Quinoa Cakes with Eggplant-Tomato Ragù and Smoked Mozzarella

By es123

Ingredients

• For quinoa cakes:
• 2 1/2 cups/12 oz/340 g cooked quinoa, at room temperature
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
• 1/3 cup/.5 oz /15 g finely chopped fresh chives
• 1 yellow or white onion, finely chopped
• 1/3 cup/.5 oz/15 g freshly grated Parmesan or Gruyère cheese
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 cup/3.5 oz /100 g whole grain bread crumbs, plus more if needed
• Water, if needed
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or clarified butter
• For topping:
• 1 1/2 pounds eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup drained bottled roasted red peppers, rinsed and chopped
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 pound smoked mozzarella, diced (1 cup)

Preparation

Step 1

Make quinoa cakes:

Combine the quinoa, eggs, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir in the chives, onion, cheese, and garlic. Add the bread crumbs, stir, and let sit for a few minutes so the crumbs can absorb some of the moisture. At this point, you should have a mixture you can easily form into twelve 1-inch/2.5cm thick patties. I err on the very moist side because it makes for a not-overly-dry patty, but you can add more bread crumbs, a bit at a time, to firm up the mixture, if need be. Conversely, a bit more beaten egg or water can be used to moisten the mixture.

Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-low heat, add 6 patties, if they'll fit with some room between each, cover, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the bottoms are deeply browned. Turn up the heat if there is no browning after 10 minutes and continue to cook until the patties are browned. Carefully flip the patties with a spatula and cook the second sides for 7 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the skillet and cool on a wire rack while you cook the remaining patties. Alternatively, the quinoa mixture keeps nicely in the refrigerator for a few days; you can cook patties to order, if you prefer.

Make topping while quinoa cooks and chills:

Toss eggplant with 1 teaspoon salt in a colander and drain 30 minutes. Squeeze handfuls of eggplant to extract liquid, then pat dry.

Cook eggplant, onion, garlic, oregano, and 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, roasted peppers, and water and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until eggplant is very tender and mixture is thick (if dry, thin with a little water), about 10 minutes.

Cook quinoa cakes:

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until it shimmers. Carefully add quinoa cakes and cook, turning once carefully and adding remaining 2 to 3 tablespoons oil, until crisp and golden, 8 to 10 minutes total (pat cakes to reshape with cleaned rubber spatula while cooking if necessary). Transfer to plates.

To serve:

Return eggplant ragù to a simmer and stir in parsley and half of mozzarella, then simmer, stirring, until cheese just begins to soften, about 30 seconds. Spoon over quinoa cakes, then sprinkle with remaining mozzarella.