Happy 4th of July Pre Game Week! Next Monday is the big day which means this weekend you’ll probably be at some sort of bbq pool grassy field version of hunger games where hopefully there’s enough food and beer to keep you juiced up for the fireworks.
Good news is I’ve got some of your bases covered with these sliders and a few other recipes the rest of this week, things like my favorite bbq sauce, easy pickles, pie if I can get my shit together, etc. It’s like a private bbq week but since last week was popsicle week we can’t use week so we’re going to call it the calm before the bbq™©.
The recipe for these bebes actually comes from my friend Jon’s brand new book The Slider Effect, that just so happens to come out into the world and into your hearts today! For those of you that don’t know Jon (who are you even) he writes the blog The Candid Appetite where he makes all kinds of fun goodness (taco hot dogs, zebra doughnuts, cajun stuffed pasta shells, just to name a few) and his book is no exception to all the fun.
The great thing about the book is that there’s not only recipes for slider combos but he supplies all the recipes for buns, biscuits, spreads, sauces, you name it. Basically it’s a giant blueprint for building your perfect slider.
I settled on these because we all know I luv a good not meat burger and I figured you all need something in case your vegetarian friend says yes to the rsvp and shows up and doesn’t like potato salad (u can actually send them away if they don’t like potato salad it’s a law).
These are also insanely easy, it’s all pretty much done in the food processor and there’s zero chill time needed. Mix ’em up, form ’em into patties, live your life. As if an easy patty wasn’t enough we’re topping it with avocado and a cilantro lime aioli because we can.
If you luv sliders then go get this book. If you know someone else that luvs sliders then also buy them this book. It’s only $11 on Amazon right now so go pretend you’re abc family and make christmas in june/july happen.
Tex-Mex Black Bean Sliders
Slightly adapted from The Slider Effect
Makes 10-12 depending on their size
2 15oz cans low sodium black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 medium red onion, roughly chopped (the other half is going on the burgers so slice in half so you get the rings)
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 large egg
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon hot smoked paprika
1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
vegetable oil for grilling
Cilantro Lime Aioli
(it was supposed to also have green chilis but I wasn’t paying attention and grabbed a can of salsa instead -__- this stuff is still great though, even if we didn’t make our own like the book says to do)
1 cup mayonnaise
juice and zest from 1 lime
2 garlic cloves, microplaned on that same one you used for lime zest
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
pinch of salt
To assemble the sliders:
sliced roma tomato
sliced red onion
mashed up avocado seasoned with salt and pepper
slider buns, or dinner rolls
In a food processor combine 1 can of beans, the onion, garlic, cilantro, parsley, and the egg and pulse together until it all comes together as one. Dump the mixture out into a bowl and add the rest of the slider ingredients. Mix and sort of gently mash at the same time with a fork until it’s all combined then figure out the size you need for the buns. The patties need to be a thickness of 1/2″ to make sure everything cooks through so for that thickness I went with a 1/4 cup measurement and it was perfect for the size of the buns I got at the store. Scoop out the mixture and form it into patties.
To cool them heat up a grill or sauté pan and brush one side of the patties with oil. Place the patties oil side down onto the grill, brush the other side with oil and grill f0r 4-6 minutes per side.
To assemble the sliders place some of the aioli on the bottom bun, top that with a patty, then go tomato, red onion, and finally the avocado and top bun. Skewer if you’re serving them on a platter so nobody topples over and enjoyyyy.
