Quinoa Patties

 

 Remember food, you know food, the real reason I started this blog. Well I have been cooking a lot and yet have not been posting, oops. So I thought I would start with this one. I have grown a love for quinoa and while Nick was off in Japan I decided to make these quinoa patties. They proved to be quite delicious, which is good because I made over a dozen of them. I happily ate them for what seemed like every lunch and dinner for an entire week. 

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (or other variety, if you prefer)
1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
1 medium carrot, finely grated (or 1 cup shredded zucchini, squeezed dry)
3 eggs
3 Tbsp all purpose flour
2 green onions, chopped (including white parts)
1 /2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp garlic powder
Olive oil for frying

Directions:
1. Prepare quinoa. In a medium saucepan bring the 2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil over high heat. Add quinoa and reduce heat to low. Cover and cook for 18-20 minutes, or until all water is absorbed and the seeds are tender. Allow to cool for a few minutes.
2. In a large bowl combine the 2 rounded cups of cooked quinoa, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, carrot, eggs, flour, green onions, sugar, pepper, cumin, salt, and garlic powder.

3.  Heat a frying pan and a couple teaspoons olive oil over medium-low heat. To help them stay in patty form and not fall apart, cook them on med-low slowly so they have longer to set-up without burning. Makes them easier to flip, too. Mixture will be slightly sticky, so using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, drop mixture into pan and lightly flatten to 1/2 inch thick. Fry until golden-brown, about 4 minutes on each side. Makes approximately 10 patties.

4. Serve warm as a burger replacement or to eat on it's own. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Eatingwelllivingthin