Sweet Potato-Quinoa Cakes

Going through the pantry the other day, I ran across a very large container of quinoa, something that I don't eat very often because it just doesn't do anything for me. Don't get me wrong. I will eat just about anything, quinoa included, but I've just never found it to be worth the effort to prepare. Ann likes it more than me which is probably why we have so much on hand.

Sweet Potato-Quinoa Cakes

In an effort to start using it, I thought that I might try to make some kind of cakes. In trying to figure out how to hold the quinoa together in a cake, I thought I might try mashed sweet potato.

To that end, I sautéed some onion, poblano, cilantro stems, and garlic with a little cumin, then added a drained and rinsed can of black beans, a cup of cooked quinoa, and then a couple of medium roasted sweet potatoes. The resulting mix was very tasty and would have made a great vegetarian stuffing for poblanos rellenos, but proved to be really soft for cakes.

I added a cup of rolled oats to the mix and refrigerated overnight to see if I could stiffen them up. They were stiffer and I was able to form cakes, but they were a bear to handle in the frying pan without breaking them. Still too soft I would judge. And the quinoa was not noticeable either.

Delicious but not ready for prime time, I judge this dish. Tasty, but without adding a lot more undesirable carbs, I just don't think this idea is going anywhere. To be honest, I would just as soon do a hash by sautéing raw cubes of sweet potato with the onion and poblano and then mixing them into quinoa for a warm salad.