Dear M –

Sorry for the hideous lag in my response–having a new full-time job and no longer working from home…it’s like I’m relearning how to be an adult. It seems being an adult means commuting for many hours each day, running to Costco at odd hours, and spending weekends doing chores and buying cat food. You know…glamour. But your culinary letter brought me immense joy. One of my recent weekend chores was clearing out decades of accumulated papers…I found so many letters from the 1990s, including a treasure trove from you! I forgot what devoted letter writers we used to be, before internet killed the radio star. So, this letter of yours brought me immense joy. Speaking of glamour and adulting: toilets. That must have been immensely satisfying, to do some plumbing and have good results. I once tried to replace the plumbing under my mom’s sink…it ended in hilarious, soggy disaster and a plumber had to undo my work. So, applause to you my dear! Sometimes being an adult is fun.

It’s OK to eat fish, because they don’t have any feelings.
– Nirvana, “Something in the Way”

Your chipotle soup creation sounds delicious, and I just so happen to have all of the ingredients on hand right this very moment, except for corn and chickpeas. Some diced sweet potato could add some starch, and I’ll eat it with corn tortillas! I also don’t have garlic scapes (I think I’ve probably never bought a garlic scape?) but I have the decidedly less sexy flat-leaf parsley. I’m currently doing a mass of recipe testing for a cookbook judging thing I’m doing, and am about to cook about 15 vegan recipes…I’m actually eager to try that, as I’ve never even tried to cook vegan, so it feels like exploring a new land. I have gradually cut back my meat consumption, probably by about 70%, over the last 2 years, for purely emotional reasons. (Though I totally disagree with Kurt, as fish most certainly have feelings. They are just fishy feelings, and therefore harder to read.) I made the new years resolution in 2019 to be a pescetarian, and I lasted exactly 2 weeks. Since then, I would characterize my journey as “slouching towards pescetarianism”… Anyway, for my job I have to eat everything, so I can never be too concrete about it. However, the joy has been discovering new ways to eat and new conceptions of “main dish.” This has meant fun times with tofu and tempeh, and many, many beans. I discovered that I love dal and make it constantly. This Mitti Handi Dal is my current fav, though lentils never let me down either. Another nice beany discovery: pinto beans, sautéed Swiss chard, cheddar cheese, rice, in a burrito. I’ve made some big lima beans and mashed them with garlic oil and lemon, or baked them with a Greek tomato sauce with dill and feta like a lasagna. I’m currently experimenting with soy curls, a weird and confusing invention out of Oregon. (They have a decidedly chickeny vibe.) Anyway, here’s a pretty yummy bean burger I developed for a bean-recipe contest. Next time you have a neglected can of chipotles hanging out in your fridge!

• Cooking spray
• 1 15-ounce can aduki beans (or substitute red kidney beans), rinsed and well drained.
• ½ cup finely chopped red bell pepper
• ½ cup finely chopped onion
• 1 garlic clove, pressed or minced
• ¾ cup unseasoned breadcrumbs
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 ½ teaspoons chipotle in adobo (or 1 tablespoon if you like very spicy burgers!)
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 4-6 ounces sliced smoked cheddar or mozzarella
• 4-6 burger buns
• 1 cup arugula, packed
• ¾ cup crispy onions
  
  BBQ Burger Sauce:

• 6 tablespoons mayonnaise (light or regular)
• 3 tablespoons bottled or homemade BBQ sauce
• 1 ½-2 teaspoons chipotle in adobo

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Coat a baking sheet (1/2 sheet, 13”x18”) with cooking spray and set aside.
2. Place the beans in a medium-sized mixing bowl and mash thoroughly with a fork. There should be no whole beans, but don’t overmash or it will be gluey.
3. Stir in the bell pepper, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, egg, cumin, chipotle, and salt. The mixture should be evenly mixed with no dry spots.
4. Divide the mixture into 4 (or 6) equal sized balls. For small burger buns (2 ounces each), make 6 patties. For larger buns (3-4 ounces each), make 4 patties. Use your hands to mash and press the balls into smooth patties that stick together. (You may want to wet your hands if the mixture is sticking to them!)
5. Place the patties on the baking sheet and spray the tops lightly with cooking spray.
6. Bake until the burgers are firm to the touch but not dry, and have reached an internal temperature of 165°F, 12-18 minutes. In the last 3-5 minutes of baking, top the patties with the cheese slices and put the buns in the oven to toast.
7. When ready to serve, spread sauce (about 2 tablespoons, or to taste) on the buns and top with a patty, fried onions, and arugula. Serve immediately.

BBQ Burger Sauce:

1. In a small bowl, stir the sauce ingredients together until smooth. Sauce can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in a jar in the refrigerator.