Salmon-Quinoa Baby Cakes

Could there be a more healthful recipe title than this?  Wild caught Alaskan salmon with its super high content of healthy fats, paired up with complete protein grain quinoa. Amazing!  At least that is what I'm hoping for. As I'm nearing the date to my final menu project for school I've been practicing this one quite a bit.  It's a recipe I adapted into a delicious starter course on my menu.  It will be served very similar to the photo except on a bed of mache (recently discovered favorite lettuce!) with a mustard aioli.

The process is pretty simple: Cooked quinoa and diced, sauteed vegetables (carrot, celery, onion), with small diced salmon.  Blend a bit of your quinoa and salmon in a food processor with the egg to get a gluten free binder too! I added tarragon and parsley to my version of these cakes and really love the flavor paired with mustard aioli.  I found forming the cakes in a mini muffin pan helped keep the cakes together. They are first baked in the oven and then removed and quickly pan fried in order to get a slightly crispy crust.  There is no real recipe here...try mixing cooked quinoa with various other mix-ins and herbs for a tasty starch side, very high in protein.

I hope you give them a try and enjoy!  -Vicki