If you were to ask my son what he wants for dinner or what his favorite food is, there’s a pretty solid chance he’ll say quinoa.  Is this odd?  Well, maybe since he just turned six.  I’d say the average six year-old doesn’t enjoy quinoa that much but, you know, he is my son.  For instance, on his most-recent birthday, when asked what he wanted for dinner, his response was chicken and quinoa.  No joke, chicken and quinoa.  I just love him.

Thus, I was very excited to see a healthy “quinoa patty” recipe in the new Focus T25 workout Beachbody just launched.  Not only was I stoked to try T25, but given my son’s dietary preferences, I was also stoked to dig into the Nutrition Guide and try these.  I’ve made Salmon Patties, Turkey Burgers, and other patty-like things, but never with quinoa.  They looked and sounded good, but only taste would tell.  One thing that was very promising was they appeared to be very simple to make, especially if one pre-made the quinoa.  Pre-made quinoa would literally reduce the preparation time to ten minutes or less.  As a Dad and stay-at-home parent, that aspect alone made them pretty appealing!

Ingredients, makes one serving (side note, anything italicized is from me; the rest is straight from Focus T25)

• 3/4 Cup Cooked Quinoa
• 1/2 medium Red Bell Pepper, finely chopped (You can use any color pepper, but I’d use a different color other than green as there’s enough green in this meal with the Spinach)
• 4 tsp. Flax Seeds (I used ground flax seeds as (a) that’s all I had and (b) flax seeds have a very tough shell that do not digest.  To get the nutrition, one must chew and chew and chew, otherwise the whole seed just leaves the body undigested.)
• 1 large Egg White
• Sea Salt and Black Pepper, to taste
• Nonstick Cooking Spray
• 3 Cups Spinach Leaves (The recipe says to wilt the leaves, which I think is just nasty.  My family ate the patties on the raw leaves.)

*** I think adding some finely chopped chicken or even canned tuna or chicken in a pinch would be delicious, if one wanted more protein.  For the pictures, I used two chicken breasts that I slowed cooked (about 75 minutes at 325 degrees in a glass container with one chopped white onion, Italian spices, garlic powder, and 1/2 cup water) and then shredded.  I then chilled the chicken and mixed the cold, shredded chicken with the raw Spinach) and it were great!

Directions

1.  Lightly coat a medium skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.

2.  Combine quinoa, bell pepper, flax seed, salt, pepper, and egg white; mix well.  Divide into equal parts.  Depending on the consistency of your mixture, you may need to form the two equal parts into patty shapes.  You can use a 1-Cup measure and, using your fingers or the 1/2-Cup measure, press each part into patties.  Then, turn over to release.  (Mine were more like thick pancake batter, which was no issue in cooking.)

3.  Place patties in skillet and cook each side for approximately two minutes or until golden brown on each side.  (Obviously, if you prefer crispier, cook longer.  I estimate I cooked mine 3-4 minutes per side.)  Remove from heat, set aside, and keep warm.

4.  Add Spinach to skillet.  Cook approximately two minutes or until desired tenderness.  (As I mentioned above, I did not cook my spinach.)

5.  Place spinach on plates, top with patties, and serve!

Without any of my modifications, the Focus T25 recipe is about 300 calories per serving (i.e., two patties over wilted spinach).  The first time I made these, I only had an orange bell pepper, used ground flax seeds, and did not wilt the spinach.  My family and I loved them.  Since then, I have experimented quite a bit with different vegetables and meats.  I have yet to create a variation that is not a big crowd pleaser and delicious!

Thanks for reading, I hope you like these, and please leave any comments or variations you try (with the outcomes) below!