I have had adzuki beans in my cupboard for ages. I bought them after trying an adzuki bean tart from Iku and loved it. Not wanting to use pastry I decided to make these patties. At the organic expo I picked up some handy recipe cards for using quinoa, (pronounced keen-wa) which is an ancient seed from the South American Andes. It is a complete protein, meaning it contains on the essential amino acids. This is great since I don’t eat red meat so try to get protein from other sources.

I made my spicy red capsicum hummous to go with these patties and together they were delicious. I also made a salad with the patties ,which was also just as nice.

The adzuki beans need to be soaked overnight so it is best to plan ahead when making these. They also need to be left for an hour after boiling for 2 minutes. I didn’t realise this and after about 30 minutes I used them and they were fine.

I only used 1/3 cup of quinoa but next time I would use more. At least ½ cup. I think this might help hold the mixture together better.

Sweet potato, adzuki bean and quinoa patties.

Makes 18

1 cup adzuki beans, soaked overnight

1/3 cup quinoa

1 cup vegetable stock

2 sweet potatoes, roasted and cubed

1 large egg

1/3 cup rice flour, plus extra for coating

2 green onions, chopped

1 handful of coriander, chopped

black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 180C
2. Rinse beans, place in a large saucepan, cover with water, bring to the boil and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stand covered for 30 – 60 minutes.
3. Bake sweet potatoes for 30 minutes. I like wrapping mine in foil.
4. In another saucepan, bring the vegetable stock to the boil. Add the quinoa, reduce to a simmer, covered for 10-15 mins until the water is absorbed.
5. Add all ingredients to a large bowl and combine gently.
6. Carefully form mixture into patties and coat each pattie lightly in rice flour.
7. Leave in the fridge for 15 minutes.
8. Spray some olive oil on a large frypan and cook patties for about 3 minutes each side.
9. Serve with hummous or a salad with baby spinach and tomato.

Related posts:

1. Corn and Aduki Bean Quinoa Salad
2. Black bean and Quinoa chilli
3. Quinoa and aubergine salad to kick off National Vegetarian Week

I made this salad up myself after reading a recipe for a giant couscous and aubergine side salad in an issue of BBC Good Food mag. I made a few amendments and bulked it up a bit to make a main dish for 2 that was the perfect way to kick off National Vegetarian Week (in the UK).

National Vegetarian Week (NVW) is the annual awareness-raising campaign promoting inspirational vegetarian food and the benefits of a meat-free lifestyle. Celebrated by the Vegetarian Society since 1992, the Week is now an established event that gets bigger and better every year.

I love how simple vegetarian dishes can be so tasty. This one is definitely one to make again!

Ingredients:

• 1 aubergine, sliced
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 150g cherry tomatoes (but you can use more)
• half a red onion, sliced
• 150g quinoa
• juice from 1 lemon
• 150g feta
• 100g baby spinach leaves
• handful basil leaves, roughly chopped

Method:

1. Heat oven to 200C/Gas 6
2. Place the slices of aubergine in a roasting tray, drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil, and roast for 15 minutes
3. Season the cherry tomatoes and red onion, and add to the roasting dish for a further 10 minutes
4. Meanwhile, cook the quinoa according to the packet instructions
5. Combine the lemon juice with 1 tbsp of olive oil for the dressing
6. Place the spinach leaves in a bowl and toss with half the dressing
7. Add the quinoa to the spinach bowl and toss with the remaining dressing.
8. Carefully stir through the roasted veggies, crumbled feta and chopped basil leaves

Related posts:

1. Corn and Aduki Bean Quinoa Salad
2. Low carb, vegetarian lasagne
3. Black bean and Quinoa chilli

This makes a massive batch – enough for 4 generous servings. My pan was only just big enough to fit it all in!

Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa (rinsed)
2 cups water
A few sprays of olive oil
1 brown onion (chopped)
4 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 jalapeno pepper (chopped) – I used diced dried chile jalapenos from the Cool Chile Co.
1 tablespoon chilli flakes
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup water, as required
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 red pepper/capsicum (cut into bite sized pieces)
1 zucchini/courgette (cut into bite sized pieces)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
1  small can corn kernels
1 handful coriander (some chopped, some leaves)

Directions:
1. Simmer the quinoa in the water until the white part separates, about 10 minutes. Then take off the heat and cover while the remaining water is absorbed.
2. Spray some the oil in a large pan.
3. Add the onions and sauté until tender, about 2-3 minutes.
4. Add the garlic, chilli flakes and cumin and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
5. Add the tomatoes, beans, peppers, zucchini, oregano, salt and pepper and simmer for 15 minutes. You may need to add some water to help simmer as my mixture was quite thick.
6. Add the quinoa and corn and simmer for 5 minutes.
7. Remove from the heat and stir in the coriander.
8. Plate (or bowl) up and serve with some coriander leaves on top.

Related posts:

1. Corn and Aduki Bean Quinoa Salad
2. Coriander and Lime Wild Salmon with a Mango and Black Bean Salsa
3. Coriander and Lime Fajitas with a Mango and Black Bean Salsa and homemade Guacamole

I have been reading a lot of recipes on the web in my increasing list of fave foodie blogs, and I recently came across a similar salad on Closet Cooking.

I made this salad for a lazy Sunday afternoon. It was full of fresh zingy flavour from the coriander, and filling with the quinoa and aduki beans. The dressing with lime juice, cumin and chilli sauce as well as the jalapenos gave it a nice kick. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1 cup quinoa
• 1/2 can aduki beans
• 1 can corn kernels
• 1 red pepper (sliced)
• 1 jalapeno pepper (sliced)
• 1 spring onion (sliced)
• 1/2 avocado, cubed
• 1/4 cup coriander (chopped)
• 1 tablespoon oil
• juice of 1 lime
• a few splashes chilli sauce
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• salt and pepper to taste

Method:
1. Cook the quinoa according to packet directions – about 10 mins until the white part separates, and then cover and leave until all the water is fully absorbed. Make sure you fluff with a fork to separate the grains.
2. Mix the quinoa, beans, corn, red pepper, jalapeno, spring onion, coriander, and avocado in a large bowl.
3. Mix the oil, lime juice, chilli sauce, cumin, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
4. Toss the salad in the dressing, plate up, and enjoy!

Related posts:

1. Coriander and Lime Fajitas with a Mango and Black Bean Salsa and homemade Guacamole
2. Coriander and Lime Wild Salmon with a Mango and Black Bean Salsa
3. Chilli prawn dumplings