Black Bean Burgers

Picture from Everybody Likes Sandwiches

We have been slowly cutting back on our meat consumption around here. We've completely cut out red meat and mostly eat poultry and fish. But even then we try to have at least a few completely vegetarian meals each week. We've done this for a few reason, the two main reasons are health and cost. I try to keep our weekly grocery bill for a family of four to less than $50 (this doesn't always happen). Meat is definitely one of the more expensive items on our grocery list, so by cutting back and cutting it out, I save a lot of grocery money.

I've never been a big meat eater to start with, but I have a weakness for burgers. We made turkey burgers every once in a while, and I've just recently started making black bean burgers. I came by this post from Everybody Likes Sandwiches. It is a southwestern black bean burger that includes flax meal, oat bran, and wheat germ (some of my favorite healthy ingredients!). The burgers were incredibly easy to make and got rave reviews from everyone at my house (which is uncommon). I've had them on a bun or if I'm going gluten free (ahem, Gara), I have it on a corn tostada with some fresh salsa and a dollop of plain yogurt (in place of sour cream).

I know not everyone wants to go in a meat free (or reduced meat) direction, but these black bean burgers are so yummy, that a beef lover could appreciate them! Who can't appreciate a meal for a family of four that cost less than $10!?