Back to College
Posted by Solange Berchemin on Paper Palate
Already, I hear you say, 
it will be no time before they leave home again to their respective universities and colleges, resuming their busy students’ lives; the question is “WHAT WILL THEY EAT THEN?” Here is a book whose title is a bit of a mouthful but that will ease parents’ worries: The Really Useful Ultimate Student Vegetarian Cook Book, by Helen Aitken.
There are two categories of recipes: easy and very easy. The blurbs around the recipes are comprehensive and informative. The recipes themselves are easy to follow, though some of them are not particularly on the cheap side on a student’s budget, as we are talking actual cooking and not just throwing lentils in a pot. They are all accurate and will provide myriad variations at mealtime. The recipes are suitable for beginners, tried and tested so success is assured.
I put the book to the test myself, asking around me, quickly realizing that very little cooking was going on among young adults. Or, if cooking was taking place, it was mostly the old favorites such as pasta. So with 40 pages of pasta recipes, it will hit the target. On the other end, the most enthusiastic cooks often Googled the ingredients available in the fridge or cupboard - so will they use a cookbook? the answer remains a mystery, but if they did, The Really Useful Ultimate Student Vegetarian Cook Book would be a good choice.
There are 6 chapters: Soups; Pastas and Noodles; Rice, Grains and Pulses; Casseroles, Curries and Bakes; Stir-Fries, Salads and Vegetables; Breakfast, Snacks and Standbys. I cooked Chickpea Patties with Caramelised Onions. It will not reach my top 10, but I realized that I hardly ever cook my onions that way, and I should - they were delicious.
Chickpea Patties with Caramelised Onions
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small red onion, finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 310g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 15g sunflower seeds
- 15g of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 35g besan flour*
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- Oil, for shallow frying
Caramelized onion
- 20g butter
- 1 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1½ teaspoons soft brown sugar
- Plain yogurt, to serve
*Besan flour is also known as chickpea flour
Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the onion and cook over medium heat for 3 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and cumin and cook for 1 minute. Allow to cool slightly.
Blend the drained chickpeas, sunflower seeds, coriander, egg, and onion mixture in a food processor until smooth. Fold in the besan flour and season. Divide the mixture into four portions and, using floured hands, form into patties. Heat 1 cm oil in a frying pan and cook the patties in two batches over medium heat for 2-3 minutes each side, or until firm. Drain on paper towels. Keep warm.
To make the caramelized onion, melt the butter in a small frying pan and cook the onion over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the sugar and cook for 1 minute, or until caramelized. Spoon over the patties with a dollop of yogurt.
Easy
50 minutes
Serves 2
