Sesame Seed-Encrusted Croquettes With Black Beans, Quinoa, and Ginger

Quinoa is a great grain that not a lot of people know about. It was eaten by the ancient Incans, contains all eight essential amino acids (complete protein), cooks just like rice, and is extremely versatile. If I had a choice of eating quinoa or brown rice, I would choose the brown rice every time. Quinoa lacks the "beefiness" that other grains (i.e. rice, barley) seem to possess. For this reason, I usually use quinoa IN things (i.e. stuffed mushrooms or peppers, quiches, etc.). I had some left over quinoa, so I naturally decided to make croquettes. I was craving something ethnic and exciting. The below recipe is what I came up with. Feel free to tweak it, as always. I served mine with stir-fried vegetables, but the croquettes would be great in a pita with tahini dressing, or any other way that complements the natural flavors of the croquettes. I suppose bread crumbs could be used instead of the sesame seeds, but these the sesame seeds make the end product much more visually appealing. Have fun!





SESAME SEED-ENCRUSTED CROQUETTES WITH BLACK BEANS, QUINOA, AND GINGER (VEGAN)

(Yield= 9 croquettes)

-1 cup cooked black beans, mashed with a fork
-1 cup cooked quinoa
-1 teaspoon sesame oil
-1 teaspoon tamari or soy sauce
-1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
-about 1/4 cup sesame seeds

Preheat broiler to highest setting.

Mix mashed beans, oil, tamari, and ginger in a medium bowl. Stir in quinoa. Form mixture into flattened patties, and set aside. Pour sesame seeds into a shallow bowl, and roll previously formed patties into sesame seeds to coat. Place croquettes on a meatball pan OR a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Cook croquettes under broiler until nicely browned, flipping once during the process to brown both sides. Let croquettes cool for a couple of minutes. Serve warm.