Day One: Black Bean Burgers

I was nervous waking up Monday morning.... I stepped on the scale...weighed myself and was prepared for an increase in "that" department.  I was right... but that was OK - I had a plan.  A plan to see what one week of being a vegetarian would do to me....

Would it kill me?

Would it help me loose a few lb's?

Would it increase my energy?

And so many more questions.... I had so many because I have never been a vegetarian.  I have lived on red meat my entire life and it has always been a part of my diet.  I didn't understand why people wouldn't eat meat (unless for religious/cultural reasons) - why would you CHOOSE to not eat the bloody red goodness of a cow's rump?  Anyway, I embarked on this journey for one week to see what would happen; will that one week turn into one month, one year, one lifetime? Who knows but here is my experience with Day One of the The One Week Vegetarian.


Breakfast - typical breakfast - Quaker Oats in the a.m. and some water.  I skipped the morning coffee and diet coke just to see if I would get a splitting headache.  I supplemented with lots and lots of water.  I peed a lot from 8am to 11am.   No workout today so all was well with one breakfast.

Lunch - no headache yet - SCORE!  Getting nervous about what to eat considering I didn't pack a lunch.  Decision time came and the team opted for Thai food.  Veggie spring rolls and brown rice it was for my first meat-less lunch.  It was delicious - topped off with an icy cold Pellegrino.  Yummy....

Afternoon is when I get my sweet craving.  I continually drank water to keep my tummy full and curb that sweet tooth.  It worked.  I traded my afternoon sweet tooth for about 19 trips to the bathroom - but by this time **Too much info to follow** I was peeing clear and that means adequate hydration (or that I'm drunk but I definitely was NOT drunk)


Dinner: Thanks to Matt over at The Athlete's Plate for posting his favorite recipes.  I swiped his recipe for black bean burgers and headed to the kitchen.

I tried to document in pics... except the finishing pic of me actually eating the creation...

Step One - get ingredients - CHECK!

Step Two - Saute veggies in a skillet...Easy enough...

Step Three: Rinse and Drain black beans while veggies are cooking...

Step 4: Take sauteed veggies and pulse in food processor ( I forgot to take a pic)
Step 5: Add in cilantro - no pic
Step 6: Add in and pulse beans ... again no pic.

Step 7 - take bean/veggie mix and combine in bowl with bread crumbs, egg and spices.

Step 8 - form three patties and put in cast iron skillet

Step 9 - Cook 8 minutes..

Steo 10 - place on your favorite whole wheat bun, top with your fav veggies and VOILA!

I am clearly not a food photographer (or any real photographer for that matter) so sorry for the images.... I tried :)

This was one darn good black bean burger.  The cilantro in the pattie along with the spices make it taste a little Mexican/Southwestern which is totally fine with me.  I would put cilantro on anything.  I topped mine with fresh spinach, tomato, avocado and a little feta cheese. 

But the real test is ... what did Bill think?

He liked it so much he ate the third one!  I sauteed mushrooms for his - he loves them; I hate them.  He said he loved it and would like to add it into our dinner rotation.

All in all it was a deliciously filling dinner that is a recipe for the keeping.  Thanks Matt for recipe!  If you are interested in creating this black bean burger for yourself... click here!

What's your favorite burger and toppings??