Healthy Chickpea Cakes Make A Great Plant-Based Lunch Or Dinner
Apr 28, 2023 ● By Veronica Hinke
Photo credit Veronica Hinke.
These plant-based Vegan Chickpea Cakes with Roasted
Carrot-Mint Mash are a health-conscious option for Cinco de Mayo and beyond.
Chickpeas and carrots contain calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium and vitamin B6.
The spices and herbs add flavor to the chickpeas. The carrot mash brings color
as bright as nacho cheese dip to this meal. Serve this as a side dish, party
appetizer or enjoy it as a nutritious, quick lunch.
Vegan Chickpea Cakes with
Roasted Carrot-Mint Mash
YIELDS: 12 chickpea cakes
For the Chickpea Cakes:
3 16-oz cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 10-oz can diced tomatoes with green chilies, drained
and rinsed
1 cup crushed club crackers
½ cup chopped fresh mint
Juice of 1 fresh lime
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp diced red bell pepper
½ Tbsp diced shallot
1 garlic clove, minced
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground mustard seed
¼ tsp hot Hungarian paprika
¼ tsp hot pepper flakes
¼ tsp pink Himalayan sea salt
¼ tsp freshly ground multi-color
peppercorns
For the Roasted Carrot-Mint Mash:
4 cups chopped carrots
½ cup extra virgin olive
oil, plus ½ cup for blending in the food processor
½ tsp pink Himalayan sea salt
½ tsp freshly ground multi-color peppercorns
1 cup chopped fresh mint, plus ½ cup for garnish
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp ground mustard seed
¼ tsp hot Hungarian paprika
Juice of one fresh lime
In a large mixing
bowl, use a masher to mash the chickpeas. Add the rest of the ingredients. Use
one hand to mix the ingredients together just until they are well blended. Be
careful not to overmix.
Place a 3-inch-round
cookie cutter on top of a 9-by-12-inch baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Fill the cookie cutter ½-inch-high with the mixture. Pat down the mixture on the
top. Ensure that the mixture presses up the sides of the cookie cutter all
around. Lift the cookie cutter, and repeat this with the remainder of the
mixture.
Place the chickpea
cakes in the oven, and bake them until they are light golden brown and start to
become crispy around the edges, about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the cakes from
the oven, and set them aside until it is time to assemble.
Place each chickpea cake on a plate with a smear of the
Roasted Carrot-Mint Mash.
Garnish with fresh mint.
To make the Roasted Carrot-Mint Mash:
Preheat the oven to
375° F.
In a medium mixing
bowl, toss the carrots in the 2 Tbsp of extra-virgin olive oil, salt and
pepper.
Place the carrots in
the oven and let them roast until they become tender enough that they can
easily be pierced with a fork, about 35 to 40 minutes.
Remove the carrots from the oven, and set them aside
until they are cool enough to pulse in the food processor, about 10 minutes.
Place the carrots, olive oil, mint, spices, and lime juice in the food
processor. Pulse until the ingredients are thoroughly combined and the carrot
mixture becomes the consistency of a mash. Stop after every few pulses to
scrape the edges of the inside of the food processor to ensure that all of the
carrot mixture is incorporated well.
Veronica Hinke is an author, speaker, journalist, coach and expert on Titanic stories, food, history and style; and author of The Last Night on the Titanic. Learn more at VeronicaHinke.com.
