Spicy Sweet Potato Burgers with Lemony Greek Yogurt and Avocado

Nothing get on my nerves more than hearing somebody saying “OMG, I’m such a sweet potato person, they’re so yummy and healthy!”.
What does it mean to be sweet potato person?
That if you look at yourself in the mirror you see a sweet potato? That among your peers you’re considered a sweet potato? That you eat only sweet potatoes?
In my humble experience, it usually means that you discovered recently (very recently, maybe yesterday) that sweet potatoes are a healthy food and you just need to speak it to the world. An attempt to assert that you’re a healthy person and that you know a whole lot deal about it. Bah...
For this one time you’re justified though...sweet potatoes are an awesome food so you might as well call yourself a sweet potato person. As long as you promise to really make them one of the staple food of your diet.

Today we’re using sweet potatoes, cannellini beans and a good amount of spices to make a tasty veggie burger. This is what I like to call a “said and done” dish. Quick and easy (except the cooking of the sweet potatoes), plus it makes quite an impression.
It’s not only about the taste. The color palette it’s quite spectacular: the bright orange color of the patty, the green of the avocado and the white of the Greek yogurt. The same colors of the Irish flag. Not bad, huh?

Spicy Sweet Potato Burgers with Lemony Greek Yogurt and Avocado              Print this recipe!

Adapted from howsweeteats.com

Ingredients
Yields 4 burgers

2 large sweet potatoes
1 can 15 oz / 425 gr cannellini beans, rinsed well and drained
1 garlic clove, minced
⅓ cup whole wheat panko breadcrumbs
⅓ cup corn flour (or whole wheat flour)
1 large egg, lightly beaten (or 2 egg whites)
1 ½ teaspoon paprika
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 avocado, sliced
1 container plain Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
4 whole wheat buns

Directions

Cook sweet potatoes in a large pot of salted boiling water until tender. 40 minutes or so. Once cooked, peel (be careful not to burn your hands) and coarsley mash with the tines of a fork.
Puree beans with a blender or in a bowl with a stand mixer.
In a large bowl, mash together sweet potatoes and beans. Add paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic, egg, panko breadcrumbs and flour.
Mix together until combined, then place bowl in the fridge for 15 to 20 minutes. This helps the mixture to set and it will be easier to form patties.
In the meantime, combine Greek yogurt, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Set aside.
Heat a large skillet (or pan) over medium heat, add the 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Remove mixture from the fridge and form regular size patties, then place in the skillet onee hot.
Since forming patties can be quite messy, do not touch/flip burgers until they are cooked and golden on one side, about 5 to 6 minutes. Then tune and cook on the other side for another 5 to 6 minutes.
Meanwhile toast the buns.
Assemble burgers by topping burgers with Green yogurt cream and slices of avocado.

Nutrition facts

One burger yields 450 calories, 12 grams of fat, 80 grams of fat and 21 grams of protein.