Vegetable chickpea patties

One of the things I do very well is daydream. The more important it is for me to pay attention, the easier I find it to slip into my own world – not to mention, the daydream is correspondingly detailed. One recurring bare-bones daydream is to have a cook at home. The actual details vary depending on my prevailing mood, but on different occasions I’ve day-dreamed about having a live-in cook (only briefly), someone who would make what I wanted the way I wanted it made, someone who would be a trained nutritionist and make healthy but superbly tasty dishes… the permutations are many and varied.

But the one daydream that keeps occurring with monotonous regularity is the one where I have a cook who does the necessary prepwork and all the other jobs that I find boring – peeling and cutting vegetables, searching out spices, beating eggs, chopping nuts, shallow-frying things on low heat, stirring milk, whatever. After which, he (or she – I’m an equal-opportunity day-dreamer) clears the workspace, throws away the rubbish and gets everything ready for me.

Then, when all is perfectly laid out in the kitchen, I sail in and set about cooking my chosen recipe. And, naturally, when I am done, my cook does the washing up and drying and putting away of all the utensils, leaving my kitchen in perfect order for the next time…

*sighhhhh*

A sous chef is what I need, come to think of it. Someone who will never aspire to chefdom or doing anything more interesting than the prepwork and the donkey work.

*sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh*

Anyway, here’s the recipe for the patties. Believe me when I say that I felt the lack of a sous chef very, very, very deeply indeed… but still, the takes-you-forever-to-cook-and-just-seconds-for-someone-to-eat patties are worth the annoying bitwork. In other words, they taste good enough to eat.

Recipe for: Vegetable chickpea patties


Ingredients:

1/2 cup carrots, grated
1/2 cup potatoes, chopped
1/4 cup green beans, sliced into thin rounds
1/4 cup green pepper (capsicum), chopped
1/4 cup onions, chopped
2 cups cooked potatoes, mashed coarsely
1 tin (1-1/4 cups) cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 cup wholewheat breadcrumbs
1/4 cup coriander leaves, chopped
1 tsp Kitchen King masala (or garam masala)
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder (or to taste)
1 tsp coriander seeds, powdered
1/2 tsp cumin seed powder
salt to taste
2 tbsp oil
Pam spray or more oil to shallow-fry

Method:

1. Place the chopped potatoes, carrots and green beans in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave covered for 5 minutes with 3-4 tbsp water, till half-cooked.

2. Add the mashed potatoes and the spices and mix well.


3. Then add the chickpeas and chopped onions.

Crush the chickpeas coarsely with a masher or the back of a sturdy spoon.

4. Add the breadcrumbs and mix in.


5. Heat the 2 tbsp oil and pour it on the mixture. Add salt to taste along with the coriander leaves, and mix thoroughly.


6. Now form small patties from the mixture and shallow-fry them in a non-stick pan (without crowding them) over medium-high heat.


7. Brush the top surface of the patties with some oil (or spray some Pam) and turn the patties over carefully when golden brown on the underside. 


8. Serve warm with a salad for a light meal, or with ketchup for a snack.


RECIPE: VEGETABLE CHICKPEA PATTIES

Ingredients:
1/2 cup carrots, grated
1/2 cup potatoes, chopped
1/4 cup green beans, sliced into thin rounds
1/4 cup green pepper (capsicum), chopped
1/4 cup onions, chopped
2 cups cooked potatoes, mashed coarsely
1 tin (1-1/4 cups) cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 cup wholewheat breadcrumbs
1/4 cup coriander leaves, chopped
1 tsp Kitchen King masala (or garam masala)
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder (or to taste)
1 tsp coriander seeds, powdered
1/2 tsp cumin seed powder
salt to taste
2 tbsp oil
Pam spray or more oil to shallow-fry

Method:
1. Place the chopped potatoes, carrots and green beans in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave covered for 5 minutes with 3-4 tbsp water, till half-cooked.
2. Add the mashed potatoes and the spices and mix well.
3. Then add the chickpeas and chopped onions. Crush the chickpeas coarsely with a masher or the back of a sturdy spoon.
4. Add the breadcrumbs and mix in.
5. Heat the 2 tbsp oil and pour it on the mixture. Add salt to taste along with the coriander leaves, and mix thoroughly.
6. Now form small patties from the mixture and shallow-fry them in a non-stick pan (without crowding them) over medium-high heat.
7. Brush the top surface of the patties with some oil (or spray some Pam) and turn the patties over carefully when golden brown on the underside.
8. Serve warm with a salad for a light meal, or with ketchup for a snack.