And the patties? Tasty, simple, easy. You’ll need just a cup of mashed butternut squash (or sweet potato, acorn squash). Mix it together with cooked quinoa, an egg, plus a few herbs and spices. Then cook ‘em up in a pan and serve with extra cranberry sauce. You’ll find that this is an easy gluten free meal, and just look at how beautiful they are. I always feel good when eating pretty, colorful food, don’t you?


Ingredients

  • For patties
  • 1 cup mashed and cooked butternut squash
  • 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa (or 1 cup cooked)
  • 1/2 small yellow onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, plus more for garnish
  • Salt and pepper
  • For cranberry sauce
  • 1/2 pound fresh cranberries, rinsed
  • 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon bourbon, if desired
  • Nonstick cooking spray
  • INSTRUCTIONS
    1. First cook the cranberry orange sauce: Combine cranberries, orange juice, maple syrup and bourbon in a small saucepan. Turn heat on high until it begins to boil, then reduce to medium low, cover and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes or until the sauce becomes thick. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. You may notice a popping sound; this is the cranberries bursting so don't worry!
    2. While the cranberries are cooking, you can cook the quiona: Add 1 cup of water and uncooked quinoa to a small saucepan and place over high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and fluff quinoa with a fork; set aside to cool for a few minutes.
    3. To make the patties: In a large bowl, combine mashed butternut squash, quiona, onion, garlic, egg, cumin, parmesan, basil, salt and pepper. Form into 4 patties and place in the fridge for 10 minutes to help keep the patties in their shape. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and generously spray with nonstick cooking spray. Place patties in pan and cook for 4-6 minutes or until golden brown, then flip and cook 4-5 minutes longer or until they have nice crispy golden edges. They may be a little difficult to flip so be careful and make sure they are packed tightly.
    4. Serve warm with a few tablespoons of cranberry sauce over the top and extra basil, if desired. Makes 4 patties and a generous amount of sauce.
    NOTES
    *Instead of butternut squash, you can used mashed sweet potato.

    If you leave off cranberry sauce, each patty will have 144 calories, 3.9g fat, 21.2g carbs, 2.8g fiber, 1.7g sugar and 7.2g protein.