Quinoa Cakes with Kale Pesto & Poached Eggs

Colleen and I made these a couple months ago and they were seriously delicious. I liked them so much that I made them 2 weeks later for a dinner party. They are really versatile, I think you can pretty much top them with anything. The second time I made them I served them with basil pesto and poached eggs as well as with a roasted beet & goat cheese puree. Thinking about them makes me want to whip some up right now, did I mention they were easy?

Here is the recipe for the cakes:
makes about 2-3 servings.

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 2 cups water or broth
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/4 cup flour (I used whole wheat the first time & gluten free all purpose the second time)
  
• 1/4 cup Parmesan, grated
• salt and pepper to taste
• oil for frying

Directions

1. Simmer the quinoa in the water until the liquid has been absorbed and the quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes and let cool a bit.
2. Mix the cooked quinoa with the eggs, onion, garlic, flour, parmesan, salt and pepper, adding more flour if required.
3. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat.
4. Spoon the mixture into the pan and form patties of any size that you desire and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 2-4 minutes per side, and set aside on paper towels to drain.

We didn't measure anything while making the kale pesto, here is a framework to work with. In my experience, pesto is something that can't be measured, you have to keep tasting.

For the Pesto:
4-6 cups kale leaves, ribs removed, coarsely chopped (lacinato works best, I think)
2 large fresh garlic clove, coarsely chopped
2/3 cup coarsely chopped, toasted walnuts
3/4 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup olive oil
lots of salt and pepper

Mix everything in a food processor or blender.

Here is a great link on The Smitten Kitchen on how to poach an egg. The only advice I have in addition to her explanation is to add some vinegar to the water. It helps to keep the egg from separating and no, your egg won't taste like vinegar!

Original recipe found on Closet Cooking.