Christmas Chickpea Cakes with Spinach, Red Pepper & Feta

Still looking for an tasty Christmas dish to add to your table? Try these festive savory cakes made with chickpeas, herbs, spinach, roasted red pepper and chickpea flour. I'm just hoping I can save some from tomorrow!

My daughter requested chickpea cakes for our Christmas entree this year.  I had recently made a batch based on the Black Bean Pecan Cake recipe from my class at Millennium in June.  The black bean cakes were so popular, I decided to explore different beans and flavors.  The chickpea version tastes quite like a falafel, so how could I go wrong adding Mediterranean ingredients like roasted red peppers and feta?  

They came out brilliantly!  I think they'll go nicely with cranberry sauce.  I did a version with pecans and one without:  I prefer the pecan version. 

Happy Holidays to all!

p.s. You can now find Albion Cooks on Facebook

Chickpea Cakes with Spinach, Red Pepper & Feta:

2 tsp olive oil

1/2 red onion, diced fine

1-2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp sumac (optional)

1/8 tsp powdered harrisa (optional)

15 oz can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 TBS vegetable broth

1 tsp lemon olive oil (can substitute regular)

1 tsp meyer lemon juice

salt and pepper

1/4 cup chopped cilantro and parsley (I did a 50/50 mix)

1/2 cup chickpea flour

1/4 cup chopped fresh spinach

1/4 cup diced roasted red pepper

1/8 cup crumbled feta

2 TBS finely chopped pecans (optional)

Additional 1 TBS oil for pan frying

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Heat the oil in a pan and cook the onion and garlic until soft.  Add the spices and cook an additional 30 seconds.  Add the chickpeas, vegetable broth, lemon olive oil, lemon juice, 1/2 tsp salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until the chickpea start to soften and can easily be crushed with the back of a spoon.  Remove from the heat and cool.

In a mixing bowl, combine the cooled chickpea mixture with the cilantro, parsley, and chickpea flour.  Start by using a potato masher to crush the chickpeas and mix with the flour, then use your hands to knead into a dough. Leave lumps of chickpea and some whole chickpeas in the mix, you don't want a puree. Add the spinach, roasted red pepper (squeeze out any extra moisture if you are using jarred),  feta and chopped pecans and knead into a dough.  Taste the mix and add salt and pepper as desired. Form into patties about 2 inches in diameter.  

Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat for 2 minutes, then add the patties.  Cook on each side for about 2 minutes until they have a nice browned color. Remove from the pan and place on a cookie sheet and bake in the 350 oven for 7 minutes.