I have been late joining the Quinoa movement. I don't have special dietary needs, I'm not gluten intolerant, not vegan or vegetarian or likely to be the first to jump on new health trends. That being said, I have been trying to find recipes that use quinoa because I enjoy it. This is one recipe that introduced quinoa to me. My sister discovered this recipe as a meat substitute and as meat eaters Chris and I enjoyed it and didn't even miss the meat. These are so versatile, they are flavourful and have a hearty texture that make them sturdy enough to act as a meat patty.
Quinoa cooks sort of like rice, sort of like pasta. You measure the water and quinoa like with rice but you treat it like pasta. Use double the amount of water as quinoa and you are golden.
I used one cup of uncooked quinoa for this recipe.
Two cups of water.
1/2 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, turn it down and simmer until the germ part of the seed separates a bit and becomes visible.
Set aside to cool. This calls for eggs and we don't want scrambled eggs in our patties.
Next, gather your ingredients, three eggs will do. The recipe also calls for cottage cheese but I didn't have any. I was going to substitute cheddar and mozza but decided I didn't want the extra fat.
Grate some carrot. Alternately, you can add grated zucchini or a mixture of both. Really anything goes. Just make them in small enough pieces they will cook quickly within the patty.
Now this is where you have options. I followed the recipe as it is found here but you can really personalize this. Because of the eggs you will need something to hold the patties together. The recipe calls for flour or rolled oats as a gluten-free alternative. I have only made these with flour, personally. Also, we love cumin so we are happy to stick to the recipe there as well.
The recipe calls for green onions but, again, I didn't have green onion so I diced up yellow onion. That the great thing about cooking, it is very flexible.
Throw everything into a bowl and mix. I used my stand mixer for this because it it easy and I'm lazy.
Plus, why have awesome appliances if you don't use them??
It should be completely blended, pretty loose and moist. Add cheese at this point if you want.
Oil a baking pan. The recipe calls for these to be fried but I like to start them in a pan and finish them in the oven.
Get a 1/2 cup scoop or measuring cup for portion control.
I use my electric breakfast grill here. Scoop out your patties, they will cook in the shape you set them in so they are pretty forgiving.
Now squish them into patties with the back of the spatula.
Brown well on both sides. Then, onto the prepared baking pan so they will continue cooking in the oven. Be sure they get a good crust before you try to flip them or they will come apart.
Bake for about 20 minutes at 375F. They will be moist inside, a bit crunchy around the edges and firm enough to be treated as a regular burger patty. These can definitely be finished in the pan instead of in the oven but I like not having to watch them too closely. I served these with a nice fresh salad and some left over ham warmed up. They were excellent with ketchup. The next time I make them I will be mixing up the seasoning to try a different taste.
After supper, I was having a serious sugar craving so I mixed up a mug cookie. I'll be sharing that recipe tomorrow. So. Damn. Good. Seriously!
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