Thursday, February 16, 2012

Spinach Quinoa Socca Cakes (vegan)

I had a AH-HA recipe-epiphany the other day while driving in my mom-van. I was thinking about dinner and thinking about making something with what I had readily available in my kitchen. Something quick and something toddler-friendly. Something that would be fulfilling by itself and of course have lots of great nutritional value. I do not know why it took me so long to put these super simple ingredients together: garbanzo bean flour, quinoa and spinach. These 3 wonderful ingredients are the base to these cakes and apparently are what I have floating around in my brain while out and about.
I make socca bread from garbanzo bean flour quite often for my son. (Favorite socca bread recipe- yet I do not soak for 8 hours and keep it less crispy so it is easier for my son to eat). It is a great finger food for babes and toddlers full of fiber, protein and lots of good vitamins. Along with garbanzo bean flour, I always seem to have quinoa either already made in the fridge or ready to quickly make in the pantry. So why not add these simple staples together, add a fresh handful of spinach and viola- a hearty healthy dinner recipe made in minutes. Plus, very friendly for the gluten-free budget and can be easily warmed up for leftover lunches and dinners.
Spinach Quinoa Socca Cakes Recipe (vegan)
1 1/2 cups of cooked quinoa (or 1 cup dry quinoa and 2 cups water cooked on stovetop accordingly)
1 cup of garbanzo bean flour (I use Bob Red Mill's)
1 cup of pure water
2 ts. of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup of shredded fresh carrots
2 cups of finely chopped and shredded fresh spinach
1/2 - 1 ts. of sea salt
1/2 ts. of garlic powder
1/2 ts. of paprika
1/2 ts. of ground cumin
1/2 ts. of dried rosemary
1-2 TB of fresh cut parsley (or 2 ts. of dried Italian seasoning herb blend)
optional addition: nutritional yeast

1 TB of sauteing oil: grapeseed oil, ghee or coconut oil

In a mixing bowl, mix together all of the above ingredients. Let sit for a few minutes to let the flour soak up the liquid and everything will mesh together real well. Then prepare a griddle or iron skillet to saute the cakes. Warm 1 TB of oil and have the heat at medium. Then use a 1/3 measuring cup to put the batter in the pan. Use the measuring cup to mold the cakes and then plop in on the pan and use the base of the measuring cup to flatten out the pattie. This seems to be the best way to form the cakes and keep it all together. Saute on each side for 3 minutes. It should be crispy on the outside and cooked in the middle. If you have the heat too high it will crisp up before the middle is cooked and that is fine if it happens, just then you will want to continue to cook the patties in the oven at 350 for another 10-15 minutes. This recipe makes about 8 cakes, so you can put 4 cakes in a pan and cook twice. Within 15 minutes your dinner should be done. Serve with your favorite condiments and a side of salad or veggie. A great finger food, but also could be made into a nice fork and knife dinner as well. 
I really love the flavor of these cakes, but you could add your favorite variety of spices or herbs. Plus, I love how you do not need any eggs or additional flour mixes to make this work and stick together. Garbanzo bean flour is amazing for cooking and has so much protein as well. Love it. This dinner (or lunch) doesn't need more protein or meat and you can make it for less than a dollar. Who said eating less meat or vegan was hard? Really?! It doesn't have to be. And it is amazing how much you will expand your palate and life to try new things.

I hope you have a yummy day planned ahead of you and much love as always!

22 comments:

  1. Oh my-these look so scrumptious!! My family would love eating these quinoa cakes and a great way to get my children to eat their veggies :)

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  2. Laura- Thanks for the comment...yes, we like to sneak as much veggies as we can, right?! Hope you enjoy! Much love!

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  3. Holy cow! I'm training for a fitness competition right now, but these are on my cheat meal as soon as the competition is over ... maybe a bit before :)

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    1. miss t- don't know what your fitness competition is, but these do have alot of protein with the quinoa and chickpea flour- so maybe a good option as well :)

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  4. Those are kind of epic.... Seriously though, AMAZING!

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    1. Thanks GF Gidget! Your comment made me smile ;)

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  5. Sounds amazing, will for sure try this.

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    1. Andrina- hope you do and hope you enjoy! Much love!

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  6. Can you use brown rice flour instead?

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  7. Anon- Brown rice flour probably will not work very well, you would have to add an egg or a binding agent because the garbanzo bean flour does that perfectly. Have you ever had socca bread? The garbanzo bean flour is the reason these cakes really work out great. Hope that helps and I always try things out and see what happens, so don't be afraid to experiment. xoxo stephanie

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  8. I found your blog while Googling recipes using spinach (an abundance from my CSA) and chickpea flour (a current obsession), and as soon as I saw this recipe, I knew I had to make it! I was a little nervous about forming the patties, as that usually ends in disaster for me, but your measuring cup technique worked like a charm. And they were delicious! The only changes I made were to add a bit on nutritional yeast to the batter and I cooked the quinoa with a veggie bouillon cube, since there was no salt listed in the recipe. Also, my cup of quinoa cooked yielded closer to 2.5 cups, so I just saved the rest to eat on the side. Thanks so much for the wonderful recipe!

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  9. Anon- Thanks for the comment and info. I must have forgotten the sea salt in my recipe because I did sprinkle some in. Thanks for the comment and so glad you enjoyed!!! Much love xoxo

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  10. Thanks for posting this recipe. These are amazing! I made them for my 11 month old. He loved them!

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  11. Thank you so much for this recipe. I've tried eating quinoa so many times because of its health benefits, but always hated the taste - but these were delicious. Can't wait to make them again

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  12. These are absolutely amazing!! I actually prep'd them the night before and then cooked them right before dinner. I sub'd parsnip for carrots as my son is allergic to carrots. He's 2.5 and happily at almost an entire cake! Thanks for the recipe!

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  13. These are amazing! We eat them about once a week.

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  14. Can I use corn flour in place of garbanzo flour?

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    1. No you must use the garbanzo flour to get the right fluff and texture. You can try and experiment with the corn flour, but I wouldn't imagine it to have much luck alone. Thanks for the comment.

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  15. Just wanted to let you know that this is a regular meal in our house. My jusband frequently requests it. Thank you!

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  16. In the following sentence, do you actually mean you do soak for 8 hours? I am confused. Thank you.

    "I make socca bread from garbanzo bean flour quite often for my son. (Favorite socca bread recipe- yet I do not soak for 8 hours and keep it less crispy so it is easier for my son to eat)."

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  17. LOVE that I found your blog. I was searching for quinoa protein bars without nuts and I hit a goldmine! Thanks for sharing your recipes.

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