Oven-Baked Quinoa Zucchini Fritters

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Got a pot full of cooked quinoa and absolutely no desire to eat another bowl of it? Turn it into these oven-baked quinoa zucchini fritters.

Quinoa grows mainly in the mighty Andes. And since I'm writing this from Bogotá, right in the heart of the Andes, it feels only right to dedicate at least one recipe to the wonderful seed of the goosefoot plant.

Yep. Goosefoot. That's the name of the plant quinoa comes from.

I ate these quinoa fritters—okay, devoured them—at one of the city's trendy vegan cafés. They came with a generous layer of light, fluffy, delicious vegan mayo.

I swapped the mayo for some vegan yogurt I bought here. If you'd like to make your own, the wonderful Mor Peleg (an Israeli food blogger) has a terrific, easy homemade vegan yogurt recipe. Look for her homemade vegan soy yogurt recipe.

These fritters make a perfect breakfast, or a fun dinner when you're cooking for someone special.

A few quick quinoa facts:

• Botanically, quinoa is a seed, even though it's sold as a grain.
• Uncooked quinoa contains 14 grams of protein.
• Rinse quinoa thoroughly under running water to remove its characteristic bitterness.
• You can pop quinoa in a skillet like popcorn.
• It's gluten-free, if that's important to you.

A Few Notes on These Quinoa Zucchini Fritters

• I used plain cooked white quinoa, with no seasonings.

You can use the same amount of cooked rice, millet, buckwheat, or another cooked grain instead.

It'll still taste great, but the nutrition numbers will be different.

• To give the fritters more volume without piling on calories, I grated one large zucchini.

You can use the same amount of grated carrot, potato, kohlrabi, beets, or a combination of vegetables.

• Instead of an egg, I used a flax egg.

That's simply ground flaxseed mixed with a little water. It turns into a sticky gel that helps hold the fritter mixture together.

You can substitute other egg alternatives, such as tahini or peanut butter.

• I used buckwheat flour to give the mixture some body and help bind everything together.

I'm especially fond of it because it gets sticky, much like flour that contains gluten. I'm not sure whether chickpea flour or another legume flour would work the same way. That calls for an experiment.

Spelt flour will work beautifully. Just saying.

• I baked my fritters in the oven.

You can also pan-fry them in your favorite nonstick skillet with very little oil.

Nutrition

One fritter weighing 100 g (3.5 oz) contains:

• 137 calories
• 4 grams protein
• 18 grams carbohydrates
• 6 grams fat

Quinoa Zucchini Fritters

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Yield 8 fritters

Calories 137 kcal

Ingredients

• 1 zucchini
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 cups cooked quinoa See the notes below for how to cook quinoa.
• 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
• 1/2 cup buckwheat flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions

Make the Flax Egg

1. In a small bowl, stir the ground flaxseed and 2 tablespoons water together until well combined.

2. Set aside.

Prep the Zucchini

1. Using a vegetable peeler or grater, shave or shred the zucchini very thinly. Transfer to a bowl lined with a clean kitchen towel.

2. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and toss well.

3. Let sit for a few minutes, until the zucchini starts releasing liquid.

4. Wrap the towel around the zucchini and squeeze out the liquid with your hands.

5. Set aside.

Make the Fritters

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).

2. In a deep mixing bowl, combine the zucchini, cooked quinoa, buckwheat flour, prepared flax egg, salt, crushed garlic, and almond milk. Mix well until evenly combined and slightly loose in texture.

3. If the mixture seems a little dry, add another 1 or 2 tablespoons almond milk.

4. With wet or lightly oiled hands, shape the mixture into 8 fritters and place on a baking sheet.

5. Drizzle with a little olive oil.

6. Bake for about 40 minutes, or cook in a nonstick skillet until browned.

7. These fritters are very delicate while hot. Let them cool slightly, then carefully lift them off the baking sheet.

8. Serve with vegan yogurt and chopped chives.

A Few More Notes

How to Cook Quinoa

Ingredients:

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water
• A little salt
• 1 tablespoon oil

Here's what to do:

• Place the quinoa in a strainer and rinse thoroughly under running water until the water runs clear, not cloudy.
• Transfer to a pot.
• Toast the quinoa, stirring, for about 3–4 minutes, until it smells pleasantly nutty. Be careful not to burn it.
• Add the oil and stir for a few more seconds.
• Pour in the water, add the salt, and bring to a boil.
• Once boiling, cover the pot and reduce the heat to low.
• Cook for another 15 minutes, then turn off the heat.
• Wait 5 minutes before lifting the lid.
• Gently fluff the quinoa with a fork.