Curried Vegan Broccoli Fritters

Not long ago I tried a recipe for a chickpea frittata that inspired me to use the concept for a vegan fritter full of finely chopped broccoli and quinoa. The vast majority of fritters use eggs and some sort of cheese and it isn’t always easy to find a vegan version. This one is packed with anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer compounds from the curry powder and broccoli.

Broccoli is part of the incredibly special cruciferous (brassica) vegetable family, which also includes cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and my favorite kale, among others. What makes this family of veggies so special, and so deserving of your attention, is that they are packed with nutrients and phytochemicals - most notably sulforaphane - that protect your DNA from damage (many researchers say that these veggies can even repair DNA damage) and thus they protect against numerous forms of cancer (including breast, prostate and lung cancer, among others). Cruciferous vegetables also tend to be very nutrient dense and high in fiber.

These fritters cook really well when they are prepped ahead of time. Much like when making socca (chickpea flatbread), the garbanzo bean flour and water mixture becomes more cohesive as it sits for longer. Beyond that, there is another big reason to prep these in advance: in order for sulforaphane (the important anti-carcinogenic compound) to form, it needs an enzyme called myrosinase. BUT, myrosinase is destroyed with cooking so you need to eat cruciferous vegetables in their raw form to get the benefit, with a couple exceptions. One exception is that if you chop up the broccoli first and then wait some amount of time (the article I reference below says 40 minutes), then the enzyme does its job to form the sulforaphane and because sulforaphane itself isn’t heat-sensitive, once it is formed you can cook your broccoli all you want.

For those of you who really get into this stuff, you will probably enjoy this article that goes into more detail.

But, in summary, to get the maximum health benefits from this recipe, prep the mixture in advance and let it rest in your fridge until you’re ready to cook later.

I love these fritters with this parsley pesto on the side; the earthy curry and the bright pesto go really nicely together. They are also nice with some avocado on top.

If you make them, or adapt them in some way, please let me know!!

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Curried Vegan Broccoli Fritters
Inspired by the Chickpea Omelette recipe (pg 34) from Happy Food by Bettina Campolucci Bordi

Notes: I almost always have cooked, unsalted quinoa in my fridge. If what you have on hand is salted quinoa, then reduce the salt in this recipe to 1/2 teaspoon or so.

1/2 cup garbanzo bean flour
1/2 cup filtered water
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 cup cooked quinoa (unsalted)
1 1/2 cups broccoli, chopped small
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
4 teaspoons curry powder
Olive oil for cooking

Combine the garbanzo bean flour, water, sea salt, baking soda and apple cider vinegar together and whisk well to combine. It will fizz a little bit due to the combination of the baking soda and vinegar. Let this sit for about 10 minutes while you prep the rest of your ingredients.

Add the quinoa, broccoli, garlic and curry powder to the garbanzo bean mix and stir well. At this point you can cook the fritters now or, as I usually do, throw the mix into the fridge until you’re ready to use it (see text above for why I do this).

When you’re ready to cook, put a large nonstick skillet over medium/low heat and add some olive oil. I use my 12-inch cast iron skillet for this. Use a spoon to form four fritters on the pan. Cook for 15-20 minutes on the first side. I sometimes gently move the fritters around after about 10-12 minutes for even browning, but please note that you need to let them sit on the pan for at least that long else they won’t hold together. After they are browned on the bottom, flip and cook for about 10 minutes on the second side. You will have to flip gently because these don’t have eggs.

Serve with pesto, avocado or plain and enjoy!

Serves 4

Creamy Broccoli Dill Soup

This soup will forever be the first "real" meal my daughter ever ate. As in, the first time she ate the same thing we were eating for dinner (at six and a half months old). I've documented the recipe below exactly the way I made it when Hannah first ate it, to memorialize the occasion.

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Creamy Broccoli Dill Soup

Notes: I use water here, but if you have homemade chicken or vegetable stock around, by all means use it. Also, this soups works really well with a zucchini added in; the zucchini makes it extra creamy. You can easily scale this soup up, just make sure your water just covers your vegetables when you pour it in.

Special equipment:
Vitamix or other high-powered blender

Ahead of time:
1/2 cup cashews soaked in filtered water for 3 hours (if you have a high powered blender, like a Vitamix, you don’t need to pre-soak).

To make the soup:
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2-pound head of broccoli, leaves trimmed and tough stems removed, chopped
2 teaspoons dried dill weed
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
4 cups water or just enough to cover the broccoli
Sea salt to taste

To serve:
Smoked or regular paprika
Olive oil
Cooked quinoa or brown rice, if desired to make it more substantial
Homemade croutons (my kids love this).. Toast bread cubes with some olive oil and/or butter until crispy

Heat olive in a stock pot over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onion is fragrant and a bit translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for a couple minutes more, still stirring. Add the broccoli, dill weed and ground mustard and sauté for a minute or two more. Add the water, bring to a gentle boil, and simmer for about 10 minutes. You want the broccoli to be a bit tender (a little hardness in the stems is OK, particularly if you have a high-power blender) but still bright green.

Pour the soup into a blender, along with the cashews, and blend until smooth. Transfer back to the stock pot and salt to taste. I use about 2 teaspoons of sea salt if I start with water.

You can serve it straight as is, or drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with some smoked paprika and/or with a scoop of quinoa or some homemade croutons for a more substantial meal.

Enjoy!