Quinoa Cakes
Trying a new whole grain can be intimidating, especially when the name is difficult to pronounce. Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is a grain growing in popularity due to its nutritional value. Quinoa has more fiber and twice as much protein as any other grain. It can be used in a variety of dishes including burgers, stir-fries, breakfast bowls, and even pizza crust.
Today’s recipe uses quinoa, black beans, and cottage cheese. I love making this for on-the-road meals. These would also be a great option for kiddos who are in sports activities and need a quick meal before practice. You can freeze the mini cakes for up to 3 months and use them as needed. So instead of driving through the fast-food line, grab a protein-packed Quinoa Cake! Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/o4GgsqT66bU
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup quinoa
- 2 eggs and 2 egg whites lightly beaten
- 1 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
- 3/4 cup cottage cheese, reduced fat
- 1/4 cup scallions sliced
- 2 Tablespoons whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 3/4 cup shredded cheese, reduced fat
Servings:
Units:
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place 12 liners in a muffin tin and spray with cooking spray
- Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in quinoa. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until the grains are tender and fluffy. Let cool for about 10 minutes and transfer to a large bowl.
- Add eggs, beans, cottage cheese, scallions, flour, baking powder, salt and spices. Stir until combined. Fold in shredded cheese.
- Bake the cakes until slightly brown on top (20-25 minutes). Let cool for 5-10 minutes. Serve with your favorite salsa and avocado.
Recipe Notes
Recipe adapted from Eating Well
Use Your Brain, Go for Whole Grains!
There is a lot of controversy in the media over whole grains. Some wonder whether or not they will cause weight gain, and what the health benefits are. Labels can even make it difficult to identify a whole grain. Whole grains are an important part of a nutritious diet and there are many benefits that whole grains can provide to your health. Let’s go over the basics: whole grains vs. refined grains, how much you need, and where you can find it.
Whole grains vs. Refined grains
Whole grains are grains which have not gone through the milling process. Milling removes most of the nutrients in a grain including fiber, B vitamins, Vitamin E and minerals (aka all the good stuff).
Refined grains have been stripped from the bran and germ. Products of refined grains are white flour, white rice and many packaged products. Refined grains are used often in processed foods due to their longer shelf life.
How much do I need?
According to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans at least half of your grains should be whole grains. Recommendations for the average adult are 6 oz of grains per day. This is only a recommendation, you can always set a goal of all of your servings to be whole grain.
How to incorporate whole grains in a meal plan
Try the whole grain options listed above in side dishes, salads or incorporated into your entree. When looking at the nutrition label, look for the words whole grain, whole wheat, whole [other grain], oats ore wheat-berries. If the ingredients have the words enriched flour, germinated, bran or wheat germ. You are NOT getting a whole grain product.
Examples of whole grains
Amaranth
Barley
Bulgur
Corn
Farro
Freekeh
Oats
Quinoa
Brown and wild rice
Spelt
Wheat
Rethink Your Drink
Ways to Reduce Liquid Calories
Have you ever wondered how many calories are in your morning cup of coffee, juice, soda, or evening cocktail? We sometimes forget to look at liquids when evaluating our diets. Liquid calories can add up fast.
All foods and drinks can be consumed in a healthy meal plan but one has to be mindful of how much we are consuming at any given time. The biggest rule of thumb when it comes to reducing liquid calories is to DRINK MORE WATER. Water has zero calories and helps hydrate our bodies. Simply replacing some of the beverages with water and choosing lower-calorie options would drastically reduce the intake of empty calories.
Juice? This may be a surprise for some, but too much of a good thing is possible. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends a maximum of 4-6 oz of juice a day. Usually when a person orders juice it comes in a 16 oz glass (which is over 200 calories). A better option would be to eat the actual fruit and you get the benefits of phytonutrients and fiber.
Another sabotager is coffee drinks. One medium frozen frappuccino can range anywhere from 250-450 calories and 15g of fat. That is equivalent to eating 3 1/2 twinkies! You don’t have to completely give up your coffee, choose options of reduced-fat milk or a smaller size. So the next time you are choosing a beverage, look at the nutrition label, or choose a nice cool glass of water. Enjoy!!
Boring Water? No More!
The biggest complaint is that drinking water every day gets boring. If this is the case for you, try infusing your water with fresh or frozen fruit. Manufacturers are now making water bottles that have infusion compartments within the bottle, but you don’t have to have a special water bottle. You can just place the fruit directly in your bottle and drink up, or make one of our Aguas Frescas recipes and check out our Infused Water Basics.
Lemon Butter Fish
You are in for a special treat! We found the FIRST Dinner Tonight video and thought it was appropriate for today’s “Throwback Thursday.” Dana Tarter was a Family and Consumer Sciences AgriLife Extension agent in Tarrant County when she was the first star of Dinner Tonight. The program has grown tremendously since this video and we are excited for what is to come. Don’t forget to try Lemon Butter Fish for dinner tonight. Enjoy!
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