Mexican Quinoa Patties

Spring Break is over for us and we are back on track with our schedules. It's hard to believe that my kiddos only have a few more weeks before they are finished with this school year.....6.5 weeks of school left to be exact!!! OMG....where has the time gone?

As you all already know I am always looking for new ideas and recipes to try out but this time it wasn't me who found this new addition to my list of keeper recipes. My husband saw this recipe and told me about it SO of course I looked it up, found it and made it! I found the recipe for Mexican Quinoa Patties over at my fellow bloggers website site This Gal Cooks

Quinoa is a great gluten free option since it is not a grain, it is considered a seed. Quinoa is a also a great source of protein and is high in fiber!

These patties are very easy to put together and taste great. This recipe will make enough for 6 servings maybe even more depending on the size of the patties you make. 

We ate them for dinner and had enough leftover for 2 lunches or dinner. I am going to make these again because I am pretty sure they would taste great served with scrambled eggs for breakfast too.

The only complaint I have about making these is that they are a bit messy since the quinoa sticks to your hands. The original recipe says to press them into a 1/3 measuring cup which I couldn't do because mine have an angle so they would have needed to be reshaped anyway ;-) 

Mexican Quinoa Patties

2 1/2 cups cooked and cooled quinoa

1 jalapeño, finely chopped

1 roma tomato, gutted and finely chopped

1/3 cup finely chopped onion

1 1/2 tsp taco seasoning

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup ground oats (use your food processor or blender to grind the oats)

1/2 tsp seasoned salt

1 tsp minced garlic

3/4 cup canned black beans, drained, rinsed and then dried

3 egg whites

vegetable oil for frying

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl combine all the ingredients minus the egg whites. Mix until well combined. Then add the egg whites and stir to coat the mixture well.

Heat just a thin layer of oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Take about 1/3 cup of the quinoa mixture and shape them into patties (you can either do this by hand like I did or you can use the measuring cup trick) Place no more than 4 patties in your pan at a time, this will give you enough room to be able to flip them ***flip them carefully because they will fall apart easily if you aren't gentle*** 

Cook them for 3-4 minutes on each size, until you get a nice golden brown crust on both sides. 

Serve them with sour cream, salsa or even guacamole.  

Serving size: 2 patties