Pintember: Cheesy Quinoa Cakes

This was a great little protein packed side dish!

Source: spoonforkbacon.com via Samantha on Pinterest

Sorry...I do not have any pictures of mine. I never checked my pictures. And when I just looked for them, they were all really blurry! I guess I will be working on taking pictures, as my buddy suggested with a month of picture taking...in the future.

Most side dishes have little to no protein. this one on the other hand has the idea of  potato latkes but are made with healthy quinoa instead...so therefore...have a bunch of protein!

My hubby and the Picky One do not eat quinoa. They can't stand the texture! But they both liked these! This recipe does not make many pancakes so they each only tasted them and left them for me to eat. I can't remember what the other kid thought of them but how could he not like them?  (I made them a while ago) He actually loves quinoa. So he must have loved these. Also, since I made them gluten free I gave some to my friend/neighbor who has Celiac's Disease. (We usually share gluten free things that are new/different...or just sweet.) She said they were really good. A few days later she said she still had them on her mind...They must have been really, really good! I wonder if she ever made them herself?...Carrie? Did you?

I did end up tweaking the recipe a little from the start (I didn't have or didn't want to spend the money) and I also made a change after the first small batch ('cuz things weren't quite right)...

Cheesy Quinoa Cakes
(Makes 10 to 12 small pancakes)

2 cups cooked quinoa
2/3 cup grated swiss cheese
3 tablespoons Gluten Free Bisquick (you could probably use any gf or regular flour)
2 sweet onions,finely chopped (I used Vidalia)
2 eggs, beaten (lots of recipes call for lightly beaten, I always beat well)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste

olive oil cooking spray 

1. Place all ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir together until well combined. Season with salt and allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes.

2. Spray large saute/fry pan with cooking oil spray. 

3. Form 1/3 cup patties with the quinoa mixture and place in the heated sauté pan. (This will have to be done in batches.)

4. Cook quinoa cakes for about 5 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining patties until all of the cakes have been cooked. 

5. I served mine with applesauce, since that is a standard potato latkes thing.

6. ENJOY!

Also...When I cooked the quinoa in preparation for this recipe...I messed up! I made waaay too much. So, tomorrow I will post the other recipe I made/created with some of the extra.