Every so often, there comes a food item that could only be described as lifesaving. A gift from the heavens. A miracle. A wonder of wonders.
Can you tell I wrote this post when I was starving? But I’m getting ahead of myself.
While I was in New York deep in the post-Christmas self-inflicted guilt trip about the amount of cookies I had consumed, I lamented about my Christmas chub. I whined and carried on about how when I got back to DC, it was going to be Veggies + Quinoa City. Which prompted the question from my mom: “What do you put quinoa in besides stir fry?” And for a newly declared citizen of Quinoa City, I was stumped.
What the hell do you do with quinoa anyway?! Normally, I toss it into steamed veggies with Trader Joe’s Soyaki sauce and call it a day. Tasty but it can get old after awhile. So I thought and I thought and I thought. And then I opened my fridge and the answer to the burning question was staring me right in the face. Cava Foods Quinoa Tabouleh.
Tomatoes, check. Red onions, check. Quinoa, DOUBLE CHECK.
But then I decided to up the veggie ante (Veggie City, Population: You + Me) with some grated zucchini. Now we’re gettin’ wild. Add in fresh herbs for seasoning and we’ve got ourselves Baked Tabbouleh Quinoa Bites. At the risk of sounding like Bubba, you can put these bites on your salad for a protein-packed flavor punch, put a runny egg on the bites for brunch, put on a cracker for a quick snack while you’re making dinner. There is really no wrong way to eat a Baked Tabouleh Quinoa Bite. But my favorite way is dipping these little baby bites in Cava’s Harissa and/or Tzatziki. If I could put Harissa on everything, I would. And I do.
But how are they miraculous? Well. I had one of those late days where it was nonstop, go-go-go and you find yourself late in the office. You get home and are ready to totally undo all the good food choices you made that day by sucking up the contents of my fridge like a manic, New Year’s Resolution-breaking, one-woman Hoover vacuum. But then…these guys came to my rescue. I mentally high-fived Past Me for being clairvoyant enough to make these over the weekend. Don’t you love when that happens?
Now I know quinoa is more than just a stir fry-exclusive. Stir fry, I love you and so does quinoa but I think we should start seeing other dishes. Stay tuned for more quinoa recipes!
Ingredients
2 zucchinis
1/3 cup Cava Quinoa Tabouleh
1 egg
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 scallions, minced
2 shallots, minced
1/3 cup feta cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of pepper
2 1/2 tablespoons, flour
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Using a large hole side of a box grater, grate the zucchinis into a mixing bowl. Did you miss going to the gym today? Never fear because here comes the arms workout. Grab a clean dishtowel or a cheesecloth and place the grated zucchini inside. Now squeeze til you feel like your arms are about to fall off. It’s important to get all the water out of those bad boys so your life-saving quinoa bites don’t fall apart. Heaven forbid. So now isn’t the time to go easy. Squeezing the living daylights out of grated zucchini can be a solid stress reliever. Healthy recipe, arms workout and a stress reliever?! It’s like the perfect New Year’s Resolution recipe.
3. In a large mixing bowl, add the grated zucchini and the rest of the ingredients. Mix well to combine.
4. Form patties about 1 1/2 inch wide, this recipe should give you about 16 bites.
5. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, flipping once on each side, pressing down as you do.
Serve with Cava’s Harissa and Tzatziki or however the Food Gods move you to snack on these quinoa bites of health + flavor.
Bon Appetit!
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