Chickpea Carrot Patties with Carrot Coconut Cream

The first time I made these was for Thanksgiving the year I went plant-based.  I had two other guests who were plant-based and I really wanted to impress them and make everybody else jealous.

Not so much.  They were pretty much a soggy, oily mess that had the vegans/vegetarians looking at the turkey like it was a Chippendale dancer at a bachelorette party.

Not an auspicious start to my career as a vegan cook. And so I shelved this one  as a complete failure and moved on to salads and desserts.  It was a long time before I could bring myself to try any kind of patty or burger again.

Periodically, like a dog with a bone, I have revisited this recipe, and now I believe I have finally gotten it right.  And the secret is…..

In the ingredients of course!  And not mashing the carrots.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup grated carrots (Use the large hole side of the grater, approximately 4 good sized carrots)
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced carrots for the coconut cream
• 1 can chickpeas, drained but not rinsed, liquid reserved.
• 1/2 onion, chopped roughly (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic ( the stuff from a jar is a time saver.)
• 1/2 – 1 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• almond flour for coating the patties (optional)
• 1/2 cup cream from a can of coconut milk (put in the fridge overnight to separate the cream from the watery part.  You want the cream only for this recipe, not the water and whatever you do, don’t shake the can!)
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400.  Lightly toss the carrots in a tiny bit of olive oil and spread them on a lined baking sheet (I keep the shredded carrots separate from the carrot slices since, depending on how thick you slice the carrots, they might take a bit longer to cook). Bake the shredded carrot 15 minutes and the slices till tender. They should all be cooked but not browned.
2. Meanwhile, put the chickpeas, onions and garlic into a food processor and pulse till crumbly but not mushy.
3. Put into a bowl and add the salt, lemon juice, ginger and carrot shreds (no need to wait for them to cool off.)
4. Mix well, then form patties (I got 4 hamburger sized patties) Cover and put in fridge for at least an hour to help them firm up. (If you find they are too dry to pack into a burger, you can add a bit of the chickpea liquid to help, but I didn’t need to since I didn’t rinse the chickpeas. I would add it a teaspoon at a time to avoid making the patties too moist)
5. While the patties are in the fridge, take the cooked (cooled) carrot slices and puree them with the coconut cream and zest.  Cover and put in fridge till ready to use.
6. To cook the patties, dredge them in a bit of almond flour if using, then cook over medium-low heat in a bit of either olive oil or coconut oil till golden brown on each side.
7. Serve with the cream on the side, or put it on top and it will melt into a sauce over the patty.

Enjoy!