Hemsley + Hemsley feta and black bean burgers recipe

If you love a good veggie burger, this Hemsley + Hemsley recipe will be right up your street. Using feta and black beans, these burgers have a very similar texture to beef burgers, but they're made entirely of plant-based ingredients. These delicious Hemsley + Hemsley burgers are seasoned with garlic, oregano, parsley and fresh chillies, so you know they'll be bursting with flavour. This recipe makes 8 burgers, so they're ideal to make if you're having people round for tea or for a summer BBQ. They're really quick to make - you'll only need 20 mins, plus another 50 mins to cook them in the oven. If you're cooking them on a BBQ, then just cook them until they're crisp on the outside and golden brown. You can serve them on their own with a side of fresh green salad if you're watching your diet, or you can also serve them as you would any other burgers. Another serving option would be the lettuce wrap - use a lettuce leaf to replace a bun to cut down on calories!

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp ghee
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, grated
• 2 tins of black beans (drained weight 500g) or 500g home cooked beans (dried weight 200g, soaked overnight)
• 100g chestnut flour (or buckwheat flour)
• 1 tsp dried oregano or thyme
• 170g sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• a handful of fresh parsley, roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp chopped jalapeño peppers or fresh chillies
• 100g feta, chopped
• sea salt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to fan 180°C/Gas mark 6.
2. Heat the ghee in a pan over a medium heat and fry the onion until softened but not coloured. Stir in the garlic and cook for a few minutes before adding the drained cooked beans.
3. Mash the beans roughly with the back of a wooden spoon so that their excess moisture evaporates in the heat of the pan.
4. Transfer the bean mix to a bowl then stir in the flour and mix well to combine everything together.
5. Gently fold in the rest of the ingredients and check for seasoning, adding a little salt, if needed, or more jalapeños or chillies, if you like.
6. When the mixture is cool enough to handle, form the mixture into 8 burgers using your hands to shape them.
7. Lay the burgers on a baking tray lined with parchment paper then flatten each burger so that they are about 2 cm thick.
8. Bake the burgers in the oven for about 50 minutes until crisp on the outside and golden brown, turning them over halfway through the cooking time.