I came across this innocent looking bottle of chili lime sauce the other day in the grocery store and before I knew it, visions of black bean cakes were dancing in my head.
They came dressed in sweet potato, celery and onion. Cashews too. And, in a smouldering black cloak of confidence, cocoa appeared. Vision complete.
I call them mole (moh-ley) cakes because they remind me of the Mexican inspired dish made with cumin, cinnamon and cocoa powder.
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1 large yellow onion, diced
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3 cups black bean, thoroughly rinsed if using canned
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1 sweet potato, lightly cooked, peeled and coarsely chopped
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1/3 cup cashews
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1 celery stick, coarsely chopped
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1 Tbsp olive oil
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1 heaping Tbsp quality cocoa powder or to taste
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1 tsp cumin
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1/2 tsp cinnamon
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sea salt & coarse black pepper to taste
For the Chili-Lime Guacamole
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2 ripe avocados, peeled and chopped
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1 Tbsp olive oil
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2 tsp chili powder
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2 tsp rice vinegar
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2 tsp fresh lime juice
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1 sliver jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
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1/4 tsp brown sugar
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1/4 tsp sea salt
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Note:
These delicate mole cakes are soft and creamy. They do not have the consistency or texture of a ‘burger’ – vegetarian or otherwise. You will want to flip them with care on not press down on them with a spatula to avoid flattening them like a pancake.
Makes 6-8 cakes
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Sauté onion in a skillet with some olive oil over medium-low heat until translucent (about 3 minutes) and set aside.
Place black beans, sweet potato, celery, cashews and olive oil together in a blender and pulse until combined but not mushy (there should still be some chunky bean and potato pieces). Add sautéed onion, cocoa, cumin, cinnamon and salt and pepper to blender and pulse until integrated with bean mixture. If the mixture is too dry, you can adjust by adding some olive oil. Once mixed, assemble mole mixture into cakes with your hands – in much the same way you would with a hamburger.
Meanwhile, assemble chili-lime guacamole ingredients. I generally hand-mix my guacamole but you can do this in a small blender or hand mixer if you prefer. Adjust the thickness of the guacamole by adding more avocado and/or liquid ingredients as desired.
Once your guacamole is ready, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add some olive oil to the skillet and mole cakes. Allow the cakes to sizzle for a minute or two before flipping. Use a generous size spatula to flip the cakes and try to do so with one swift action to avoid crumbling and breaking apart. Once you have flipped the cakes, simply allow them to fry on the other side without pressing down on the cake with the spatula. If you do this, the cakes will fan out and flatten like a pancake.
Serve the mole cakes with chili-lime guacamole and warm roasted red peppers.
Enjoy!
Mmm, how did they taste with the cashews? I love all the ingredients but never ate them together. I’ve always wanted to add cocoa powder to my chili and then let my husband talk me out of it. I was so close to adding some cocoa to my spicy chili for tonights dinner! Next time!
Thanks so much Sally! Yeah, I used to have the exact same conversations with my husband (lots of particularly mature comments about beans ;0) but over time he came to not only accept the change but also like it. I think the enviro impact of meat consumption plays on both our minds. xo
indeed. me too.
obsess away ;0
Holy Mole for sure!! As I reflect on my posts :) it occurs to me that my favourite foods are Mexican (i think i love pretty much everything mexican, including the soft sand and stunning blue waters…sigh,,,,); thai and indian. The full bodied stuff. You’re very kind to compliment my photo – I have much work to do in this area ;-)
Thank you beautiful Kiran – xo.
isn’t it always rainy season in Seattle :) (a bit like Vancouver) oh dear. Thanks Sarah – the chili-lime guac is a winner. Hope you give a try sometime!
Hee-hee, thanks Ashley.
funny how things work sometimes. Thanks Ann.
Hi Eva!! I hope all is well with you and your travels. Will visit shortly :)
well,… if you say so…. ;0 ha-ha! Thank you Christy – it was actually very straight forward. Hope you try it.
Thanks so much Stephanie – they’re so easy too which is always nice.
ha-ha! drop in for dinner anytime Kim – just a short walk away, right? ;0 – I wish! xo
Thanks Jeanette – the combination of ingredients lent plenty of flavour and as always, many variations are possible – ingredients wise and texture wise.
you know, it work really well. i think i’m going to be mixing up the chili-lime guac more often! Thanks sweet Caroline :)
Thanks Kristy ;0 I promise you that neither Mike nor the kiddies will be able to taste the sweet potato in these soft cakes… it will just be our little secret :0
and the amazing thing in the US is that you have two huge holidays back-to-back – wow, it’s all i can do to cope with Christmas :0)
merci ma belle! appreciate your thoughtful words… xo
there so easy to make and there’s not end to the combinations – i’m going to be doing this more frequently. the whole family enjoyed them and it’s a nice change.
oh, thank you so much Linda – to me it seemed simple but I think the flavours give it a sense of biggerness –
i thought you might – :0) xo
complex, yes and no. The flavours are rich and bold (I appear to like that :) but really once you have the ingredients, it’s a big toss together in the blender kind of deal. It makes for a nice vegetarian switch-up which we enjoy. How did you make out with your passion fruit? :0)
sounds good Karen – thanks for dropping by :)
ha-ha, thanks Chris!
