Quinoa Burgers

I'm sure most of you have heard of Quinoa (keen-wah) - for those of you who haven't it's a magical little grain/seed.  Wikipedia defines it as " a species of goosefoot, is a grain-like crop grown primarily for its edible seeds. It is a pseudocereal rather than a true cereal, or grain, as it is not a member of the true grass family." So there, now that we kind of know what the heck it is - let me introduce you to a wonderful way to use it: Quinoa Burgers. 

I start with this recipe from Eating Well Living Thin.  I've seen a number of recipes for quinoa burgers but this is the first one I tried and we LOVED it so much that I've never wanted to stray...

Fresh and Easy is the absolute best when you're looking for something unusual (quinoa was unusual to me at first and I had no idea where to look in the store for it).  They have an entire grain/bean section with clearly marked, resealable bags.  Here's what it looks like in my store:

Here's the rest of our F&E ingredient line-up:

Quinoa, carrots, onion, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, egg, salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, sugar, flour. 

First, make your quinoa. Boil water, add quinoa, and reduce heat.

It will take a while to cook (check package) but when it is done it looks like this:

Add all the ingredients into a large bowl and combine well:

Heat oil in a frying pan over medium-low to medium heat and place 1/4 cup of the mixture into the oil. I fit two patties in one frying pan:

Cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels and serve with burger fixin's.  I try something different every time I make these.  I served these with a tomato slice, greek yogurt and a side salad.

ENJOY!

Ingredients

• 1 cup rounded quinoa
• 1 medium carrot, grated 
• 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
• ½ cup cheddar cheese, shredded
• ½ cup cottage cheese
• 1 egg
• 3 tbsp flour
• ½ tsp cumin
• ¼ tsp sugar
• ¼ tsp garlic powder 
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp pepper
• Olive oil, for frying

Directions

1. Prepare quinoa per instructions on bag.
2. In a large bowl, mix quinoa, carrots, onion, cheddar, cottage cheese, egg, flour, and spices.Combine well.
3. Heat olive oil on a fry pan at med-low heat.  Drop ¼ cup mixture into fry pan and cook for about 5 minutes on each side. Patties are fragile so be careful when flipping.
4. When golden brown on both sides, remove from pan and drain on paper towels.
5. Serve with tomato, avocado, bacon and thousand island for a burger-like experience.

Makes 4 Burgers 

Click here for a printable recipe