Quinoa Patties
Time to prep: 20-25 mins
Time to cook: 3-4 mins per side of pattie
Total time: 30-35 mins including mistakes
Easy factor: 5
Tastiness out of ten: 7.5
Health factor out of ten: 8.5 
so it's 10:30pm and in true thanksgiving style (by that i mean every year my family waits about two hours past when i told them dinner would be to eat) I'm eating dinner. I'm also blogging because i am awesome-sauce, and i am multitasking my ass off.
this is a raging success. which is why I'm choosing to start my very first post on my very first blog with it!
these patties were crispy, seasoned well (flavorful), easy, and made mostly from ingredients you don't have to make a special trip to the store for.
*crunch crunch...* that's me eating.
i started by making quinoa. if you aren't on board the quinoa train (pronounced KEEN-wah) i suggest you go by yourself a first class seat to awesome. it is cheap (at Costco), very high in protein having more in one cooked cup than an 8oz steak, gluten free, a little bit chewy so the texture is really good for people who don't like mushy stuff, and very versatile. it has an earthy flavor similar to hemp hearts (i know i sound like a hippie) and can be used savoury or sweet. i will list a breakfast idea later in this post.
*scrapes plate into mouth....* that's me done two patties already. oh these are so good.
as with every recipe, i totally modified this to oblivion, and i suggest you do the same when you cook. i learned to cook off TV, other peoples recipes, and avoiding cooking like my mom.<---- this last part only means i made it my own ;) love ya mom.
I'm going to give you the version i made verbatim , and list some alternatives after. you should half this recipe if you are cooking for 2-3 people or less. A.K.A.one, like me.
* insert link to internet dating profile HERE for all your cute brothers and friends*
okay, here you go:
RECIPE:
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups cooked quinoa.
3 eggs
1/4 c plain yogurt - stolen from roommate
juice of half a lime
some cilantro - you know how much you like - caorsely chopped
some parsley - finely chopped
salt + pepper to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 yellow pepper (i didn't have carrot, but i likely would have used both) cut the slimy moldy part off, chopped
6 or 7 old-ass dried up mushrooms buried in the bottom drawer of my fridge, chopped
1/8 of roommates onion - white or yellow is fine - finely chopped
1 clove garlic finely chopped
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup fine bread crumbs ***OMIT if going gluten free***
olive oil for frying
DIRECTIONS:
1. make quinoa. i put 1 cup uncooked quinoa with 2 cups of water in a pot. bring to a boil, immediately turn to minimum and put a lid on it. cook for 15 mins, take lid off, fluff up and let cool for 5 mins
2. while the quinoa is cooking, add the olive oil to a heavy bottom frying pan (you will use the same pan later to cook the patties, so choose the size you want for that) heat the oil on medium, add the the onions, garlic, mushrooms, grated carrot if you have it, and yellow peppers for about 7-10 mins.
3. while the veggies are sauteing, put the eggs, yogurt, lime juice, cilantro, parsley and salt and pepper into a large mixing bowl. beat with fork till eggs are mixed
4. when veggies are done, slowly transfer them from the pan to the bowl, taking care to stir a lot. you don't want an omelet in a bowl . (ugh...this reminds me of something really stupid i did last week making appies - will tell you later). add in remaining ingredients including quinoa, and stir. it should the consistency of uncooked hamburger, but not quite as stick-togetherish.
5. wipe bits and pieces out of frying pan (i used a paper towel and tongs) otherwise the bits will burn when the oil is heated and turn it yucky tasting and black, turn on your kitchen fan, and heat a thin later of olive oil on medium-high. each of my patties was different and i definitely preferred the more crispy one.
6. take a big ol' scoop of mix, drop it in the pan, flatten out with a flipper.
*avoid eating the delicious looking mix cause of the raw egg*. it's funny how i have no problem eating raw cookie dough though....or cake batter....or bits of cheese pulled out of not yet cooked scrambled eggs...
fry for 3 mins per side, or longer if not brown enough. don't go less...it's raw egg remember. (i didn't and ended up eating some. if this is my last post cause I'm dead, you'll know how important that instruction was)
that's it!
serve in hamburger buns, alongside cold salad, or just on a plate at 10:30pm. i would totally have loved this more if i had tzatziki sauce on top.
A FEW THOUGHTS:
i am freezing the leftover Pattie mix in already formed patties. my brilliant roommate suggested to do it just like the commercial burger patties are packaged, with parchment in between. i froze them individually first, then stacked them to bag them.
you could add any leftover veggies you want to this, but if you use a water based veggie like zucchini make sure to grate it, and then squeeze the water out. otherwise they will be soggy and not brown.
i don't know how well these would turn out on the BBQ unless you coated them in oil before cooking. they would be crispier, which would be better, but they are naturally dry so that might be a problem. someone should try it and I'll post the results.
i often cook a large amount of quinoa, leave it on the stove in a pot (yes food safe snobs, unrefrigerated for days) and just eat it till it's done. this makes it easy to make cold dishes without having to wait for it to cool. nobody wants a warm weird salad. this is also perfect for breakfast quinoa dishes.
**as promised, a breakfast version of quinoa that is super-delish, and i have regularly is :
1 cup quinoa
1/4 c almond pieces
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tbsp honey
1/4 cup milk
1 banana *optional
mix and enjoy!