My husband and I both really liked the cashew and you can play with the texture here – if you prefer lumpy and bumpy, just blend a little less. Thanks MJ.
your always so kind Anne… keep it coming (just kidding) – sometimes you have to pull and tug, other times it’s a bit easier. xo
that’s so nice to hear Laura! thank you!
Wonderful! Thanks for dropping by and letting me know Melissa –
Thanks Megan, I enjoyed making them and the mixture of ingredients was quite colourful in the end.
thanks so much for dropping by – have a nice afternoon.
it’s fun to have vegetarian options – i aim for protein concentrated meals with lots of flavour ;0 Thanks Eliot!
ah, yes, taste such an individual thing…. i find them very flavourful and satisfying – hope you do too Dzoli!
Absolutely awesome! So creative, loved the way you added the cocoa too… now if only I could convince the hubby to go vegetarian one day per week… He would tell me – this patties would go nicely next to a T-bone steak… ;-)
I LOVE mole sauce. This looks like a delicious dish.
I have a kind of minor obsession with all things mole and I’m pretty sure I’d ADORE these black bean burgers. Totally need to try.
Holy Mole! (am I doing it right?) – these looks great… I’ve never heard of “mole” stuff, but I just love beans – and all the things in this, like cumin, cashews, chillis… I just adore. All my favourite things! I bet my mother would love this too (vegetarian)! I’ll send her the link :) You know, I never had cocoa or chocolate in savoury dishes before – I’m interested to know how it impacts the flavour! Love the last photo Kelly :)
Very creative, Kelly! I love how you’ve spiced this recipe :)
Love! Especially the chile-lime guacamole. We’ve settled into the rainy season and this sounds perfect for brightening up a chilly night!
Majorly want these!! Now they will be dancing in my head! xx
Thee are terrific! I like how just picking up a bottle made such a recipe….I LOVE when that happens! Very nicely done!
My hubby loves mole sauce, and the flavour profile of this dish would be right up his alley too! So sorry I haven’t been by to comment, some sites were more difficult to comment on with my iPhone than others…
Another healthy and tasty recipe.
Mole cake is an appropriate name for this; and you are such a creative person to be able to whip up something just like that with whatever you have!:) Not to mention that you are skilled too; genius!;)
Kelly, this is a stunning dish! Those mole cakes are fabulous and the guacamole sounds delicious!
Kellly,
““apparently, that innocent bottle of chili lime sauce did not know what it was in for before you began your creation!
Love it. Want some. Kim http://myinnerchick.com
What a creative recipe Kelly – I love anything with spice and the cashews and chocolate in these cakes is very interesting.
What a clever idea, these sound fantastic! I’m particularly loving the chili-lime guacamole. Mmm!
Holy cow does that look good! I love when you get these visions dancing in your head – it always ends up in a delicious treat for me to read. I’m going to have to put this on my list of things to make. I think I might even be able to get the kids to try it. They do like their black beans. I just won’t tell them about the sweet potatoes (or Mike). Shhh. ;)
I love sweet potatoes, so I will definitely give these Smokin’ Mole Cakes a try.. probably after the holidays. I’m gearing up not to eat so much this year lol
Beautiful creation Kelly. An absolutely stunning array of flavors for a bold dinner packed with good for you nutrition. Really great photos as well.
Wow, go out of town for a few days and look at what I come back to. Amazing stuff. I’ve made black eyed pea cakes, but not black bean. These look great.
Wow, you really have a way of taking all things good and healthy and creating wonderful….gourmet dishes!! This is fabulous, from the presentation down to the mix of flavors.
wow i love how this is vegan and glutenfree. this veggie mole sounds delicious! chili in guac sounds flavorful! great idea kelly.
I would love to have a bite of one of these cakes at least to taste the cocoa’s impact. It looks like one more of your extraordinary, complex and healthy inventions. I am a big fan of cashews (I often add them to stir fried dishes). Thanks for one more lovely idea!
Talking about ideas, I have bought some passion fruits today and will soon start experimenting. Since I saw your panna cotta I cannot stop thinking about them.
Kelly, these sound wonderful! I love moles and can’t wait to try this recipe.
What a fun unique delicious looking meal. Love your description of the inspiration!
Mole’ cakes sounds like a great name for these! Both the cakes and the guacamole look fabulous! The addition of the cashew is very interesting. I’ve always loved the combination of black bean and sweet potato so I’ve saves these for one of our meatless meals.
Kelly…first of all….what a BEAUTIFUL presentation! I wish I had your visions! This unbelievable meal based on a bottle of chili lime sauce! I am very impressed. I would have purchased the bottle of sauce and brought it home….and then mulled over a dozen cookbooks for weeks…and I still would not have been able to produce this! Kudos to you! (But …I’m not surprised!) ; – )
Mole is one of my favorite flavors. Love this idea – and that pepper on top is gorgeous!
Hi Kelly, Melissa here from Food Bloggers of Canada. Just popping by to check out your blog and to let you know we’ve added you to our Membership Directory. Welcome aboard!
Love it! Great recipe and pics! – megan @ foodalution
This recipe sure look good and can not wait to taste it!
This has a sweet potato in it? I am definitely trying this. Another vegetarian meal for us? Wow—who knew how good it could be!
I am very curious about teh taste..they sure are very original:)