In July of 2013, I joined a clean eating challenge group and have been on a clean eating “journey” ever since.  I try to eat clean for about 75 % of my week.  One of my favorite recipes was one they had for a bean patty.  Truth be told, I have been eating this for lunch about 4 days a week since then.  I have modified the recipe and made a few tweaks to make it taste better in my opinion.  They are super easy to make, portable, and tasty.  This recipes makes 8 patties, so you can have your lunch for the week.  You can refrigerate the patties and heat them up (if so desired) as you go.

Ingredients:

• 2 cans (15oz. each) of Black Beans drained and rinsed – I like the 365 Organic Spicy Black Beans
• 1 and 1/2 cups quick cook oats
• 1 large carrot shredded (I like to use my cheese grater to shred it)
• avocado
• red bell pepper
• 2 large romaine leaves
• 4-8 garlic cloves minced  (amount depends on how much you like garlic)
• 2 tsp. of chili powder
• 1 tsp. of ground cumin
• 2 and 1/2 tbsp. of Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp. of soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. EVOO

1. Line a skillet with the EVOO, saute the carrots, garlic, chili powder and cumin on medium for about 3-4 minutes.  Take off burner and set aside.
2. In a large bowl add black bean and oats.  Mash the beans and oats together with your hands.  Mix in soy sauce, mustard and saute. (I mix all of this with my hands – don’t be afraid to get messy.  I have found this is the best way to mix this all together.)
3. Form 8 patties and sprinkle pepper on top (patties should look like picture below).
   
4. BBQ patties at 325 degrees for 6 minutes on each side.
5. Serve on a lettuce bun with a slice of avocado and slices of red pepper.  I also like to add salsa or mustard.
6. Store remaining  cooled patties in an airtight container to be used later.