How many of you equate “diet” with calorie restriction, starving, and bland, tasteless, boring food?  If the food was yummy, you thought, it must not be on my healthy diet? 

I certainly had this hang-up about diet and food, For years it kept me from successfully reaching my best weight and overall good health. I thought if I didn’t give up my favorite food, suffer with calorie restriction and starve day after day, then I would never reach a successful weight level.  

Was I wrong. You can eat delicious comfort food, improve your health, lose weight, fight cancer and never count calories. It’s about understanding what foods work best for your body and finding delicious healthy recipes that you like.   

For me, the comfort food I was seeking was a delicious, healthy veggie burger. I hunted for three years. Tried many recipes without luck. All of my attempts got a thumbs down from my family until this one. This recipe was given to me from a friend in the Louisville Hiking Club.  It’s delicious, easy to prepare and includes lots of black beans, which are a great source of zinc.

Zinc is a key nutrient that we need to stay healthy. Zinc is found in cells throughout the body. It helps your immune system fight off invading bacteria and viruses. A growing body of research has shown that zinc fights cancer by increasing apoptosis (cell death) in cancer cells. During pregnancy, infancy, childhood and adolescence, the body needs zinc to grow and develop properly. Zinc also helps wounds heal and is important for the proper sense of taste and smell.  Zinc is so helpful in fact that its a popular cold remedy around the world. Since it’s January cold and flu season here in Kentucky, we need all the extra support we can get.

Many people are zinc deficient, so it’s a good idea to incorporate foods rich in zinc into your diet. This burger is an excellent start – one your vegan and meat eating friends and family are sure to love.

Veggie Burger

Recipe by blair@inkmagazines.com

Servings

6

servings

Prep timeminutes

Cooking timeminutes

Calorieskcal

Black bean veggie burger

Ingredients

• 2 cans of organic black beans

• 6 T of organic ketchup or tomato paste (sugar free)

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1/2 tsp onion powder

• 4 T organic whole wheat flour

• 1/2 cup cooked green bell peppers

• 1/2 cup cooked Shiitake mushrooms

Directions

• Drain & rinse beans and mash by hand or in a food processor.
• Stir in other ingredients and form patties
• Grill for 8 minutes in an oiled pan, then flip for another 8 minutes. Or, fry in a skillet with a little olive oil for 6 minutes on each side. Or, bake each side for 10 minutes at 350 degrees

Notes

• You can use any cooked veggies you want in this recipe in place of green bell peppers and/or mushrooms. I have found that I really enjoy the mushroom and green bell pepper flavor.