Black Bean Burgers

3½ cups home-cooked or canned no-salt-added black beans (from two 15-ounce cans), drained and rinsed

Generous 1 cup chickpea flour

3 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons plain, unsweetened applesauce

1 teaspoon chili powder

2 teaspoons tamari

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

½ teaspoon kosher salt or coarse sea salt, plus more as needed

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed

Vegetable oil, for shallow frying

Use a fork to mash the beans in a large mixing bowl so they're mushy but not totally smooth; there should still be some whole beans in the mixture.

Add the chickpea flour, tomato paste, applesauce, chili powder, tamari, vinegar, lime juice, salt and pepper, stirring to incorporate. Taste, and add more salt and pepper if needed.

Heat a saucepan with ½ inch of the oil over medium heat, then place a generous 1/3 cup of the mixture in the center of the pan. Carefully press it into a round, pressing until the patty is about ¾-inch thick. Repeat to form 3 or 4 burgers in the pan, working in batches to avoiding overcrowding. Cook until browned and crisp on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes per side, flipping them as needed so they cook evenly.

Transfer the cooked burgers to a plate, sprinkle lightly with more salt, if desired, and cover loosely to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining mixture. Serve with greens and sweet potato (or other) fries.

Makes 8 servings

Adapted from "Deliciously Ella Every Day," by Ella Woodward (Scribner, 2016)