Quinoa cakes with chimichurri yoghurt

SERVES 4

1 small onion or 4 spring onions, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 big handful fresh coriander, parsley or basil, leaves and stems finely chopped separately

2-3tbsp butter pinch chilli flakes

2 eggs

50g flour, such as gram flour

540g cooked quinoa (which is 200g uncooked quinoa, rinsed well and drained – ideally soaked first)

100g feta, crumbled, or hard Italian cheese or

Cheddar, grated

For the chimichurri yoghurt

100ml full-fat natural yoghurt

1 big handful chopped fresh coriander, leaves and stems

1 big handful chopped chives, spring onions or onion

1 big handful chopped fresh parsley, leaves and stems

2tbsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice

2tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 fat garlic clove

1tsp dried oregano or thyme chilli flakes, to taste

In a wide frying pan, fry the onion, garlic and herb stems over a medium heat in 1tbsp of the butter with a good pinch of salt (less if your leftover quinoa has already been seasoned), pepper and chilli for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, whisk the eggs in a large bowl, then mix in the flour, followed by the cold quinoa and crumbled feta. Add the garlic, onion and herb mix to the bowl with the herb leaves. Mix well and shape into 12 cakes (or 24 bite-sized), around 1cm thick. The easiest way to do this is to split the mixture into two, and then keep dividing. If you're finding it tricky to form them, try adding a touch more flour.

If the cakes feel firm, then go ahead and start frying them. If not, pop them onto a plate and chill for 15 minutes to firm up.

To make the chimichurri yoghurt, combine all the ingredients with some salt and pepper and blitz in a food processor. Or you can chop all the ingredients, then thin out the mixture with a few tbsp water if you like it saucier.

Heat 1tbsp of butter in the original pan, then, once hot, add however many cakes you can fit into a single layer. You don't want them to be touching or they'll steam instead of fry. Let them sizzle for around 3 minutes on each side to get nice and golden and hot throughout.

Repeat for the rest of the batch, turning the heat up as you add the cakes, then lowering to a medium heat to fry. Put your cooked cakes in a low oven to keep warm while you finish the rest.