/4- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs. Add 1/4 cup oats if desired. It adds some texture to the patty.
4. Divide the mixture into 4-­5 equal parts. Shape each one into a nice flat patty. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a pan and cook the patties on medium-low heat. Cook both sides and drain on a kitchen napkin when done.
5. Flip over, cook both sides and drain on a kitchen napkin when done. I made more smaller patties compared to 5 bigger patties.
6. For sauce, mix 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise with 1 teaspoon each of ketchup and yellow mustard. At the time of serving, spread the sauce on the burger buns. Layer it with cucumber slices(you can make pickle out of it and use, I didn’t!), the patty, slices of tomatoes and onion and then top with the other half of the bun. Enjoy!

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 63