a great salsa has the ability to kick a dish up a few notches & that’s exactly the premise of this week’s food matters project recipe.  with a simple fruit {or vegetable}-herb-acid combination, you’ll easily have an endless variety of salsas at your fingertips.

 we took this week”s original salsa recipe & swapped out the tomatoes for corn.  we added just a few splashes of jalapeño white balsamic vinegar {a regular white balsamic or white wine vinegar would do the trick, too} to make up for the lost tomato juices & give it just a bit more acidity, without being overly citrusy.

the corn was a welcome addition to these black bean patties.  we enjoyed them as pictured above, with heaping scoops of corn salsa & a drizzle of avocado cream, but i can imagine that they would be equally as delicious with a slice of pepperjack cheese on a burger bun.

BLACK BEAN PATTIES
makes 12-16 patties

2 15oz cans black beans, drained & rinsed, divided
2 roasted red bell peppers, finely chopped & divided
2 eggs
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
1 chipotle in adobo, minced
1 medium onion, diced
1/2-2/3 cup panko breadcrumbs, plus more, if necessary
salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
vegetable oil, for cooking

CORN SALSA
makes about 2 cups

2 cups roasted or grilled corn
1/2 large white onion, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 jalapeño, seeded & minced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tablespoons lime juice
a few splashes white balsamic or white wine vinegar
salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

AVOCADO CREAM
makes about 1 cup

1 avocado, pitted & roughly chopped
1/4 cup sour cream (low fat is fine)
1/4 cup greek yogurt (low fat or fat free is fine)
1 lime, juiced
salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

place half of the black beans in the bowl of a food processor with 1 of the roasted red peppers, the eggs, oregano, cumin & chipotle. pulse until smooth.

in a large bowl, roughly mash the rest of the beans. fold in the remaining roasted red peppers, onion & pureed bean mixture. season with salt & pepper. mix in the panko, a little at a time, until the mixture firms up. chill for at least 30 minutes.

while the patty mixture is chilling, put together the corn salsa. combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl, season with salt & pepper to taste & set aside until the patties are ready.

also while the patty mixture chills, make the avocado cream. combine all the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor & blend until smooth.

after 30 minutes, form the bean mixture into patties about 3-3 1/2 inches in diameter.

heat a few tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. add the patties, being careful not to overcrowd the pan, & cook for 3-4 minutes on each side, until they are brown & have completely firmed up. serve with corn salsa & avocado cream.

black bean patties & avocado cream adapted from annie’s eats.  corn salsa recipe from the food matters cookbook.  visit BIG EATS…tiny kitchen for the original recipe & as always head over to the food matters project to see the endless variations on this week’s choice!