Gluten Free Cereal, Black Bean and Sweet Potato Burgers, and a Sunny Saturday

Yesterday was such a nice Saturday – especially in comparison to last Saturday where all we did was move ALL DAY LONG! I leisurely woke up to a relatively organized house (although still not fully unpacked) and had a nice bowl of cereal.

This bowl was a blend of TJ’s High Fiber cereal and Barbara’s Gluten Free Organic Brown Rice Crisps. This cereal was one of the several gluten free products that Mambo Sprouts, an organic coupon company, sent me to try out. I already gave my review of the brown rice crisps but the other Barbara’s cereal I tested, Gluten Free Honey Rice Puffins, was also rather tasty. It was sweeter than the brown rice crisps and had the same crunch that regular Puffins have. I’m sure cereal is something many celiacs or those on a strict gluten free diet miss so it’s nice to know that company’s like Barbara’s Bakery are meeting that need with options that actually taste good! Do you have any favorite Gluten Free Cereals?

The cereal was the perfect fuel for the Body Attack class I decided to take. This was my second time attending Body Attack (aka boot camp aerobics), and I must say that I really like it! The time goes by quickly because you’re switching from one thing to the next and judging by how much of a sweaty mess I was afterward, I’d say it’s a pretty good workout!! Classes are such a great way to switch up your workout routine. I like to attend at least one a week!

Later in the afternoon I headed over to Whole Foods for their Community Garden Open House.

A little back ground information: The garden was built and will be maintained by the local organization, Backyard Farmer, as well as Whole Foods Market employees. Currently it’s 1 acre, however a total of 6 acres were donated for the garden and if it does end up growing that large it will be the largest Whole Foods Community Garden of it’s kind in the nation.

The garden will include seven production beds, a fruit orchard and grape vines. Squash, tomatoes, peppers and melons will be planted first, along with fruit trees: kiwi, fig, persimmon, pear and plum. It will used as an outdoor classroom for area residents and school children. And, rental plots are available to anyone who wants to grow their own food. In addition, a portion of what’s grown in the garden will be donated to the Central Virginia Food Bank.

Although opening day was more geared toward kids and didn’t offer many exciting things for adults, the idea is one that I fully support. It’s nice to see large corporations give back to the community. Whole Food’s retail stores do a great job at embracing the local community by hosting events, supporting with monetary donations or taking on big projects such as the community garden. It’s yet another reason why Whole Foods of my favorite companies.

After moseying around the garden and picking up a few last minute items I headed home to get started cooking. My Dad came down for a belated Father’s Day celebration of dinner and great conversation.

Daddy-o requested pasta so… I made black bean burgers and pasta salad.

Penne Pesto Salad with zucchini and tomatoes

• 8 oz whole wheat penne
• 1 cup zucchini
• 1 cup grape tomatoes
• 1/2 cup pesto
• 2 T nayonaise
• Sea salt & Ground pepper

The burg: Black Bean and Sweet Potato on one of the new Nature’s Pride 100% Whole Wheat Bakery Buns I was sent as part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker program. Luckily these buns made it past the critter attack because they tasted perfect when filled with the homemade bean burger.

Dad and I both throughly enjoyed the burgers and pasta. The consistency of the burger was perfect and I really liked the flavor that the fresh basil and cooked sweet potato added. The soft Nature’s Pride bun paired well with the burger- although per the usual I had an open faced burger and only used the bottom half of the bun. Typically half of a bun is all I need or else there’s just too much bread in each bite for my tastes. I know for some too much bread is simply not possible, but that’s just my preference!

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Burger

This is a variation of my standard black bean burger recipe with some substitutions to make them both vegan and gluten free.

• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup fresh basil
• 15 ounce can of black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 sweet potato, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces and boiled for 7-8 minutes until soft
• 1/2 cup Mary’s Gluten Free Cracker Crumbs (or bread crumbs)
• 2.5 T ground flax, 3 T water, whisked (or 1 egg)
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• sriracha sauce, to tatse
• sea salt, to taste
• Nature’s Pride 100% Whole Wheat Buns

Prep:

Heat a skillet with non-stick spray. Once warm add the onion and garlic in to the skillet and cook until they are limp and start to brown a bit. Put the cooked onion mixture into a food processor or blender. Add the basil and pulse several times. Add the beans and potato chunks and pulse five or six times. The beans should be broken up but there should still be some small chunks. Don’t over process, as you want your bean burgers to be a little chunky.

Transfer the veggie and bean mixture into large bowl and stir in the crumbs and other remaining ingredients and form into five patties. (If the mixture is too wet to work with add extra crumbs.)

In the same skillet, heat on medium, spray non-stick spray and add the patties, cook each side until browned, about 6-7 minutes total OR you can bake them on 375° for about 25 minutes, flipping once.

Put the burgers on a bun and serve with condiments of your choice. I used spicy mustard, onions, lettuce, and ketchup.

After digesting and saying goodbye to my Dad I went for a 3 mile run with Isaac’s sister and her friend. The sun had gone down so it wasn’t super hot and it was nice to have some running buddies to chat with. Definitely a nice ending to an enjoyable Saturday.

Today, I’ve got lunch plans with a friend. I might hit up a core flow yoga class this afternoon and then I’m going to see Toy Story 3. After hearing rave reviews, I can’t wait to see it for myself!!

I hope you are having a lovely weekend as well – what have you been up to?

-Brittany

Tagged as: Black Bean and Sweet Potato Burger, Gluten Free Cereal, Nature's Pride Buns, Whole Foods Community Garden